Donna raised her chin and let out a sharp laugh. “Hell, no. I gave him the heave-ho because he couldn’t handle it when I told him the truth. He was afraid I wouldn’t get better.”

The three of them sat quietly. Annie felt like an intruder, as if the conversation should have been between mother and son.

“Mom?” Kevin asked. “You’re sure you’re okay? That it’s okay for you to be out here on the Vineyard? Away from your doctor?”

“Absolutely. I’ve been chemo-ed and radiated to near-death, and now I want to recuperate around the two of you, as long as you can stand me.” She smiled. “But just in case—and it’s a long shot—anything unforeseen might happen, I’ve made both of you my health care proxies. And, Kevin, I’ve given you power of attorney over my financial affairs.” She looked at Annie. “I didn’t do that because I feel a man is more capable at numbers than a woman. But Kevin already knows everything about my finances. He’s been helping me handle them since he was thirteen.”

Annie smiled and said, “Of course.” She felt a large pull in her abdomen, or maybe it was higher up, in her heart. A reminder that she was not, could never be, Donna’s daughter. They had missed too many things that only come from sharing time together. Time, responsibilities, life—the good parts and the not so good.

Plates of food were set in front of them. “Enjoy your meal,” the perky waitress said.

Annie said, “Thank you,” because the others didn’t seem to want to speak.

Then Kevin took Donna’s hand in both of his. “How can I help? I don’t want you to be sick.”

He was being brave, Annie thought. Braver than she’d thought that he would be.

“I don’t want to be sick again, either,” Donna said. “But here’s one thing you can do. Take me back to the Inn. I want to go to bed, and I want you two to talk about me. The truth is, I don’t know how long this recuperation thing will take. And as badly as I want to be here, I don’t want to disrupt your lives. Well, I suppose part of me does, or I wouldn’t be here now, would I?” She pulled her hand from Kevin’s and patted his again. “Now, let’s get the check and have them wrap this food. It looks delicious, but I don’t have much of an appetite tonight.”

Kevin’s eyes had filled with tears; his lower lip started to quiver.

Without expecting it, Annie, too, began to cry.

Chapter 14

Chapter 14

It was no surprise that, over the years, from time to time, she visited her memories that were safe in the Vuitton. The place where she could remember her most important secrets.