Page 99 of The Lighthouse at the Cove
“I’ll see you in the morning,” she told him. “Bright and early, right?”
“Yeah.” He hesitated, and she held her breath, hoping he’d touch her. But he adjusted his daughter in his arms. “Good night, Kaiah,” he said before heading toward the house.
She watched him go before hurrying up the stairs and retreating into the apartment. She sat on the sofa, powered up her laptop, and stared at Anita’s message. The longer she looked at it, the more confusion swirled in her mind.
She opened a new document to start another article on the festival, but her thoughts kept returning to Reid’s offer to stay and build a life in Coral Cove. The pain in his eyes when she’d rejected him sent another ribbon of sadness twisting her chest.
Clicking onto her internet browser, she typed the address for the little pink house into the search bar, and the home appearedon her screen. She scrolled through the photos—a small kitchen, a bedroom, a bathroom, a small den, and a little screened-in porch.
It really is perfect for me.
She studied the monthly rent and tried to imagine a life there—spending time with Reid, Piper, and their family. A family,a real family, something she’d craved since she’d lost her mother.
But what would she do about her career? And was she ready to trust another man with her heart?
And what if things didn’t work out with Reid? What then?
Well, once again she’d simply have to find the strength to pick up the pieces and move on. But somehow she knew that if she lost Reid, rebuilding her world would be even more painful this time. Reid was so different from Hayes. He added so much love and joy and peace to her life, the opposite of Hayes, who seemed to take much more than he gave. At the same time, having a relationship with Reid meant she also had Piper to think about. If she made a commitment to Reid, then she’d have to make a commitment to Piper. And the last thing she ever wanted to do was break that little girl’s heart.
Her head started to spin, and she collapsed against the back of the sofa. This was all too much to think about.
Her phone dinged with a text, and she found Kam’s name on the screen.
Kam: Hey, sis! I haven’t heard from you. Everything okay?
Kaiah studied the screen and took a cleansing breath. She could call her sister and spend hours weighing the pros and cons of staying in Coral Cove as opposed to taking the job withUS Road Trip, but she was too exhausted to rehash her hospital stay or her confusing feelings for Reid.
Instead, she just wanted to pour herself into another article, into sharing the fantasy of Coral Cove. After all, it was Monday, and the festival ended Thursday. She wanted to lose herself in her last few days of Coral Cove before she faced saying goodbye.
With her thumbs hovering over the phone, Kaiah texted back:Hey, Kam! How you feeling? I’m so sorry I haven’t texted. I’ve been so busy with the festival and writing. Everything’s fine. I’m heading to bed, but I promise I’ll call later this week.
The dancing dots appeared almost immediately.
Kam: I’m fine. No problem. Talk to you later. Tell Mr. TDH I said hi, and have a fun week.
Releasing a long sigh, Kaiah opened a blank document on her computer and tried to concentrate on writing her next article instead of rehashing her confusing feelings for Reid, for Piper, and the life-changing decision she’d have to make way too soon.
Chapter 24
The sweet aroma of fresh funnel cakes mingled with popcorn and cotton candy as Kaiah walked past food vendors with Reid, Piper, Becca, Cash, and Astrid on Thursday night. It was the last day of the festival, and a carnival was set up in the elementary school’s parking lot. Happy music played from the carousel while bells and whistles rang out from nearby games and voices of all ages shrieked as the roller coaster roared down the track.
The past few days had flown by while Kaiah had enjoyed the myriad activities she, Becca, and Reid had planned and the town had come together to create: a craft show, a town parade, a museum day filled with tours and historical booths, a fishing tournament, a talent show, and more live performances at the stage. They’d also hosted the mini-marathon with more than a hundred participants. Piper distributed the ribbons and trophies after the race, and Kaiah took photos of the winners. Over the past few days, Kaiah had done her best to soak up every happy moment with Reid and Piper. In between the flurry of activity, she’d also published another storyabout Coral Cove, though this one didn’t goquiteas viral—not that she was complaining. She still hadn’t responded to Anita Williams’s message, even though she’d spent each night staring at the ceiling, making a mental pros and cons list for staying or for taking the job.
Reid had returned to being his warm self. Neither of them had mentioned their brief conversation when he’d asked her to stay.
But the last day of the festival had officially arrived, and a bubble of sadness had been expanding in her chest all day long. How could it all be coming to an end?
Reid’s voice from Monday night echoed in her mind.
Stay, Kaiah.... You can work anywhere, right? Why not make this your home base? You could travel all you want, write any story you want, and then come home to me and Piper.
“Can you keep a secret?” Becca asked, interrupting her thoughts.
“Sure,” Kaiah said as Cash and Reid led the girls to a nearby vendor selling cotton candy.
“This hasn’t been made public yet, but we’ve already raised so much money that we can not only renovate the school—we can upgrade the lighting in the lighthouse and refurbish the whole thing. Can you believe it, Ky? We’re going to make the lighthouse beautiful again.” Becca’s dark eyes misted over. “The festival has been such a success, and it’s all because of your help. If you hadn’t gotten the word out about our sleepy little town, we never could have done this. I can’t even begin to thank you enough.”
Becca pulled her in for a hug, knocking Kaiah off-balance. She held on to her friend, and tears pressed against her eyes.
