In the doorway to the guest bedroom, Lily Alrich Taylor stood, a strange furrow between her brows.
It had been weeks since she last laid eyes on her stepdaughter.
But it felt longer since Lily packed up her entire life and moved out to Provincetown in search of answers about her mother’s past. After weeks spent tracing Lily’s letters and replaying it all in her mind’s eye as she tried to picture everything, she could hardly believe she was here. Or that the view outside her window was one of calm crystal blue waters and a single, faded, old lighthouse in the middle of the sandy dunes of the beach.
The two-story beach house sat atop a gentle slope along the dunes, offering a panoramic and scenic view of the world outside. With its navy-blue shutters and a sloping gabled roofline boasting two dormer windows atop the second floor, it felt like something out of a dream.
Like Amy had painted the entire thing and then brought it to life somehow.
The past few days had been exactly what she needed, the calm and peace of Herring Cove Beach making her feel better about her impulsive decision. And the longer she stayed there, the less inclined she felt to go back to the city.
Why would she?
There was nothing waiting for her there.
Even her kids, who called her several times throughout the day and sent various emails, all in the hopes of understanding her decision, couldn’t persuade her to return. As far as they were concerned, Amy was having some kind of crisis, one they couldn’t understand. Over the past few days, Amy had taken to getting up with the first rays of the sun and leaning over the railing to watch the sun rise to the middle of the sky.
Each morning, she watched in awe as streaks of orange and red lit up the morning skies, chasing away the shadows and bathing everything in a warm and buttery hue. Then she lingered on her balcony, not wanting to return inside and face her life. Although she knew Lily and Ben were happy to have her there, Amy knew she couldn’t stay forever.
Still, she was reluctant to leave because she didn’t know where else she was supposed to go. It had been forty-seven years since she made the decision to marry Eric, a hotshot lawyer, who had swept her off her feet in a few short months. Forty-seven years since she’d made any big decisions for herself and at least thirty years since she’d been on any kind of vacation.
It felt freeing to know she could still make her own choices.
Whatever else Eric had taken from her, he hadn’t taken this.
He couldn’t, and she wouldn’t let him, either.
Lily cleared her throat and stepped into the room, her ankle-length green dress flapping with the wind that poured in from the open window. She stopped in front of the large bed tosmooth out the corners, and when she looked back up, Amy was struck anew at how different Lily looked.
Her stepdaughter was not the same person who’d left the city behind months ago. Gone were the dark shadows that had settled over her face, and there were almost no traces of the tightness around her eyes. Even the way Lily held herself was different, and Amy felt a surge of pride course through her at the woman her stepdaughter had become.
“You’re welcome to stay here for as long as you like,” Lily said with a wave of her hand. “You know I love having you here.”
Amy picked up the pile of folded laundry and threw the closet doors open. “What about Ben? I’m sure he doesn’t like having to share.”
Lily frowned. “Ben isn’t like Dad, Amy. You do know that, right?”
Amy shut the closet doors and spun around to face her stepdaughter, color creeping up her neck and cheeks. “Of course. I don’t know why I said that. Force of habit, I guess.”
Lily perched on the edge of the bed and patted the spot next to her.
Like she’d done so many times when Lily was growing up, Amy walked over to her stepdaughter and sat down next to her. Lily surprised Amy by draping an arm over her shoulders and tucking her stepmother into her side. It was a gesture Amy had done to her so many times as a little girl that it filled her eyes with tears.
Provincetown had been good to Lily.
Amy was starting to wonder if it could be good for her too.
“You don’t have to make apologies for him, not here,” Lily said in a quiet voice. “I know it’s going to take a while to break a lifetime of habits, but I’m going to help you.”
Amy swallowed. “I appreciate that, Lily, but I feel ridiculous. I shouldn’t have brought more problems to your doorstep. Not when you’re starting fresh.”
Lily drew back to look at Amy, and her expression was solemn. “Is he still sending you threatening messages?”
“Messages, emails, and voicemails. He’s leaving no stone unturned except for the kids, but I don’t think he’s above using them to lure me back,” Amy admitted, pausing to push her overgrown blond hair out of her eyes. “I don’t know what I’ll do if he does that.”
Because she was already feeling anxious and uncertain about the whole thing.
It was one thing to need a break from her life, but it was another thing entirely to feel like her life wasn’t working anymore.
