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The Bar Harbor Airport was a rinky-dink little place, barely an airport at all. Heather gripped the steering wheel of her Prius as her eyes scanned left and right, hunting for some sign of her daughters. Their plane had landed twenty minutes earlier, and upon their arrival, her heart had filled with excitement, pumping faster and brighter than it had in weeks. Bella and Kristine would remind her what it meant to be herself. They would give her the strength to nurture and laugh and remember the old version of Heather, the one who had taken life by the horns.
Bella and Kristine had had one single phase of dressing alike, back when they’d been eight or nine and very into the idea of the Olsen twins. Back then, they had donned bright pink leotards and erupted around Max and Heather’s Portland house, practicing whatever new form of ballet they’d invented that day. Max had joked at the time, “Why didn’t we have just one boy? Someone I could play catch with in the backyard?” This had resulted in his two little ballerinas rushing into the backyard and demanding to play baseball in their leotards. The three of them had come back into the house, exhausted, somehow covered in glitter, and eager to jump around all the more. After Max had taught them how to throw, the girls had instructed him on their ballet moves, and Heather had watched on the old white couch in the living room as they’d performed for her.
Stop, her mind told her now. Stop before you run yourself wild with tears.
But here the girls were and dressed entirely differently, both to highlight their very distinct personalities. Kristine was the artistic one, with flowing dresses and thick black boots. Bella wore a simple pair of jeans, wider at the legs, as was the new style, with a V-neck white T-shirt. Both had jet-black hair, like their mother, and it flowed beautifully down their backs, catching the glittering light that came in through the smattering of clouds on high.
Heather had never seen a more beautiful pair. She erupted from her car and waved a hand to greet them. Bella rolled her eyes as they approached. “You thought we wouldn’t see you? You’re basically the only car.”
“Nice to see you too,” Heather quipped. She jumped onto the sidewalk as the three of them fell into a ridiculous hug. Wave after wave of emotion fell over her. Even the way they smelled was the same— a reminder of long-lost days when they had all lived together under one roof, with Max Talbot, the one who’d gotten away for good.
“Wow. Look at this place,” Bella commented from the front seat as Heather eased them toward the collection of unique coastal houses and buildings across Frenchman Bay.
“It’s certainly not New York,” Heather affirmed, giving her daughter a sideways glance.
“Thank goodness,” Kristine added from the back seat.
“It’s a really unique little place,” Heather said, adjusting herself in her seat. It felt strange to drive because she’d mostly walked around or let Luke drive her. She supposed her daughters couldn’t sense that from her, though. They just saw what they needed to see: their mother, a source of comfort. She could be that.
“So sweet of you girls to want to visit me here,” Heather said as Bella scanned through the radio stations. “Your employers are okay with it?”
“We have a number of clients flirting with us right now, but we just closed out a few big projects,” Kristine explained. She worked part-time as an interior designer for a few high-paying Manhattan clients while obtaining her creative writing degree. “It was a perfect time for me.”
“And I thought if I pushed myself through another shift at the hospital, I might have a nervous breakdown,” Bella articulated.
Heather felt a stab of fear at the comment.
“Don’t freak Mom out,” Kristine warned her sister.
“Sorry, Mom,” Bella offered. “I was mostly kidding, anyway.”
Okay, so maybe her kids understood her inner emotional life better than she’d thought. They were certainly smarter than their own good.
It was just past twelve when they reached the Keating House at the edge of the property. Bella and Kristine were both appreciative of the gorgeous house. “It really looks like something from a storybook,” Bella gushed.
Nicole and Heather had prepared one of the large guest bedrooms upstairs for Kristine and Bella to share. Heather watched from the doorway as her daughters gathered their things atop the bed and touched up their makeup in the mirror.
“I hope it’s okay that you girls share a room?” Heather asked.
Bella and Kristine side-eyed each other, then burst into laughter.
“Kristine won’t stop staying at my place,” Bella told her with a funny smile. “She booty-calls me and asks if she can come over.”
“Don’t tell Mom all my secrets!”
Bella shrugged as Kristine blushed.
“I just didn’t want to be alone after Allen broke things off.” Kristine dabbed at her bottom lip while she looked at herself in the mirror.
“That’s another thing,” Bella continued. “His name was Allen. Have you ever cried over a guy named Allen?”
Heather sniggered as Kristine playfully smacked Bella across the arm. “As I already told you on the plane, I’m coming to terms with the fact that I made a really big mistake by dating him, okay? Is that enough for you?”
“I don’t think so. It’ll never be enough,” Bella teased.
**
BELLA’S AND KRISTINE’S energy and warmth made Heather feel as though she floated through time. She donned a bright mustard-yellow dress and met her daughters in the foyer, where they suggested grabbing something to eat before exploring Bar Harbor. Heather thought nothing of it when she recommended they head up to the Eatery. After all, the Eatery was one-third hers, according to Adam Keating’s last will and testament. She’d hidden all that paperwork away prior to Bella’s and Kristine’s arrival and had told Nicole to make no mention of the DNA test. “I just want a normal week with my girls. As normal as normal can be after everything else,” she’d instructed her sister.
But the moment she, Bella, and Kristine entered the Eatery, Luke stepped into the dining area in his chef whites (which made him look all the more handsome) and brought with him a rush of her fears and innermost secrets. He looked at her with curiosity and then beamed at Bella and Kristine as he greeted them.
“You must be Heather’s daughters.” He smiled. “We’ve been excited about your arrival. Who knows what trouble you three will get into.”
Bella turned her gaze toward Heather. Her eyes were heavy with intrigue.
To combat this, Heather made her tone flatter than normal. She couldn’t appear to flirt with this man.
“They’re already up to no good, I’m sure.” Heather locked eyes with Luke and flashed him a half-smile.
“But mostly, we’re starving,” Kristine jumped in then.
Luke laughed. “I can help you with that.”
“But who are you?” Bella asked.
“Oh, right. I’m Luke. I’ve worked here at the Eatery for a few years, first with your great-uncle Joe and now with your aunt Nicole. I just moved up to sous chef.”
“Ah. Well, you should know, we have a very refined palate,” Kristine teased.
“Yes. We’re not usually impressed,” Bella offered.
Heather scoffed. “I’ll have you know these girls grew up on chicken fingers and tater tots. Nothing about their palates is refined. No matter how long they live in New York City...” She rolled her eyes.
The three Talbot ladies sat together at a table near the window. Bella lifted her phone to try to catch Cadillac Mountain perfectly with her camera. With each snap, she whispered, “You really can’t get a good photo of it, can you? It’s like trying to catch a sunset.”
The server appeared with a large basket of freshly baked bread. Both Bella and Kristine moaned as they tore into the sinful cloud-like bread.
“I thought we said no bread till Christmas?” Bella said as she lifted another piece from the basket.
“Pfft. Those are city rules. Bar Harbor doesn’t apply,” Kristine insisted.
Luke served them a blissful meal— a cheesy ravioli with eggplant, an enormous Greek salad, and a dessert of cheesecake. Throughout, Luke continued to pester them with questions, asking them what they thought of the meal.
“It’s soooo good,” Bella declared as she closed her eyes. “Seriously, you could give any Manhattan chef a run for his money.”
Luke’s smile was electric. At that moment, Nicole stepped toward the table to greet her nieces with hugs and cheek kisses. “I’m so sorry I can’t step away to hang out today. It seems like I’m putting out a million little fires across the Inn and Eatery.”
“I hope they’re not literal fires,” Kristine said.
“Not yet, anyway,” Nicole affirmed. “What is your plan for the afternoon?”
Bella and Kristine turned to look at Heather as though Heather had some kind of grand scheme. In reality, she’d hardly ever envisioned them making it there, so now that they were here, she was at a loss. All she wanted to do was roam the beaches and mountains with them, listen to them chatter and laugh, and fall into the old version of herself. The version which had been happy. The version who’d had it all.
“I could take you girls out on my boat if you like,” Luke suggested.
Bella’s and Kristine’s eyes brightened.
“Oh my gosh. That sounds beautiful,” Bella replied as she looked at her sister and then her mother.
“You just want good photos for your social media,” Kristine argued.
Bella rolled her eyes. “Not everything is about social media, Kris. I like to live, too, you know.”
“That sounds like a beautiful afternoon,” Nicole said.
“I just have to wrap up a few things in the kitchen, then I can drive us down to the harbor,” Luke said. Already, he’d begun to unbutton his chef’s whites. “If you girls want to change or grab your suits or something, I can meet you at the house in forty-five minutes?”
A cloud of joyousness ballooned over their table. All the while, Heather’s mind burrowed into darkness. The water? The same water that had taken her Max from the world forever? Could she feasibly get onto a boat without having some kind of panic attack?
She closed her eyes, then sipped a bit of her water. Kristine and Bella began to argue over who would wear “the green dress,” which was apparently a dress they’d purchased together with the idea of sharing it. If Heather had been on earth at that moment, she might have asked how they’d ever found a dress that they’d agreed upon. All she could do just then was inhale, exhale. Focus. Live in the here and now.
A kind man wanted to spend time with her and her daughters.
It was a beautiful day at the beginning of September.
She’d hardly done anything but pore over documents and dig into family secrets since her arrival.
She needed to live again. She needed to feel again.
She had to be strong in the face of this. It was just a sailboat. It was just Frenchman Bay. Nothing could hurt them again.
But wasn’t that optimism what had gotten her in trouble in the first place?
Back at the house, she watched as first Bella and then Kristine donned the green dress with its unique little white flowers. Apparently, it had been made in the sixties and was something of an iconic piece, which was why they hadn’t been able to find a second. Ultimately, the girls decided they didn’t want to muss it with a sailing expedition and instead donned other summery dresses, little jean jackets, and tennis shoes, which Luke had told them were appropriate to get a better grip on the sailboat’s floor.
As Bella slipped on a pair of earrings, she studied her mother. “He’s cute,” she finally said.
Heather’s stomach tightened. “Who?”
“You know who.”
Heather grimaced. “Luke’s just a friend. He’s been very welcoming since I arrived.”
“Yeah? I wonder why,” Bella said, giving her a sneaky smile.
It was the same sneaky smile Max used to give Heather. He had used it when he’d tried to hide that he had planned a surprise birthday party for her thirtieth or when he had eaten all the leftovers in the fridge.
She couldn’t love anyone else but him. Never in a million years.
“Shall we head down?” Kristine called. “I think I just heard Luke’s truck. Oh, wow. It’s massive. Is he compensating for something?”
“Kristine...” Heather said, grateful, suddenly, for the desire to laugh. She grabbed her baseball hat and fit it over her head, suddenly eager for the hours ahead. The adventure was out there if you were only brave enough to seek it.