Page 32 of An Island Summer
“You’re putting in a lot of effort for a place you’re only staying in for the summer,” Meghan said. “Sure you don’t want to stay longer?” Meghan didn’t want to think about how quiet Pappy’s cottage would be without her best friend.
“You never know,” Tess replied, but Meghan knew that making long-range plans wasn’t Tess’s strong suit. “And all the effort is because I just want to do something nice for you. You deserve it.”
“I deserve it?” Meghan asked, stripping off her shirt and switching to the old T-shirt. “What did I do to deserve such a great friend?”
“You’re the most selfless person I know. I want to be you when I grow up.” Tess flashed her a wide grin before tossing her a paint roller. “Suit up, girlfriend. You’ve got work to do if you want to have a place to sleep tonight.”
Meghan poured paint into the rolling tin and then dragged her roller through it, coating the nap with paint. Fighting back the sudden inclination to call off the redecorating, she pressed the roller against the wall, the bright taupe erasing Pappy’s presence with every stripe.
First one wall was done, and then another, Meghan and Tess progressing around the room, the steel drums of beach music playing on the radio. Tess happily moved along while Meghan felt increasingly panicked, praying she was doing the right thing. She didn’t want to remove Pappy’s touches from this place, but if she ever wanted to make it hers, it had to be done.
“Wait,” she said, stopping Tess when they got to the last wall that had the alcove with shelves in the center of it. “Let’s tape off those shelves and keep them the way Pappy had them.”
As they began to tape off the space, there was a knock at the door, sending Charlie into a barking fit. He bounded off the bed and scrambled down the hardwoods, taking his place as protector at the front of the house.
“It’s okay, Charlie,” Meghan said, opening the door to find Toby standing on her porch. Charlie wove himself around Toby’s feet, sniffing madly.
“I remembered the way here,” he said.
A warm flush filled her cheeks.
“Oh, hi, Toby!” Tess called from the bedroom, leaning into the doorway so only Meghan could see her what-in-the-world face.
Toby belted an uneasy hello back to her. “I brought dinner,” he said, holding up two bags of takeout. He waved the bags, the savory aroma of fresh seafood and butter filling the air. “Although you look busy.”
Meghan stared at him, completely baffled but thrilled that he’d shown up. She didn’t want to allow the hope that he was letting her in to become a solidified emotion because she might not be able to manage if he pulled away. She wiped her forehead with the back of her wrist to avoid getting paint on her face.
“It’s fine,” she said. “I’m glad you came. Come in.” She stepped aside to let him enter and took him to the kitchen. He went over to the counter, set the bags down, and turned to her.
“The World War Two exhibit is brand new,” he said.
“What?”
“At the museum. You said he told you about Hester and World War Two. He doesn’t have any books on World War Two, so I called the museum because I didn’t remember him seeing anything about the Second World War and the Outer Banks. Which doesn’t mean too much in terms of his mental state, but it does mean he could be pulling it from his memory.”
Meghan sucked in a tiny gasp.
“What did he tell you about it?”
“The shelves are all taped off,” Tess said, coming into the room, eyeing Meghan. “Oh my goodness, you brought dinner? It smells incredible. Is that cornbread?” Tess didn’t wait for an answer. She went right over to the sink and washed up, clearly overdoing the nonchalance, the weight of Toby’s presence an elephant in the room.
“I was just going to tell Toby what Rupert said about the war,” said Meghan.
“Oh, I’d love to hear that.” Tess dried her hands and turned her attention to Meghan, who began recounting what Rupert had told her about Hester in the yellow dress and the boats that were sunk off the coast.
“You said it doesn’t mean much, but it’s something, right?” Meghan asked.
Toby chewed on his lip, his gaze unstill. “I keep wondering when he’ll be lucid again,” he said. “He didn’t tell you anything else?”
Meghan shook her head, wishing there was more she could tell Toby.
“When he remembers little things, it gives me just a tiny bit of… optimism. But I suppose the memory isn’t as significant as the fact that he seems to—more times than not—remember who I am.”
“I know it has to be hard,” Meghan said, trying to read Toby. Was he the person that Tabitha had made him out to be? Was this just a good-guy routine, and he really didn’t want Rupert to be lucid at all? Had that been why he’d rushed over? “I’ll get us three plates.”
“Oh, no. I wasn’t going to stay,” he said. “I got the dinners for Gramps and myself, but when I called to see if he wanted me to stop by the pie shop for dessert, the nurse said he’d already turned in for the night.”
Meghan felt a radiating thud of disappointment. “You need to eat too, though, don’t you?” she said.
