Page 51 of Trick of Light

Until it wasn’t, she thought.

“Are you still friendly with your siblings?” the bartender asked.

Bethany kept her smile up. “My older sister, Rebecca, just moved back to Nantucket, too. We’re becoming closer than ever, and her kids have really taken to my kids even though they’re quite a bit older. It’s been a dream.”

Valerie remained out in California. They hadn’t heard from her much as of late, and it felt like a black hole they were purposely ignoring. Esme, Victor, Bethany, and Rebecca all ached to hear from her soon—to unite their family fully. Maybe there was still time.

“What do you do for work? If you don’t mind me asking,” the bartender asked.

“I’m a surgeon.”

The bartender stopped scrubbing the counter and gave her a bug-eyed look. “A surgeon! Wow. I don’t know if I’ve ever met a female surgeon before. And at this hotel, I meet a lot of people.”

Bethany beamed. “We’re still a rare breed, I’m afraid.”

“A surgeon,” he repeated. “I’m going to tell my daughters about you. They really can be anything when they grow up. Society welcomes change.” He continued to shake his head. “I hope my kids don’t look down on me and my bartending gigs. I’m sure one day they will.”

“No,” Bethany assured him, her voice firm. “One day, they’ll understand that everything you did was for their benefit. That you fought to put food on the table and clothes on their back. And that you cared about them, genuinely, in everything you did.”

Bethany wasn’t sure why she answered him with such ferocious intensity. But his eyes were so large they were apt to swallow her.

“Thank you for saying that,” he said after a pause. “I can’t tell you what that means to me.”

Sometimes, Bethany knew, people just needed to be seen and heard. As the soon-to-be ex-wife of a Waterstone, she knew that more than most.

As the ferry pulled into the Nantucket Harbor, Bethany peered across the water to see her mother, her father, Rebecca, her nieces and nephew, and all three of her children. They waved wildly as the boat grew closer and closer. Phoebe held a large sign over her head, which she’d apparently colored herself with crayons and markers. Bethany could make out the words WELCOME HOME, MOM. It was enough to make her burst into tears.

Bethany pulled her car off the ferry and parked in the lot near her family. She leaped out and wrapped her children in her arms as tears rained down her cheeks. Everyone was speaking at once, asking her how her drive had gone and if she’d remembered “that thing” they’d wanted from home.

“I have everything,” Bethany assured them. “Don’t worry about it.”

She hugged her sister, mother, and father next. In her ear, Victor whispered, “I’m so proud of the doctor you’ve become, honey.”

Bethany had never imagined wanting her father’s approval. Not after what he’d done to their family. But hearing it now, in the chaos of the Nantucket Harbor, she nearly burst into sobs.

“Look who’s here!” Rebecca called as Bethany and Victor’s hug broke.

Bethany turned on her heel to find Rod, Renee, and little Felix in his wheelchair approaching them. Due to the nature of his surgery, Felix was only permitted to walk a few minutes per day. She’d assured them, with physical therapy, he would be back to his feet full-time by autumn.

Seeing Rod thrilled her. She had to stop herself from running toward him with her arms out wide. She had to stop herself from leaping upon him and covering him with kisses. Now that she knew about Nick’s affair and fresh start, she’d begun to ask herself, why not me and Rod, too?

Rod hugged and kissed her on the cheek. His familiar smell filled her nostrils and made her heart ache.

“Welcome home, Bethy,” he breathed. “You were gone too long.”

Renee walked around the Sutton family, introducing herself and Felix. Esme, of course, knew them well, as Renee had brought Felix into the Sutton Book Club children’s corner several times. Felix babbled happily with Esme as Esme bent down to ask him questions about his trip.

“I heard you went to Savannah. You are such an adventurer!” Esme said.

Felix beamed.

Rebecca insisted that everyone come back to the Sutton house for a barbecue. “I hope you haven’t eaten?” she asked Renee. “We bought enough food to feed a small army.”

“We’re always hungry,” Renee assured her. “We can help you out.”

Back at home, Tommy insisted that Bethany sit in the “chair of honor” on the back porch. Rebecca poured her a glass of rosé and passed her a bag of salt-and-vinegar chips, Bethany’s favorite, as most of the kids ran around the yard and along the beach, dipping their toes in the surf. Phoebe had taken control of Felix’s wheelchair off to the side, where they colored pictures and chatted. Although Phoebe had seven years on Felix, she liked nothing more than being artistic and opening her heart to little kids.

Bethany remembered the fear Amanda and Bob had had for Phoebe’s future. “She needs better grades in science if she’s ever going to become a Waterstone doctor.”

---