16 Lighthouse Road - Debbie Macomber [81]
“Does anyone else know Tom’s true identity?”
“Only Olivia.”
Roy nodded approvingly. “Keep it that way until you hear from me.”
It hadn’t been easy staying quiet about all this, but Charlotte feared that once the story became public, long-lost relatives would be popping out of the woodwork, all eager to claim their inheritance.
“How long will it take?” Charlotte asked. Now that she’d officially hired Roy, she was ready for results.
“I can’t promise you a definite time line,” Roy told her. “If you’d like to make an appointment for two weeks from now, I’ll give you a progress report.”
“Can’t you just look it up on the computer?” she asked, waving her hand in the direction of his monitor.
“I’ll start there.”
Charlotte had taken a basic computer class last summer. Using Olivia’s old computer, she’d typed up her columns for Jack—because he’d insisted on it. But the best part about a computer was playing games such as solitaire, although the contraption made it impossible to cheat. What fun was that?
She planned to buy a new computer soon, with the money she’d earned from her contributions to the Seniors’ Page. She had all kinds of ideas for future columns; once this was all settled, she might even write about meeting Tom….
“Two weeks, then?” Roy asked.
“I’ll look forward to it,” she told him.
As Charlotte walked out, she felt as though a great burden had been lifted from her shoulders.
Cathy laughed at Cecilia’s caricature of a ditzy hairdresser. Cecilia was going to help her add do-it-yourself highlights to her hair on this rainy Wednesday afternoon. Since that first video-and-popcorn evening they’d found reasons to get together often. Neither one could afford much, so they took turns having each other over for various kinds of low-budget fun—like movies or dinner. Gradually Cathy had drawn Cecilia into a circle of other Navy wives. On the night of her wedding anniversary, the whole group had shown up at The Captain’s Galley. Last weekend, Cecilia had met Carol Greendale, another Navy wife who’d had a baby girl the same month as Allison. She’d found it hard—more than hard—to see Carol with her daughter. She’d made excuses to leave, but despite her vague protests and paper-thin excuses, Cathy had patiently convinced her to stay. In the end, Cecilia was glad she had.
Cathy headed for the bathroom to wash her hair while Cecilia read through the package directions. “Did you bring a crochet hook?” she asked when Cathy reappeared with a bathroom towel wrapped around her head.
“No. Do we need one?”
Cecilia wasn’t sure the small plastic hook included in the kit would work as well. “Never mind, we’ll manage with this.”
“Should I make a run over to Kmart? I could pick up another package to do your hair, too.”
“Not this time, okay?” Cecilia shook her head. “Look—I have to draw strands of hair through the holes in this plastic cap….” She frowned as she studied the paraphernalia that had come with the kit.
“Have you heard from Ian lately?”
Cecilia shook her head. It’d been almost three weeks since their anniversary, and she hadn’t thanked him for the flowers, hadn’t even acknowledged getting them. She hadn’t contacted him in any way. Ian hadn’t written her, either. Apparently her message had been received and understood.
“Andrew says they’re putting into port soon.”
“Australia?”
Cathy gave an exaggerated sigh and propped her chin on one knee. “I’ve always wanted to visit the South Pacific.”
“Me, too.”
“In his last letter, Andrew wrote about the night sky,” Cathy said in a soft voice.
Cecilia stopped rereading the directions to listen. Ian loved the stars and was actually quite knowledgeable about the planets and constellations. She remembered the clear summer night he’d pointed out Cassiopeia and recounted the ancient Greek legend about its formation. Cecilia had