“Appearances are everything, aren’t they?” I started around the car, but then I turned back.

“Just one more thing? Are you going to miss Holly and Noelle? Because they’ll miss you. As bad a mother as you were, they’ll always miss you and wish you had loved them. Isn’t that sad?”

I’ll never be sure if her tears were real, but after she was gone and I drove back to the bed and breakfast, mine fell like rain.

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

I had booked the Utah trip with an open return, and after my confrontation with Wendy, I booked a flight home for the next day, rising just after dawn and driving through the mountains as the sun gradually peeked over them. My flight was delayed, and when I finally landed in Fort Lauderdale, I was too exhausted to make the drive to Seabank. Instead I spent the night at my duplex, and the next morning I jogged on the beach as I tried to recover.

That evening the sun was going down when at last I turned into the town house driveway. Teo’s SUV blocked my way.

I had texted him from Utah to assure him I had survived, and again today once I was on my way back to the town house. Now I wondered if he was here to learn details or to persuade me to call the sheriff’s office.

I parked behind him, and by the time I got out he was waiting for me.

“Hey.” I didn’t know what else to say.

“Have you eaten?”

That was not what I’d expected. “Just a snack on the road.”

“I have dinner almost ready at my house.”

My eyes filled with tears. “Teo, I’m too wiped out to be grilled tonight.”

“I was thinking more along the lines of grilling grouper. Everything else is ready.”

He moved closer and put his arms around me, and I leaned against him, tears spilling down my cheeks. “That bad?” he said.

“Oh, yeah.”

“Let me take care of you.” He kissed the top of my head and stepped back. “Unless you really need to be alone?”

“I’ll meet you there.”

By the time I pulled up to his house, lights were on inside and lanterns glowed on the porch. Outside the car I filled my lungs with the humid, pine-scented air. Tubs of petunias and marigolds bloomed along his steps, and I was so glad to be in Florida again. “I love this place.”

“It’s a good cure for a bad day.” He held the door open and ushered me inside. Bismarck barked a happy welcome and did a little spin dance.

The house smelled wonderful, too, like onions and maybe bacon. I straightened after giving Bismarck his due. “Did you always cook? Because this feels new.”

“I never had the time, but now I enjoy it. I made my mother’s pigeon peas and rice to go with the grouper.”

“I didn’t expect this.” I put my arms around him. “You weren’t happy I left. I thought we might be over. And instead, here we are, and you even cooked for me.”