Kupuna leaned back in his chair, ready to listen. Maria started a racket, pulling pots and pans from the cupboards. Across the house, the girls could be heard chattering, a movie on in the background.

Their normal felt so abnormal to Quinn. She was not a part of their puzzle.

“I’m not hungry,” she said, ignoring the growl of protest from her stomach. “I have some work to do.”

Maria looked as though she wanted to try to convince Quinn to stay but caught herself and held up a hand. She gave her a wave.

“Okay,” she said. “If you change your mind, there’ll be leftovers.”

The others didn’t even look at her as Quinn slipped out the door.

Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

Quinn opened a can of tuna and paired it with saltines for her lunch. She pulled a bottle of water out of the fridge and went to the couch, settling herself in front of her laptop.

As she ate, she worked, spending an hour or so answering emails. When she felt caught up, she went to the bed and lay across it, groaning happily at the comfort that embraced her. Maria had taken off the brightly colored bedspread that Pali had used, and in its place was the softest, most feminine white comforter that Quinn had ever touched. It wasn’t new—it had that homemade, used feel to it that was just right. Super lightweight too. Just right for the warm Maui air.

She wondered if Maria would sell it to her before she left.

At the foot of the bed was another new addition. Quinn reached for it and pulled the crocheted coverlet up and over her. It was a soft teal-green color, reminiscent of ocean water, or even beach glass.

Maria had great taste.

Quinn sighed, letting all her stress go. Lying down in the middle of the afternoon was completely out of character for her. Ethan always said people who napped were wasting their minutes, and those minutes added up to years over time.

Either the cottage was just too cozy or the stress must’ve been getting to her more than she even knew, because within two minutes everything faded out around her, and she fell into a deep sleep.

She woke nearly two hours later, feeling more refreshed than she could remember in a long time. She peeked out the door, curious as to what was going on. The main house was quiet, almost eerily so, and with that, she decided to take advantage of the moment.

Grabbing a blanket from the back of the love seat, she went out to the lanai.

She pushed the small table aside and shook the blanket out onto the wooden planks. She settled onto it, crossing her legs before closing her eyes for a moment.