Page 18 of The House on Firefly Beach
Sydney wondered if Nate and Juliana were there for couple’s therapy but she didn’t need to confirm it. She’d read that Nate and Juliana had had a rocky relationship—on-again-off-again—but they were working things out. And now, here was Juliana, with him, in Firefly Beach. Surely it would be easier to get therapy here, without the glare of the media spotlight.
Then the thought occurred to Sydney that there was a slight possibility that Nate might actually not tire of Firefly Beach and leave the way she’d hoped. He’d said himself that Juliana liked it here, that it was remote like her childhood home. And now he was moving back, getting therapy. They were clearly settling in. Sydney’s breakfast sat like a cinder block in her stomach.
“Hey there, Miss Sydney,” Melissa said with a giant grin. The owner of the local coffee shop Cup of Sunshine greeted everyone with Mr. or Miss and then their first name. Her chocolate-colored hair was piled on top of her head in a messy bun, and her reading glasses were perched on the end of her nose.
“Hi, Melissa.” Sydney slid her laptop onto the counter so she could fiddle around in her handbag for her wallet. She pulled out a crumpled napkin and two receipts, and set them aside.
“No Robby today?” Melissa asked.
“No, I’m going to try to get a little work done.”
“Ah,” she said, grabbing a square of parchment and taking a small button cookie out of the glass display case, handing it to Sydney. Whenever Robby went in with her, Melissa always gave him a button cookie. “You’ll have to eat this for him then,” she said with a wink. “What’ll it be?”
“Definitely the Butter Pecan Latte. What else is there in this world?”
Melissa’s large bosom heaved with her light laughter. “Absolutely nothing,” she said, ringing up the drink.
Sydney handed over her credit card.
“I’ll bring it out to you,” Melissa said, swiping the card and handing it back. “Want me to throw this stuff away?” She took the receipts and napkin and held them up.
Sydney thanked her for taking care of her trash.
Then something caught Melissa’s eye. “Hang on,” she said, holding out her hand. “Do you want to keep this one?” She held out the napkin. “It’s got something on it.”
“Definitely not. Why would I want to use a napkin that’s got something on it?” she teased, looking down at the writing that was scratched onto the napkin.
Melissa laughed, handing it over.
“The rest is trash, thanks.” Sydney peered down at Logan’s name and number. She remembered at the end of the wedding, taking the napkin inside and stuffing it into her handbag. Logan had been so nice. He’d made her laugh on the dance floor… She headed to an open table while nibbling on her cookie, thinking. She’d made some good headway on the magazine cover with Mary Alice, and she was feeling excited about starting her response for Ms. Flynn. Perhaps it was her good mood, but after she set her things down, she picked up her phone and texted Logan:
This is Sydney Flynn from the wedding. Just wanted to say hello. Thanks for a fun evening at the wedding.
Then she put her phone away and opened her laptop.
What should she say to Rebecca who’d moved away from her family? She considered her own life…
Sydney began to type.
Hi Rebecca,
It must be difficult to be alone. But perhaps you were meant to be on your own so that you could think through your circumstances properly. Consider the people around you—those are the people who have been put in your path. If you could pick one person you’d like to impact—a coworker? A neighbor?—who would it be? And now, if one person could impact you, who do you think has the best chance of being that person? Seek the person out, and find ways to spend time with him or her. At the end of the day, life is about the connections we make, and starting over with a fresh slate for making those connections could be an exciting adventure. Good luck with the new job!
Best wishes,
Ms. Flynn
Sydney sat back, happy with her first response. She’d done it. The words had rolled off her fingers effortlessly as she typed.
“Your coffee,” Melissa said, gingerly setting down her mug.
Sydney admired the heart that Melissa had drawn in the foam. “Thank you,” she said, feeling accomplished. The answer to Rebecca’s dilemma had come easily to her today, and she remembered Aunt Clara’s advice: “The minute you stop thinking so hard about it is the minute the answer will come to you.” There was something to be said about that.
Her phone lit up on the table with a text.
I’m delighted to hear from you. Let’s get coffee soon. Logan
Maybe she could apply Aunt Clara’s idea to the harder things in life…
