Page 53 of The Lost Book of First Loves

“Hank. I told you not to come over here and bother the nice lady.”

When she looked across the clearing, she found Beckett walking toward them, sunglasses shielding his eyes and sunlight glinting off his dark hair. Her chest suddenly felt tight, but she suspected it had more to do with her unease at his presence than any actual cardiac issue right now.

“Good morning,” she said. “I was about to take him back to your place. He stopped by to do yoga with me, apparently.”

He smiled as he walked closer and June willed herself not to respond. “Hank has skills I never realized.”

“You might think he would excel at downward dog, but it’s actually morning sun salutation where he really shines.”

“Good to know.” He smiled again, then looked at her with concern. “Are you okay to do yoga?”

She wiped a towel across her forehead, wishing she were wearing something slightly less revealing than body-hugging workout pants and a bright pink tank top with the Move Inc logo across her breasts.

“Yes. Every day I feel stronger, but I am afraid I have a long way to go before I feel like myself again.”

“You’ll get there. Before you know it, you’ll be commanding board meetings again and running with all the movers and shakers.”

“My running days might be over. I’ve been feeling sorry for myself about that.”

She suddenly didn’t want to talk about her health issues or anything else about herself. “Would you like coffee?” she asked on impulse.

Surprise flitted across his expression at the offer. “Coffee would be great. Thank you. You’re a lifesaver, actually. I ran out yesterday and need to head to the store.”

“Come in.”

She was drinking decaf, unfortunately, but Carson had a whole drawer of pods for the high-end coffeemaker in the kitchen.

“I’ve already put hot water in,” she said as Beck went straight to the drawer with a familiarity that spoke of his long relationship with the author. Hank, she saw, had stretched out in his usual spot in front of the fireplace, even though there was no fire going.

After making his coffee, Beck picked up the mug and sipped with a grateful look before he wandered over to the dining table, where all the journals were spread out.

“You look like you’ve been working hard. I hope it hasn’t been too onerous for you.”

“Not at all. It’s fascinating. I loved his work before because my mother did, but now that I’m coming to know him as a person, I admire what he accomplished even more.”

“He was a complicated man, as I’m sure you’re learning from the journals.”

“Yes. Did you know he ran away at sixteen? Not because he was unhappy at home, only because he wanted to experience more of life than the suburban Green Bay home where he was raised.”

“I did. He talked about what a mistake it was and how much he regretted hurting his parents.”

“I could relate to how alone he felt when he left home. I had a wonderful foster home after my mom died, but still struck out on my own at seventeen, when I left for college. In retrospect, I was way too young to be responsible for myself.”

“How did your mom die?” he asked.

She debated how to answer, then decided on the truth. “She was a high school teacher and was in a car accident on her way home from school one day. There one moment, then gone the next.”

“I’m sorry.” The harsh lines of his features softened with compassion.

She wanted to make some kind of casual acknowledgment of his sympathy, but she couldn’t find the words. Losing her mother had shaped her entire life. “It was devastating,” she said honestly. “She was... all I had.”

She could remember it so very clearly. Waiting at track practice for her mom to pick her up. Finally jogging home after leaving several frustrated voice mail messages when she couldn’t reach Elizabeth on her cell, only to find a police officer waiting for her at their house with the grim news that her mother was on life support and not expected to survive.

That night, June had stayed with a neighbor, one of her mother’s good friends who had rushed over as soon as she heard the news and had driven her to the hospital. Tamara Aoki had wanted to take her in, but she and her husband had been going through a nasty divorce at the time, fighting over custody over their own children, and June hadn’t wanted to add to the chaos.

She knew she had been extraordinarily lucky in her foster care placement. Living in Cape Sanctuary had truly been idyllic. Stella Davenport had welcomed her into her home with a generous love that still made her want to cry whenever she thought about it.

As loving as Stella had been, her kindness still hadn’t filled the gaping void Elizabeth’s death had left in June’s life.

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