Page 75 of The Summer We Started Over

“I don’t know,” Barrett said. “I’ve got to do laundry, and help clean the kitchen, and I’m already bushed from working seven days a week.”

“Then you really need to go to Madaket,” Eddie told her.

Dinah spoke up. “Your sister is right. We should go to Madaket now. Tell your father to clean the kitchen.”

Barrett stared in shock. “I thought you were all about romance.”

Dinah lifted one perfectly shaped eyebrow. “There is nothing romantic about a messy kitchen and something very sexy about a man who can do the dishes.”

Eddie laughed. “That sentiment should be printed on dish towels.” She tugged Barrett’s arm. “Come on. Let’s go.”

Eddie led the way. William’s door was shut. She knocked on it.

“Dad, we’re going out to Madaket. Would you clean the kitchen? Thanks. Bye.”

Before he could speak, the three women hurried out the door to Eddie’s Jeep.

Eddie flicked on the radio as she drove and Meghan Trainor’s “All About That Bass” blasted into the air. When they arrived at the west end of the island, they discovered the Madaket sunset was no secret. Dozens of cars were parked in the small parking lot.

“Never mind,” Eddie said. “We’ll walk.”

They parked on the side of the road and walked to a giant dune blocking the view. Eddie was their trailblazer. They climbed the dune and stood at the top, catching their breath and gazing out at the long stretch of perfect beach stretching out to the horizon. Laughing, they half slid down the dune and hurried to slip their feet into the water.The sea was calm, the tide drifting up to shore and whisperingssssshas it receded. They slowly walked west, not speaking, as if listening to what the ocean was telling them. When the sun was close to the horizon, they sat cross-legged to watch the light play over the sky and sea, and the view was so vast, the water turning amber, brown, gold, so it seemed that if they ran into the water now, they would come out with their own skin magically flickering with sunlight.

Eddie cleared her throat. “Dinah, remember when I told you about our brother, Stearns? And Dove, who was our friend? Before Stearns died, Dove had a baby, a little boy, Bobby. Stearns died, and Dove took Bobby to Colorado with her. Well, um, I’ve had an email from Dove. They’re coming to visit us, here, on the island. I don’t know exactly when.”

“How nice,” Dinah said. “I look forward to meeting them.” She continued gazing at the sky.

It took a long time for the sun to sink below the horizon. When it did, a group watching from the top of a cliff applauded. At once, the air was cooler and the world was a darkening gray.

Dinah broke the silence. “My hair is frizzing.”

Barrett laughed and Eddie said, “It’s part of Nantucket’s charm.”

As if sent by the sun, a breeze came up, and they shivered.

“Time to go home,” Eddie said.

They walked down the beach, back up the dune, down to the road. This time, as Eddie drove home, she didn’t turn on the music. No one talked. They were lost in their own thoughts.

When they returned to the house, they discovered that William had cleared the table, cleaned the kitchen, and started the dishwasher. Eddie and Barrett did a high five.

—

Barrett buzzed with good energy as she opened her shop. She should walk by the ocean every evening, or at least several times a week. She unpacked deliveries, set out more stock, dusted, and polished.

She was surprised when Paul came in, carrying a box of carved pieces.

“Oh, good,” Barrett said. “We’ve sold all of your boxes and only one songbird is left.”

Paul put the box on the counter and brought out several paperweights, carved into orbs, except for the flat bottom, and painted to resemble a blue ocean with a gold Nantucket Island curving over the top. They were stunning.

“Wow, Paul. These are amazing. This is your best work yet,” Barrett told him.

They discussed the pricing, and Barrett gave him the proceeds from his sales last week, and she offered him coffee, and he said he’d rather buy two very cold iced coffees from Provisions.

“It’s almost noon,” Barrett realized. “The wharf is deserted. Anyone with any sense is at the beach now. Let’s sit on the bench outside.”

“Agree. I’ll be right back.” Paul left the shop.

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