fortune with his business—okay, a large fortune—so my real estate profits were my play
money, as he called it. And as an agent, I didn't sell all that much, so it really was play
money. But I never told him how much I made on the property I bought on a whim all those
years ago."
"What property?"
"Here at the lake." She pointed to a closed door. "Bedroom's through there. And I've
never used it." She opened another door. "Large bathroom. It's got a connecting door to
the bedroom."
"Nice. I like the red."
"It'll wake you up, that's for sure." She sat on one corner of the tiny loveseat, motioning
for Jill to join her. "Years ago, the park was just an afterthought, really. There were a
handful of homes on the south side, closer to town, and that was it. The county owned most
of the rest but the lake was built as a water reservoir and for fishing. They weren't really
pushing development then.
"But anyway, I was pregnant with Josh, so nearly eighteen years ago I was fishing out in a
canoe on the north side of the lake. There was this old man fishing on a pier, little bitty
pier and I waved to him. He took one look at me and stood up. 'What in tarnation do you
think you're doing?'" Carrie laughed as she mimicked him. "Honest to God, that's what he
said. So I'm looking around, wondering if there's some easement or something in the lake
and I was trespassing. So I told him I was fishing. He pointed to his pier and said get over
here right now. I know I probably should've been afraid, I mean, he was six-foot tall, easy.
But I looked at him and said 'yes, sir,' and paddled over. I sat there in my canoe and he
pointed at me. 'Good God, girl, you're about to give birth. What were you thinking? That
I'd swim on out to help you when you went into labor? Now get out of that there boat!'"
Carrie smiled fondly. "Oh, he was a character. He drove me around to the park in his old,
beat-up truck and got my car, then we drove back to collect my canoe."
"How in the world did you lift a canoe when you were nine months pregnant?"
"I was praying I'd go into labor," she said with a laugh. "But he was such a sweet man. He
was eighty-six and a widower. And he owned a couple hundred acres he didn't know what to
do with. We became friends. I was quite taken with him. I spent every day after that with
him, until I gave birth. His name was Joshua."
"You named your son after him."
"Yes. James had his heart set on Jeremy. I convinced him to change it. But anyway, Joshua
sold me all his property, except for about ten acres that his house sat on. I never told
James. And I never did anything with it. But I'd go visit him often, always taking Josh with
me. Josh wasn't even two when he died. He didn't have any kids of his own and he left me
the rest of his property."
"Wow."
Carrie shrugged. "Kinda strange I never told James, I suppose. I just hung on to it,
sneaking out whenever I could. It was my escape. But then the developers came and I
didn't know what I was going to do with two hundred acres. So I sold for an outrageous
amount of money about five years ago."
"And James never knew?"
"No. I retired on the pretense I wanted to spend more time with the boys and I wanted to
take some art classes. I tore down Joshua's old shack and pier, and built this little cottage.
It won't be much for resale, not with just the one bedroom. But it's just a place I can
come to, if I need it."
"Like for lunch on rainy days?"
"Like for lunch on any day. Unless you have a fondness for the park and all its people,"
Carrie teased.
"I'd rather come here," Jill said seriously. "I mean, if you want," she added.
Carrie nodded. "The sunroom is wonderful when the weather's bad. The pier is awesome
when the weather is nice."
"Do the ducks make it around this far?"
"There are some that hang around but I'm not here enough to feed them on a regular
basis, so they're not always here. But I've never seen Grandma Duck out this far." Carrie
reached over and squeezed her arm. "If you're going to miss feeding the ducks, we'll have
to make a date to meet at the park at least once a week."
"Well, like you, I've become fond of Grandma Duck." Her eyes lingered where Carrie's hand
still touched and she wished she wasn't wearing long sleeves. She watched as Carrie's
fingers slipped away, then looked up, meeting Carrie's eyes for a brief moment.
"It's probably getting late," Carrie said.
Jill nodded then pushed up her sleeve, revealing the slim watch she wore. She nodded
again.
"Yes. Time."
"Well, maybe the weather will be nicer tomorrow. I'll show you the pier and garden." She
stood. "And maybe I'll surprise you with lunch."
CHAPTER ELEVEN
"I know you love the rain but four days in a row is a bit much," Jill complained as they sat in
the sunroom and munched on the burgers and fries she'd picked up on her way over.
"Green. Think green."
"I'm beyond that. I'm trying to remember what sunshine looks like." Jill grinned. "Do you
think we should start building a boat?"
"No. We'll use my canoe to escape," Carrie said seriously, then wiggled her eyebrows
teasingly.
"But this is really nice, isn't it. I can't believe how warm the sunroom stays. I could almost
convince myself this is a spring rain and not winter."
"Spring will be here soon enough. And I think this year I'll tend to the garden. It was
Joshua's pride and joy. When I had his old shack torn down, I made sure to leave the
garden undisturbed.
When they landscaped the flower beds around here, I had them weed and mulch his
garden. It looked great that first year." Carrie smiled. "I just don't have Joshua's green
thumb."
"Well, maybe this spring, we could steal a Saturday and . . . and maybe plant some flowers,"
Jill suggested. "I mean, if you could sneak away from your family for a day."
Carrie's pale eyes looked into her own for a long moment before answering.
"And can you sneak away from your family?"
Jill nodded. "I think I'm allowed a day out now and then." She paused, brows drawn
together. "You know, I've not mentioned you to Craig. I mean, we've become friends and
I've not even mentioned your name to him."
Carrie nodded. "Is that odd?"
"Yes. Don't you think?"
Carrie's lips just hinted at a smile. "I don't think it's odd. I've not told James about you
either."
Jill leaned forward. "Why is that, do you think?"
"I don't think it really concerns him. Our friendship is . . . well, it's just between us. I
didn't feel the need to share you with him."
Jill nodded. "Yes. I think that's how I feel. I don't want to have to share anything we do or
say. It's just us."
It was quiet in the sunroom as Jill's words hung in the air. Its just us. She had an odd
feeling as those words echoed around in her brain. Just us. She had been on the verge of
mentioning Carrie to Craig on a few occasions but something told her not to. So she kept
her new friendship to herself, not for a moment thinking that Carrie had done the same.
She looked up, not surprised to find Carrie's eyes on her. She was surprised, however, by
the warm sensation that traveled across her body as she let herself be pulled into those
blue depths.
"It would be nice to be able to spend more than an hour together," Carrie said quietly.
"Perhaps in a few weeks, if the weather warms, we could—"