Page 106 of Dream Lake

They were silent for a moment, their pleasure in each other’s company almost palpable.

“Let’s get going,” Tom murmured. “We’ve got some lost time to make up for.”

“About sixty-seven years,” she told him.

He smiled into her eyes. “We’d better get started, then.” Sliding an arm around Emma’s shoulders, he guided her to the doorway. Stopping at the threshold, they turned to look back at Alex.

He saw them through a sudden blur. He had to clear his throat roughly before he could speak. “Thanks. For everything.”

The other man smiled in understanding. “You and I both got it wrong, Alex: love does last. In fact… it’s the only thing that does.”

“Take care of Zoë,” Emma told him gently.

“I’ll make her happy,” Alex said in a gravelly voice. “I swear it.”

“I know you will.” She held his gaze for a long, affectionate moment. “Work on that foxtrot,” she eventually said, and gave him a wink.

The next moment, they were gone.

Putting on his jeans, Alex went barefoot to the kitchen, where a pot of coffee was brewing. But Zoë wasn’t there.

Seeing that the door to Emma’s room was ajar, he realized she had gone to check on her grandmother. He found Zoë sitting on the edge of the bed with her head bent. Although he couldn’t see her face, he could hardly miss the glitter of tears falling into her lap.

“Alex—” she said in a suffocated voice. “My grandmother—”

“I know, sweetheart.” He held out his arms, and she went to him at once. He wrapped her in his arms and murmured against her hair, telling her that he loved her, he would always be there for her. She buried her face against him and breathed in shuddering sighs, until her tears finally slowed.

After a while, Alex eased Zoë from the bedroom and closed the door. “She’s happy now,” he said, keeping an arm around her. “She wanted me to tell you that.”

“Are you sure?” she asked, looking bewildered.

“Very sure,” he replied firmly. “She’s with Tom.”

Zoë pondered that for a moment. “I don’t know anything about Tom.” She wiped a last smudge of moisture from her cheek. “I don’t know if I like the idea of her going off with a man I don’t know.”

Alex smiled down at her. “I can tell you a few things about him…”

Epilogue

A week after Emma’s funeral, Zoë went back to work at the inn. It was a beautiful September morning, sunny and clear. The farmers’ markets had begun to feature dazzling varieties of apples, along with squash, eggplant, carrots, and fennel. The orca pods had begun to travel farther away from the island as the salmon had finished their runs and reached the mainland spawning rivers. Wintering loons and ducks had begun island-hopping to feast on marine life, and bald eagles busied themselves with adding sticks to their massive nests.

As Zoë made breakfast, she wondered why it was so quiet at the inn. Justine had dashed in and out of the kitchen with barely a word to her. And although Alex had promised to stop by for breakfast after running a couple of errands, he still hadn’t shown up. The guests, for that matter, were oddly silent, with none of the usual conversation and clinking of coffee cups.

Before Zoë could venture out of the kitchen to find out what was going on, Justine appeared.

“Is breakfast ready?” Justine asked without preamble.

“It will be in about fifteen minutes.” Zoë gave her a quizzical smile. “What’s happening? Why is everyone so quiet?”

“Never mind that. Someone’s at the front door, asking for you.”

“Who is it?”

“Can’t tell you. Take off your apron and come with me.”

“Couldn’t you just send them back here?”

Justine shook her head and tugged Zoë along with her. They went through the hallways and into the empty dining room.

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