The Lighthouse Chapter 17

Chapter SEVENTEEN:

Robin was too old to sit on the ground, even leaning her back against the wall. But Kristen had only been able to find four deck chairs, and one of them couldn’t bear any weight.

Alice had taken it in her bony hands, her tight muscles straining as she lifted it over the nearly chest-high railing on the upper deck of the lighthouse, and a primal yell ripping from her throat as she’d heaved it over the edge.

As the plastic chair shattered against the stones below, Robin cheered with everyone else, all six of them dissolving into laughter a few moments later.

They didn’t have cookies or lemonade. No sweet tea or even water. None of that mattered. Somehow, Alice had worked a miracle, and she’d gotten AJ on a plane out of Miami yesterday. When Robin had asked her how she’d done it, all Alice would say was, “Luck.”

Robin knew it was more than that. It had to be. She’d decided she didn’t care, because AJ was there, and they still had an entire week until the funeral.

Kristen took one of the chairs, and the rest of them stood there, looking at the remaining two. “I’ll take one,” Alice finally said. “I feel weak from lifting that other one.” She giggled like the young woman Robin had once known, and she was so happy to see that person back on Diamond Island.

“My back is sore,” Eloise said. “Can I have the other one?”

“Is it because of the bed?” Robin asked, instantly worried. “I told Duke we needed new guest beds.” But they hadn’t bought them, because no one came to stay with them all that often, and they didn’t have thousands of dollars lying around for things they didn’t need.

“The bed is fine,” Eloise said, rubbing her back.

“It’s because of Aaron,” Kelli said suggestively, and Eloise smiled and shook her head.

“No, it’s not,” she said.

“Maybe he has a bad bed,” Alice said in a complete deadpan, and a beat of silence passed before they all burst out laughing again, Eloise included.

“I didn’t miss the date update, did I?” Kristen asked.

“No,” Robin said as she slid down the wall and came to a rest on the hard cement of the deck. As a teen, she’d sat up here like this many times. But her joints and hips had been much younger then, and they didn’t ache when they came in contact with hard things. “She’s refused to say a word about it.” She threw Eloise a dirty look—at least what she hoped was a dirty look.

“I didn’t want to repeat myself,” Eloise said. “Thursday night and Friday were brutal.”

“Yeah, going out with a hot cop is probably torture,” Alice said dryly, though she wore a smile on her face.

“Someone catch me up on who Aaron is,” AJ said as she sat on the ground too. She hadn’t lost her long legs or her trim waist, and she folded her legs under her as she settled down.

“Aaron Sherman,” Kelli said. “Surely you remember him.”

“Of course she does,” Eloise said. “And AJ, I love you, but if you go near him while you’re here, and I’ll bury your body where no one will find it.” She pealed out a string of laughter after that, and Robin giggled with her.

“I’m not interested in Aaron Sherman,” AJ said.

“Seems like your interest in a boy didn’t matter,” Kristen said, immediately clapping her hand over her mouth. Her eyes widened, and Robin watched AJ, sure the woman would get to her feet, stare them all down, and walk out.

“I’m sorry,” Kristen said. “I’m so sorry, AJ. Heaven knows a person can change after almost thirty years.”

AJ nodded. “It took me a long time to learn that I didn’t have to sleep with everything with a Y chromosome.”

Robin was interested in that story, but she really did want to hear Eloise’s first. And there was something going on with Kristen. The woman she knew would’ve never said such an unkind thing to AJ, even if it was true. She’d dealt with all of their idiosyncrasies, during the worst years of their lives, and always handled them with firm, loving gloves.

She kept her eyes on Kristen as Eloise started to detail her second date with Aaron, and sure enough, Kristen seemed distracted. Robin switched her gaze just before Kristen looked at her, hitching a smile on her face as Eloise said, “I’ve always wanted to go to one of those Friday night sand bakes, you know?”

Robin loved them too, with the scent of salt in the air, and cooked shrimp, and all those clams buried in the sand, cooking and roasting until they were just right. The fruity drinks weren’t bad either, and the fruit salad.

“And we ate and talked and laughed.” Eloise looked like she’d died and gone to heaven. “And then there was the dancing.”

“No wonder your back hurts,” Alice said. “Dancing on sand without shoes shouldn’t be done by a woman our age.”

Robin had to agree, as she bought expensive running shoes with a high arch support. If she didn’t, she couldn’t even make it a mile before she experienced crippling pain.

“Is he a good dancer?” Kelli wanted to know, and Eloise confirmed he was.

“When are you going to meet his kids?” Robin asked, and Eloise’s eyes flew to hers.

“I—we haven’t talked about that.”

The mood sobered, and Robin cursed herself for saying anything about Aaron’s daughters. She was happy for Eloise; she was. She just didn’t understand the end game. She lived in Boston, with a prominent position at the university. He lived here, raising his girls alone as the Police Chief. Both of them seemed rooted where they were.

“Do you think this will be a…fling?” she asked, and Alice shot her a glare. “What?” Robin asked. “Someone has to ask these questions. She has a plane ticket back to Boston next Sunday.”

“No, you’re right,” Eloise said, nodding. “I suppose there’s technology, and weekend trips, and video chats.”

“So you’re going to do the long-distance thing?” AJ asked. Robin couldn’t quite get a read on her. Alice had returned from Rocky Ridge with AJ in tow, and Robin had burst into tears the moment she’d seen the leggy blonde.

But she couldn’t tell if she was happy to be here, putting up with them, or something else entirely.

“I can’t even do the close-distance thing,” AJ said, turning to look through the rails.

Everyone fell silent again, and Robin met Alice’s eye. The other woman shook her head, but Robin opened her mouth anyway. “Tell us about that,” she said, looking at AJ.

Before she could say anything, Kelli’s phone rang, and she said, “It’s Julian. I’ll be back.” She got up quickly and hurried over to the door, answering her husband’s call as she left the deck.

“I’m not telling it twice,” AJ said.

“We’ll catch her up,” Eloise promised.

Robin wanted to press a button and freeze time for just this one moment. She could see a situation exactly like this one in her past, where the five of them had sat on the deck without Kelli, discussing how they could help her. Her parents had been divorced for a year or so, and her father had lost his glassblowing company due to another investor coming in and buying it out from under him. He hadn’t even known what he was signing.

The way Robin knew the story, Guy Watkins had thought this private investor was giving him money to expand his studio and grow the business, but that hadn’t been the case at all. He’d bought the business right out from under Guy, who then came under scrutiny for fraud, and proceeded to lose everything.

Kelli had not come home for his funeral, though Robin had tried to persuade her to please come. There could be so much forgiveness at a funeral, and Robin would be lying if she said that wasn’t one of the reasons she wanted AJ there.

“I’ve been dating Nathan Cooke for eight years,” AJ said. “Every time I bring up marriage, we’ll talk about it for a few days, and then it’s like I never said anything.” She shrugged one shoulder and studied her hands. “I don’t know. Feels like…stale, you know? We live together, and either I’m traveling or he is, and I just—maybe I’m not cut out for a real, lasting relationship.”

She looked up then, the vulnerability in her eyes too much for Robin. AJ held people like a deck of cards. Sometimes, when it didn’t matter, she’d show anyone everything. Other times, with very important things, she kept everyone close to the vest. Right up against her chest. Inside her heart.

“Of course you are,” Eloise said. “If that description fits anyone, it’s me.”

“Just because you had two years of a bad marriage doesn’t mean you can’t have a real, lasting relationship,” Alice said.

“I fear I’ve let too many years go by,” Eloise said. “I mean, you guys, we’re almost fifty years old. Marriage at this point is simply about companionship.”

“That’s not true,” Alice argued. “Look at you and Aaron. No.” She held up her hand as Eloise tried to talk over her. “I know you and Aaron aren’t going to have any kids of your own, but he has two girls, Eloise. Young ones too, I think.” She looked at Robin for confirmation, and she nodded.

Alice focused back on Eloise. “That’s a family, Eloise. And families are about more than just companionship.”

Robin smiled, because her own definition of family had definitely changed over the years. “You guys are part of my family,” she said, and while she’d never been shy in the spotlight, their eyes did weigh on her. “I’m so glad you came, AJ.”

AJ nodded, her face seemingly placid—until the muscle in her jaw jumped. “So what do you think?” she asked, bringing the topic back to her.

Robin basked in this conversation, which flipped and meandered, just like it always had. As teenagers, they’d done it because they’d all been so selfish, and every conversation had to be about them.

“Do I give him an ultimatum, or just be happy we’re still together?” AJ looked around at the others, and Robin would not be the first to give any advice in this situation. Alice had likewise clammed up, and Eloise studied the horizon like it held the secret to lasting happiness with Aaron Sherman.

“I find,” Kristen finally said. “That ultimatums rarely work the way we hope they will.” She smiled kindly at AJ. “If you want to marry him, ask him to marry you. If he says no, there’s your answer. If he says yes, start planning a wedding.”

“That’s the problem, though,” AJ said, clearly frustrated. “It’s not a yes or no question anymore.”

“It’s not?” Kristen asked.

Robin shook her head. “I mean, kind of.” She watched AJ, hoping she was about to get this right. She felt like a fraud talking, as she’d been married for twenty years. “My guess is that Nathan says ‘not right now,’ or ‘the time isn’t right. I have a game in Seattle.’” She spoke in a low-pitched, bad male imitation voice.

Alice burst out laughing. “I’m sure he doesn’t sound like Elmer the Fudd,” she said through her giggles.

“You know what I mean,” Robin said.

“That’s exactly what he says,” AJ confirmed. “But the game was actually in Texas.” She smiled at Robin, and all at once, the path between them was clear.

“Ah, I see,” Kristen said. She got to her feet. “Well, then, I have no solutions. And you know what that means?”

“Cookies,” the four of them said together, and Robin could fall into the laughter that followed and swim around in it until it flowed through her whole body.

* * *

“Jamie, get the mayo out please.” Robin took in the huge mess on her kitchen island. She wasn’t sure how they were going to pack all of this to the beach, which is why she hardly ever went. She got her fill of sand and surf and sun by running five miles along the water’s edge every morning.

“Mandie, did you get the sunscreen?”

“In the beach bag.”

“Do we have enough towels for everyone?” With four visitors taking showers—well, only three, as AJ had insisted on staying at a hotel so she could escape and get some work done during the week—Robin had been throwing a load of towels into the washing machine every night.

“Yes,” Duke said from somewhere. “I’m going to start loading up, babe.”

“Okay,” she called to him. She hadn’t seen hide nor hair of any of the women sleeping upstairs, and she wondered if she needed to get the broomstick out and start banging on the ceiling to wake them up.

They’d been out late last night, taking in the island nightlife as it never seemed to die, even during non-tourist season. The karaoke machine had been heavily utilized last night, and Robin had never seen so many appetizers in her life. She hadn’t eaten fried food in such mass quantities, and her stomach swooped as she said, “Chairs. Do we have enough chairs for everyone?”

“We have four,” Mandie said.

That was enough for their family, and Robin started worrying the inside of her cheek with her teeth. She reached for her phone and dialed Aaron Sherman before giving anything a second thought.

“Robin Grover,” he said. “What can I do for you?”

“Hey, Aaron. Sorry to call so early. Do you have any beach chairs you can bring today?”

“Bring where?”

Robin paused, her mouth open. “To the beach,” she said stupidly.

“You want to borrow some? I have a couple. Maybe three or four.”

“Didn’t Eloise invite you?” she asked. They’d talked about a beach day over dinner, and Robin had told Eloise to invite Aaron.

“No,” he said slowly. “This is the first I’ve heard of going to the beach today.”

Horror filled Robin’s already sick stomach. “Oh, my goodness,” She said. “I’m so sorry. I’m going to hang up now, and you’re going to pretend like I never called.”

Aaron started to chuckle, but Robin ended the call and practically threw her phone on the counter, where she couldn’t do any more damage with it.

“Mom,” Mandie said, and she jerked her attention toward her.

“What?”

“Dad’s asking about the life jackets.”

“We don’t have enough of those either.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Alice said breezily. “I won’t be going in the water, so I don’t need one.” She stepped over to the coffee pot, something gauzy and light flowing around her limbs as she moved. Was she really going to wear that to the beach? It looked like it was made of cobwebs, and Robin could see her swimming suit beneath it.

“And we don’t expect you to stock beach chairs and life jackets for us,” Alice said, giving Robin a warm hug. “Let’s stop at the store on our way.”

Easy for her to say, but Robin nodded like that was a fantastic idea. Commotion broke out as Eloise and Kelli came downstairs arguing about something that Robin couldn’t quite catch as Duke poked his head in from the garage and yelled for Robin to come talk to him.

Because her husband had been so great about having her girlfriends stay with them for an extended period of time, she excused herself and went. She helped him find the life jackets, and everyone proceeded to get loaded up.

She found Eloise on the front steps, tapping madly on her phone, a disgruntled expression on her face. “There you are. Are you coming?”

“Is there room in your van?”

“Yes.” Robin sat beside her, the need to confess about her phone call to Aaron Sherman nearly desperate. “I may have mentioned we were going to the beach to Aaron.”

“I know.” Eloise looked at her, no smile in sight. “He texted me, and that was when Kelli told me I needed to loosen up.”

“She said that?”

“Can I help it if I’m not a summer fling type of woman? And it’s not even summer. It’s April.” Eloise shook her head. “So I didn’t invite him. It’s not the end of the world.”

Robin put her arm around Eloise, regret cutting her to the core. “I’m sorry I asked you all those questions yesterday. I didn’t mean to burst your little April fling bubble.”

Eloise scoffed. Then snorted. Then giggled. By that time, they both let out a laugh. When they quieted, Eloise said, “So what should I do?”

“What do you want to do?”

“I want to see Aaron.”

“Then invite him.”

Duke called her again, and Robin rolled her eyes. “I swear, that man wouldn’t be able to find his head if it wasn’t attached to his body.”

“But I want to spend the day with you guys, too,” Eloise said. “And I feel like if Aaron comes, I’ll have to entertain him. I won’t really be able to relax. And I’ll ignore you guys or miss out on a conversation I don’t want to miss out on.”

“Ah, I see. There’s a root to this non-invitation.”

“Yes, a big root.” Eloise sighed. “And you don’t get it, because you’re married to Duke. You can relax with him around. He can get his own dang sandwich.”

Robin laughed again, squeezing Eloise to her side. “Honey, I guarantee you that Aaron does not need to be entertained. He can get his own sandwich too.”

“I know.” Eloise held up her phone and shook it. “He’s bringing them for everyone.” She sounded so miserable about it too.

“Well,” Robin said. “Had I known that, I wouldn’t have gotten up at seven a.m. to start packing lunch for everyone.” She gave Eloise a small smile. “It’s going to be okay. Aaron’s a grown man. He doesn’t need you to entertain him.”

“Robin,” Eloise said. “Some of us don’t run five miles every morning.”

Robin blinked at her for a moment, sudden understanding washing over her. “Eloise, you’re not fifteen anymore. You’re a strong, smart, sexy woman, no matter what size you are.” She stood up and pulled Eloise to her feet too. “Now, come on. It’s our beach day, and we’re not going to let anything ruin it.” She nodded like that was that, like the mighty Robin had the power to make everyone get along, and Eloise to relax, and AJ to have fun.

She didn’t, but she sure could pretend like she did.