The Cottage on Nantucket, Chapter 3
*women's fiction *heartfelt *mystery *friendship *sisters
Tessa stood up and left her empty cardboard container on the plate on the table. “I’m sure it’s probably Bobbie.” She crossed through the living room, a smile already lightening her step. Bobbie Friedman lived next door to the cottage, and she and her husband watched out for the house when no one was here.
When storms caused any damage, Bobbie called Mom and reported. As far as Tessa knew, Mom and Bobbie had been best of friends, and they’d spent a lot of time with Bobbie and her husband, Riggs, growing up.
Tessa opened the door, and sure enough, petite, blonde, blue-eyed Bobbie stood there. “Bobbie,” Tessa said with a big smile on her face. Maybe too big. Maybe a little fake.
She stepped into the older woman’s arms and hugged her. Her eyes drifted closed, because hugging Bobbie was almost like getting a hug from her own mother, even if the other woman wasn’t Tessa’s favorite person on Nantucket.
Bobbie tended to gossip too much and pry too hard, but she had a similar body shape to Mom, and she smelled just like her—like powder and sugar and fresh coffee. Another powerful rush of missing and grief flowed through her, and Tessa found she couldn’t let go of the older woman. Everything spun at the speed the Earth rotated, and Tessa felt wildly untethered.
“There, there,” Bobbie said, repeating the single word she’d said many times before. When Tessa had been stung by a jellyfish, Bobbie and scooped her up into her arms and said, “There, there, I know just what to do.”
And she had. Bobbie knew a home remedy for every ailment, and Tessa wondered if she had something to cure a broken heart.
Without Mom, Tessa honestly felt like she had no one. Her husband had barely been present for the funeral, and Ryan had shown up late and left immediately afterward, his finals the same day she’d buried her mother. He’d texted to say he’d wanted to stay longer. That he’d make sure he got over to the cemetery to visit Mom’s grave. That he missed them.
Tessa wasn’t sure what she believed. She didn’t want to think that her son didn’t like being around her. She thought she’d done the best she could for him. She hadn’t worked when he was a child, and she’d been there for every science fair, every concert, every parent-teacher conference.
He’d played rugby, and she’d gone to many of the games. Enough to be supportive, but not so many as to smother him. Ron made good money, and Ryan had never truly wanted for anything. She had no idea why her son had pulled away and refused to be reeled back in. Tessa simply didn’t know what to do about it.
“Bobbie,” Janey said from behind Tessa, and that got her to step away. Tessa moved to the side so Janey could greet Bobbie, taking the opportunity to wipe her eyes quickly. She desperately wanted a nightcap and the time to sit on the porch while she sipped it—alone.
But Janey invited Bobbie into the cottage, and the blonde woman went. Tessa was left behind to close the door, which felt about right to her. She’d often existed in Janey’s shadow or two steps behind her sister as a teen. She’d taken that feeling into adulthood, having one less child than Janey, and getting married two years later.
She trailed behind the other two women, and waved Janey away when she offered tea. Bobbie took a cup while Tessa started cleaning up the remnants of their dinner. With that done, she joined Janey and Bobbie at the table. The furniture coverings needed to be removed and shaken from the sofas in the living room, and neither Tessa nor Janey wanted to do it tonight.
They’d agreed to open all the windows in the morning and let the sea breeze blow through the cottage then. They’d uncover everything and start wiping everything out and down. They had groceries to get—along with those doughnuts—and plenty of items to discuss to finish up dealing with Mom’s trust.
“…such an amazing woman,” Bobbie said, shaking her head. “We’re really going to miss her around here.”
“Yes, she did love being part of this community,” Janey said diplomatically. She hadn’t lied; Mom did love Nantucket, and she’d come for months at a time, especially once Dad had passed.
“She met Dennis here, you know,” Bobbie said with a self-important wobble of her neck.
“She did?” Tessa asked, casting a look at Janey. “She said she met him at the theater.”
“Yes, yes,” Bobbie said. “The movie theater on the day cruise.”
The sisters exchanged a glance, and this time, Janey asked, “Day cruise?”
“You know,” Bobbie said, clearly exasperated. “The six-hour cruise that goes around the island? There’s a movie theater on-board the ship. They met there.”
Tessa wasn’t sure what to say, though her mind moved a mile a minute. She wasn’t the funny, witty sister, nor the life of the party. She liked to have a good time too, and she’d always participated in family parties and events. Happily.
“Are you sure?” Janey asked.
“Quite,” Bobbie said, her blue eyes blazing. She leaned forward and set her teacup on the table. Looking between the two girls, she asked, “She didn’t tell you that?”
“She said they met at the theater,” Tessa said. “It obviously doesn’t matter.” She shot a look at Janey, who still wore a frown between her eyes. “They got along so well, and we were just glad she didn’t have to be alone for very long.”
Bobbie’s countenance fell again. “Yes, Dennis’s passing was hard for many here.”
“Did he live here, then?” Janey asked, her face back to her normal placid expression.
“The Martins owned several homes here at one point,” Bobbie said.
Shock spread through Tessa. Several homes? That meant money. A lot of money.
Janey crossed her legs and leaned back in her chair, though Tessa had seen this tactic before. She was interested but wanted to look like she wasn’t.
“They didn’t stay, though,” Bobbie continued. “They rented their homes for years and years. I saw couple up for sale after Dennis died, but I don’t think the sales went through.”
“Hm,” Janey said. “Mom did like living in the city.”
Darkness and disgust ran across Bobbie’s face. “You couldn’t pay me to go back to the city.”
Tessa laughed, glad when Janey did too. “We know,” Tessa said. “You left forty years ago, and you’re not going back.” She smiled at Bobbie, who wore her islander spirit right on her sleeve. She never held back her opinion either, and Tessa had forgotten about her bluntness. That, combined with the “free advice” Bobbie tended to hand out, kept Tessa from wanting to spend much time with her at all. She certainly didn’t want to tell Bobbie Friedman anything of any significance. She didn’t need the mundane details of her life being spread around the island to strangers.
Sometimes she wished she could tell people exactly what she thought about them, but she rarely did.
“Well, I’ll leave you girls to get settled,” Bobbie said, standing. She placed her teacup in the sink and another round of hugs took place before their neighbor left. Janey closed the door this time, a sigh coming loudly from her mouth.
“She exhausts me,” Janey said as she turned around. “I need a drink.”
Tessa said nothing, though she’d like one too. She let Janey rifle through the cabinets until she found a bottle of rosé. She only knew she’d done that when Janey called, “There’s wine,” from the kitchen. “Rosé.”
“Okay,” Tessa yelled back, continuing to take her clothes from her weekend bag. Her sister wouldn’t expect her to come drink with her, so Tessa finished unpacking and changed into her pajamas. She’d just plugged in her tablet and her phone when her sister leaned in the doorway.
“I’m going to bed,” Janey said, holding her wine glass by the stem like a refined socialite. “We’ll go downtown for groceries tomorrow. I desperately need coffee with caffeine in it.”
Tessa smiled, because Mom had switched to decaf at least a decade ago. “Agreed.”
“I’m not setting an alarm,” Janey said, throwing back the last swallow of her wine. Tessa’s mouth watered, but she just smiled. “Good-night.”
“Night,” Tessa said.
Janey went to the next bedroom and closed the door behind her. To be safe, Tessa waited another ten minutes. She used the time to send a quick text to her husband that she’d made it to the cottage, and she’d hope to know more later.
He hadn’t texted or called, though she should’ve checked in hours ago. He’d barely paid attention to anything in the will and trust, and Tessa didn’t have final numbers for an inheritance yet anyway.
That was why she and Janey needed to be here. They had another bank to visit, that blasted binder to find, and a lawyer to meet with. Perhaps then, they’d get some final answers and be able to start dividing the estate.
Certain her sister wouldn’t make a reappearance, Tessa went into the kitchen, noting that all the lights in the cottage still blazed as if electricity were free. She turned off lights as she went, finally leaving only a single bulb burning above the kitchen sink.
She poured herself a healthy serving of wine, picked up the bottle, and crept through the house to the front door. The porch wrapped around the front and side of the house, and around the corner sat two weathered Adirondack chairs.
Tessa sank into one of them and lifted her wine in a toast to the ocean she could only hear. Darkness stretched before her, but she imagined the water washing ashore just to say hello to her.
She gulped the wine before forcing herself to slow down, her unhappiness and discontent finally allowed to stream out of her. If she kept it bottled up inside, Tessa wouldn’t make it through tomorrow, let alone the next few weeks, with her sister.
She let her mind linger on any topic while she drank glass after glass of rosé, allowed her tears to overflow, and then fell asleep right where she sat on the covered porch, her wineglass in her fingers.