Page 15 of Safe With You

Chapter Eight

Katie’s breath hitched in her chest, though her heart beat with longing. For some reason, she’d believed that she needed to see the attorney before entering Grandma’s cottage, but it struck her now that wasn’t true. She could go home.

“Yes, I would like to see it.”

They both got up to get their shoes. Back outside, Katie walked close to Ethan under the big yellow umbrella he had pulled from the hall closet. They followed a path through the trees toward Grandma’s property that paralleled the lake. How many times had the two of them dashed along this path? Obviously, Ethan had maintained it over the years. Instead of worn dirt and pine needles like when they were kids, it looked like he’d put down mulch sometime within the last couple of years.

About halfway between the house and cottage, he motioned to the narrow point that jutted into the lake between the two properties—the same point where they’d attempted their campout. “Remember the fort we built?”

Memories of the teepee-like fort she, Ethan, and his siblings had constructed one summer filled her mind. She grinned. “Yes, and I distinctly remember that day we all piled inside while it was raining and ate those Bottle Caps candies. I loved those.”

“That fort stayed impressively dry. I’m sure Joel would try to claim credit since it was his idea to use pine branches before covering it in leaves.”

Katie laughed and eyed the structure still standing amongst the couple of pines growing there. “Looks like someone’s kept the tradition alive.”

“Yeah, I helped Joel’s kids build that last summer. I wanted them to have the same fun memories.”

His smile warmed her heart with how much he enjoyed interacting with them. “Sounds like you’re a great uncle.”

He shrugged, his smile still intact and displaying his love for his family. “We have fun. It’d be nice if you met them before you have to leave.”

“I’d like that.” She wasn’t sure where the visit would fit in, but she did wish to see them. It was crazy to think of Joel with four kids when he hadn’t even been married when she left. So much had changed.

A little beyond the peninsula, the trees opened up, and Katie saw the cottage for the first time in fifteen years. Small and quaint, the white siding and green tin roof were just like she remembered. The sight of it pressed on her lungs and blurred her vision. She blinked hard to clear it as they approached the enclosed front porch. The red screen door drew a teary smile to her face. It had faded over the years and could use a fresh coat of paint, but everything about it made her think of Grandma.

Ethan reached out to open it and let her in ahead of him. Katie sucked in her breath. The porch had hardly changed since she’d left. The mismatched wicker furniture occupied the same places, and various knickknacks and vintage items adorned the white shiplap walls. Ethan closed the umbrella and leaned it against the wall before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a key. When he unlocked the main door, he motioned her into the cottage.

Katie slowly stepped inside. Memories engulfed her as she looked around the rustic country kitchen and dining area that opened into a cozy living room. The navy and white checkerboard-painted floor creaked under her as she walked deeper into the cottage. Tears came again, this time running down her cheeks. It even smelled the same—a little musty with so much vintage furniture but pleasant and homey. She ran her hand along the red Formica dining table in one corner of the kitchen and stepped around the island into the living room. Grandma’s entire life was in this cottage, and it was as if she had never left. Almost as if she was still here and would appear from the doorway of her little downstairs craft room.

Katie stepped into that room next. Though cluttered like most of the cottage, it contained all the best clutter—piles of colorful fabric scraps, baskets full of ribbons and spools of thread, jars of vintage buttons. She drew a shaky breath and rested her hand lovingly on Grandma’s old sewing machine on an antique table under the windows. A still-pinned piece of fabric lay next to it, waiting to be sewn. She squeezed her eyes shut, struggling to breathe through the burning in her chest.

When she opened them again, she found Ethan in the doorway, his eyes misty. Katie swallowed hard, working her throat loose. “This is where she taught me how to sew. She loved this room so much.”

She wiped her sleeves across her face and moved on to the rest of the cottage, including the two small upstairs bedrooms. Every nook and cranny held a memory. She stopped to look at photos and other trinkets Grandma had left behind. Ethan remained near but let her take her time and grieve in a way she hadn’t been able to yesterday. Though he said little, his steady presence comforted her. Even before Grandma had died and with Drew around, loneliness clung to her—something she’d experienced most of her life except for when she was here. Maybe it was just being back at the one place that had ever been home, but somehow she didn’t feel alone with Ethan.

After a long look around, Katie sank into the cushions of the living room couch, the comfort she found here stained with regret. Ethan sat beside her, and she shifted to face him, fighting tears. Her voice barely reached a cracked whisper. “I should have come back while she was still here.”

Ethan reached over and took her hand. His fingers were calloused, probably from his woodworking, but gentle and warm. “Life isn’t always that simple. Were you still in California before her stroke?”

She nodded, reaching up with her free hand to wipe her face with her sleeve. She hadn’t been financially or emotionally able to come back then, but it didn’t erase the regret. She could have made it work. Somehow. “Yes. I chose to stay when my mom and Grant moved back to Wisconsin.” She breathed out a long breath. It had been the moment she had escaped. It still terrified her.

“Were you happy after they left?”

A sad laugh broke from Katie’s chest, sounding more like a sob, and she shook her head. “No. I had always believed things would magically get better after I was free of Grant.” She sniffed back tears. Even now, with therapy, it was still hard to talk about, but Ethan made it easier. “Turns out, all the baggage and trauma stayed behind and had a bigger impact on my self-esteem than I’d ever realized. I struggled with depression during those six years, and I realize now how lonely I was. I bounced around between jobs and never truly connected with anyone.”

Ethan’s thumb brushed lightly over the back of her hand. “I’m sorry. I’m sure that was hard.”

“Yeah. And then Grandma had her stroke.” Katie swallowed down the bitterness that still rose whenever she remembered that time. “My mom didn’t even call me when it happened. I didn’t find out until they had already moved her into the nursing home in Madison.”

“Why would she do that?”

“I think she knew I would fight the decision. Grandma loved it here in Two Lakes. I know she didn’t leave willingly, but she made the best of it once it was done.”

Ethan shook his head. “She didn’t deserve that.”

“No, she didn’t. That’s why I finally moved back. I couldn’t bear thinking of her in that nursing home with no one around who loved her. I don’t think my mom visited her once the whole time she was there. So I moved to Elling. It’s just north of Madison. I didn’t want to be in the city and risk running into them somewhere. I visited Grandma almost every day. And despite everything, she just kept smiling and never lost her joyful spirit. She lived her whole life that way. I’ve always envied that about her.”

“She was an extraordinary lady.”

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