Anne says nothing. But really, what more is there to say? A complicated situation is as simple as that.

So we stand in the shadows of the house, all three of similar height, hair, face shape, and eyes, a hand or arm touching in the comfortable way of shared blood, and we’ll always have that, my sisters and I, even if not with the purity we were taught. Our silence is broken by a voice from the house, though I can’t tell whose. I hear the ocean and want to hear it more, want to hear it forever.

Then I hear something else. So do my sisters. Our eyes turn to the road, where the crunch of gravel and growl of an engine grow louder, nearer. I barely breathe as the lip of the road comes into gauzy focus with its tiny rocks, bits of stray grass, and wrinkles of blown sand. Seconds later, twin orbs rise as the Tahoe crests the bluff and turns onto the Sabathian drive.

When its headlight hit my car, its taillights abruptly blare red. Leaving the truck running, Jack is out and sprinting forward. He tugs open my door, looks inside, slams it shut again, and makes for the house. Scanning the front porch in passing, he lopes on to the back. For several aching moments, I lose him.

Then he reappears in the truck’s headlights. Putting a hand on the top of his head, he looks around. He seems confused, bewildered, desperate. His eyes land on our house and hold, before somehow, impossibly, finding us in the dark. After staring for a minute, he starts forward, then stops. I left him. He isn’t sure why I’m back, isn’t even sure I am back. I’m with my sisters. For all he knows, I’ve cast my lot with them. For all he knows, I’m only back for Joy.

Giving me a not-so-gentle nudge, Margo says in an exasperated whisper, “What’re you waiting for?”

I barely hear. In this watershed moment, words are as faint as the moon. Same with the ocean, the salt air, and the shadows that surround us, because Jack Sabathian has my full attention. My sisters will always be my past and present. He is my future.

What am I waiting for? Nothing. Nothing at all. In the next breath, I’m off.

Also by Barbara Delinsky

ALSO BY BARBARA DELINSKY

Before and Again

Blueprints

Sweet Salt Air

Love Songs

Warm Hearts

Escape

Not My Daughter

While My Sister Sleeps

The Secret Between Us

Family Tree

Flirting with Pete

The Woman Next Door

The Vineyard

Lake News

Coast Road

Three Wishes

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