Page 97 of Love Again

Chloe starts to laugh. “I’m trying to get him to see the light.”

“A man needs his privacy,” says my brother.

“Well, you’re going to get it,” I say. They both stare at me, Chloe with a flash of nerves.

“I’m moving in with Devon and taking the job with the Rockland PD. So I’ll be out of your hair.”

He whips off his apron. “You interrupted a Scotch quail egg lesson for that? Tell me something I don’t know.”

“You need to be on the beach Sunday morning, nicely dressed.”

Chloe puts a hand over her mouth, the same way Devon does. She’s already guessed.

Keller, however, is hopeless. “I’ve got to run to the mill and pick up clapboards that day for The Inn. They say you’re working there too? You shouldn’t be doing any heavy lifting.” I watch his eyes flit to the now empty and rather lost-looking mason jars along the backsplash.

“You gotta let all that go. I’m fine.” I shift back to my original request. “This isn’t a choice, Keller. You’re coming to the beach—Sunday, ten o’clock sharp. Dress nice,” I repeat.

He puffs up a little and pokes at something frying with a large wooden spoon. He sniffs. “Is this okay?” he asks Chloe.

She nods. “You’re doing great. They’ll be delicious.”

My voice holds a warning. “Keller . . .”

“I’ll be there,” he says and then glances at me. “You aren’t doing something sloppy like renewing your vows are you?”

I dig my hands into my pants. I really need him not to joke about this right now.

I also need to learn to give my brother the benefit of the doubt, to trust him.

Chloe must nod, or maybe he finally puts two and two together at the last minute. He suddenly crosses the room and that bear-man wraps his huge arms around me in a massive hug.

΅

Devon

It’s been unreal having so much time off. I’ve been able to help with the cottage and The Inn, splitting my time between the two. I don’t know if it’s symbolic or just how my brain works, but somehow, being able to work at both sides and helping both sisters has made my nightmares disappear. It’s as if working on the structures has made the trauma of having to choose evaporate.

I considered, for a moment, moving in with my sisters. There’s plenty of space, for sure. But I decided not to even make it an option. I want Luke and I to have some privacy. Plus, he still recovering, and it’s going be a few more weeks till he’s really back on his feet. The fact he let me help him is enough. He still has a few evenings where he’s left exhausted and achy. I know he doesn’t want other people to see him this way.

But those evenings of dropping into bed, spent, are fewer and fewer and fading from memory. Luke’s recovering quickly. Yesterday, late afternoon, I came home from a hardware run and there he was, utility belt strapped to his waist, a level leaning against his leg, and pencil tucked behind an ear as he hammered up clapboards on The Inn. I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but he, Mateus, and Finn were cracking up over some shared joke.

I love this time in the evenings. Laurel’s between spring and summer sessions at school. Plus, she only works in the morning, so as soon as Cory comes home, she’s free to hang out with us. Chloe is cooking for about thirty different people—all of us and anyone who comes to help. Most leave with a to-go bag of treats. She loves it. Bryce and Mateus are usually back from Portland by five, and even Jackson is showing up on weekends to help out.

Luke is happy too. I can see it in his smile, how he carries himself, how he holds me in bed. Getting up, getting dressed, and going to work on a common problem with people he respects suits him fine.

And he’s looking great, filling out with both the good food and the good work.

It’s Saturday night. Travis and Geo showed up a few hours ago for dinner and to help.

I have to say, I don’t remember Geo ever holding a hammer in his life, but he does a pretty good job with it. Travis is the one who needs some coaxing into the arena of construction work. Mostly, he watches Cory and helps him bang on things with a tiny hammer.

Chloe makes a huge, amazing dinner and I eat until I’m stuffed. I have to remove myself from the kinetic energy of my family. They’re all way too excited about tomorrow. Luke will stay at the apartment above Weaver’s tonight. I’m holing up in my old room and getting ready for tomorrow.

Tomorrow, we say our vows.

Tomorrow, we make public what we hid for so long.

Correction—what I hid.