“Good. Great. Have you seen the papers?”

Kate had seen nothing all night but the yellow lines on the road. And she’d given little thought to her career or what others would be saying. “No, why?” Kate was almost afraid to know, but Pam didn’t sound dismayed.

“It worked! Listen to this. ‘Dr. Kate’s convenient groom broke his silence on TV newsmagazine show NewsWire when he proclaimed his love for the well-known author and syndicated relationship columnist.’ Blah, blah, blah—backstory and quotes from the interview. Ah, here we go. ‘It seems, even in the case of unpredictable disasters, Dr. Kate’s own brand of relationship magic works like a charm. Even for herself.’”

Kate sank to the cement ledge overlooking the harbor. Through the phone, she heard the rattling of newspaper pages. “There are a dozen more just like it. And I caught it on several cable news programs this morning too. They keep running the portion of the interview where Lucas says”—she lowered her voice—“‘I guess I’m laying it all on the line. I love her. I have for a long time, and I always will.’ Oh, man, he has every woman in America swooning, Kate. I’ll bet your book is flying off the shelves as we speak.”

I can’t believe it. How have I gone from—

Something Pam had said earlier popped into her mind. “It worked.” The words had been buried beneath the good news, but now they surfaced like a piece of driftwood through the sand, uncovered by the relentless wind.

Kate interrupted Pam. “Wait. You said ‘It worked.’ What did you mean?”

The rustling of paper stopped. A seagull swooped down and landed in the harbor, bobbing on the waves beside a fat buoy.

“You haven’t called him?” Pam’s tone revealed shock.

Dread filled Kate, numbing her to the fingertips. “What’s going on, Pam?” Her thoughts spun. Terrible thoughts that tortured her. “Was this just a ploy to fix my book sales?” She could choke on the acid that rose in her throat. Had Lucas only been pretending?

“No, sweetie, it’s not like that.”

“Then what is it like?” Her voice quavered.

Pam sighed loudly. “You should hear this from Lucas. Why didn’t you call him?”

Kate suddenly felt like a fool for driving all night like this was some 911 emergency. “I wanted to talk to him in person.” Her answer was feeble. Kate swallowed the acid and her pride. “I’m here now, on Nantucket.”

“Oh, I am such a dolt!” Kate imagined Pam smacking her own forehead. “I’ve ruined everything. Go. Go talk to him. I’m hanging up now.”