Page 20 of The Summer Swap

The bigger surprise though was the fact that he’d been almost holding hands with Kristen in the rose garden. Cecilia didn’t know what was going on, but she was confident that Jeff Singer’s interest in Kristen had nothing to do with her freshly highlighted hair or newly minted body. Unless she was mistaken, he had a very different agenda.

Did Kristen know that? How well did she know him?

She felt concern for her daughter. What did this relationship mean to her? Was this a fun flirtation or something more? Did she care for the man? Because if she did, then she was in trouble and a world of pain lay ahead.

If she had a closer relationship with her daughter, she might have found a way to steer Kristen away from him.

For the first time since his death, Cecilia wished Cameron were here so that she had someone to discuss this with. Someone to deal with Jeff.

She stood, frozen by indecision. Should she warn Kristen? No, she couldn’t do that without revealing that she’d been watching them. And she couldn’t warn her without revealing secrets that she and Cameron had kept safe for a long time.

And seeing Jeff had put an end to her indecision. She had to leave. She had no choice.

She didn’t want to see him. It said a lot that she preferred the idea of going back to the cottage on the Cape, even though the thought of it made her feel nauseous.

And as for Kristen—she was a grown woman. Cecilia knew that any interference from her would not be welcome and might even push her daughter closer to Jeff.

Right now, Cecilia had more important things to worry about than the state of her daughter’s marriage.

She lifted her case, took a final look at the envelope waiting for Kristen on the bed and left her bedroom. She took the back stairs, just to be safe, and met no one as she walked through the door that led directly to the stables.

Her car was parked where she’d left it, and no one was around to witness her hasty departure.

She drove toward the roughly made track that led through the woodland to the road. Few people knew about this entrance, and it was the perfect way to avoid being seen. Still her hands felt sweaty on the wheel, and she kept expecting someone to stop her.

It was a relief to reach the road. She tried not to think about what was going to happen when they discovered she’d gone. It was possible that Kristen would be so tied up handling the surprise appearance of her husband, or the drama unfolding in Todd’s life, that she might not notice for a while. And when Cecilia’s absence was eventually noticed, no one would know where she was.

She’d stop on the way and pick up some provisions to keep her going for a few days. Cameron had said in his letter that he’d arranged for the place to be maintained and kept ready for guests, so hopefully the place should be habitable.

One of the advantages of Dune Cottage was that they had no immediate neighbors. Early in their marriage it had provided an idyllic escape. She and Cameron would spend their days painting, absorbed by the landscape, their work and each other. They’d walk on the beach, eat lobster rolls dripping with butter and sleep with the windows open, the sound of the ocean filling their heads.

But then everything had changed. And The Girl on the Shore was the reason for that.

He was supposed to have destroyed it.

Did you destroy it, Cameron?

Trying not to think about that, she focused on the road. Even though it had been years since she’d last done this drive, it was so familiar it felt as if she’d driven it yesterday.

She took the historic “Old King’s Highway” which followed the northern coast of the Cape, because she wasn’t in a hurry and was willing to tolerate some congestion in exchange for the scenery and a dose of nostalgia.

She tried not to think about the times she and Cameron had driven this route in those early days, driving with the top down, wind blowing her hair into a tangle.

The road wound its way through Sandwich and Barnstable, past the beaches of Cape Cod Bay and along tree-shaded roads dotted with wildflowers, historic houses and quaint local stores. She stopped in Yarmouth and bought herself an ice cream, and then drove onward to Orleans where she bought a lobster roll and ate it while gazing at the sea.

For a moment she was transported back in time. She was young again and madly in love with Cameron, full of optimism and hope for the future.

The world had seemed like a wonderful place.

From Orleans she headed toward the tip of Cape Cod, past miles of sandy beaches.

She stopped outside a small store to stock up on provisions. She bought fresh bread, milk, berries, thick sliced ham, a mixture of French cheeses and an expensive bottle of white wine. That would do her for now, and she’d figure the rest out later.

She paid and then loaded her bags into the car.

On impulse, she checked her phone, but there was nothing. No missed calls and no messages, which presumably meant that Kristen either hadn’t yet discovered her absence or hadn’t had time to do anything about it.

Knowing that this was the last time she’d have a reliable signal, she dropped the phone back into her bag and prepared to make the last stage of the journey.

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