Nantucket Romance 3-in-1 Bundle Read Free Page B

yacht club, but an overwhelming curiosity drew it back. People mingled on the multitiered decks, sipping drinks, and a couple played on the tennis courts, slamming the ball back and forth in low drives that scarcely cleared the net. Sam had taught tennis there three years straight, but thinking of the club always dredged up that last unfortunate summer.
    Her eyes landed on the lighthouse that squatted on the boulders at Brant Point. “See the lighthouse? Its original structure was built in 1746 and was the second lighthouse built in America. It’s called Brant Point Light.” She rattled off the tidbit like an old-timer.
    Sam was rewarded with silence.
    The ferry began docking, and she hated the way her hands trembled. She wanted to stay on board and sail back to the mainland. The urge to escape Nantucket was still rooted as deeply as the thick oak that grew outside her Boston apartment window, and the urge to stay away was just as strong.
    Moments later, they debarked and lugged their suitcases down the cement dock and across the busy cobblestone street. When she spotted a taxi, she lengthened her steps, urging Caden along. As the driver loaded their suitcases, Sam gave him the address, then slid into the car.
    Caden glanced out the window. “Are those summer people?” she asked, referring to the clusters of pedestrians crossing streets and disappearing into bustling shops.
    “Mainly they’re tourists. The summer people come in July.”
    “At least there are stores. What’s with all the bikes?”
    “One of the perks of a small island. Bikes are the main mode of transportation.”
    Caden was silent as they drove through town. Only when they eased onto quieter streets did she speak again. “Can I meet Landon? Does he know you’re here?”
    Caden’s hope caught Sam off guard. She had been telling “Landon stories” to Caden since her daughter was old enough to talk. Lately, though, Caden wasn’t interested in anything she had to say. “I don’t think so,” she said, choosing to let Caden interpret the answer however she wanted. Only Miss Biddle and Judge Winslow knew Sam was coming. Besides, she wasn’t even sure Landon returned to Nantucket after college, though he’d talked of nothing else those last years together.
    When the driver turned onto her old street, she squeezed the edge of the seat with cold fingers. “It’s down just a ways on the right,” she told the driver.
    “The ocean is in the backyard?” Caden stared through her window, a new light flickering in her face.
    “Yep.” Caden’s curiosity encouraged Sam, and she wondered if leaving the city was just the prescription for her daughter.
    “It’s two drives down. Right there, the one with the rose trellis.” Only eleven years had passed since Sam last saw the house, but she hardly recognized it. The shaker shingles were weathered to ash gray, and the white paint that trimmed out the windows and porch was faded and peeling.
    The cabby turned into the gravel drive and pulled to a stop. Caden was out and standing in the overgrown yard before Sam touched her own door.
    Sam finally emerged and took in the house while the driver set the luggage at her feet. The window boxes stood empty, the hedges were overgrown, and only weeds sprouted from the flower beds lining the front of the house. She could still see her mom bending over the orange lilies, pinching faded blooms from the plant. She could see her on her knees, pulling up weeds and throwing them in the gray five-gallon paint bucket.
    Sam’s racing heart flopped. It was going to take every moment of her vacation to get the place in shape for the market. If the inside was as neglected as the outside, she wasn’t sure a month was enough time.
    Caden had grabbed her suitcase and pulled it close to the sidewalk.
    After Sam paid the driver, she picked up her own bag. She hadn’t given a thought to how she’d get in. Maybe Emmett still kept a key under the flowerpot on the back