Lavender Beach by Vickie McKeehan Read Free Book Online Page A

night. She recalled the first time she’d taken a walk on the beach at the cove, hidden below the cliffs. While there, she remembered feeling as though someone had been watching her. At the time, she’d chalked it up to a deep-seated anxiety at starting over in a new place, in new surroundings. Then, there was the night she’d heard whispering outside her door. When she got up to investigate the sound, the hallway had been empty. She considered the fact that she might be headed for the loony bin when she’d misplaced her dad’s army dog tags, which she carried with her wherever she went. Strangely, they had turned up the morning she checked out.
    It might not add up to much. But then she included the incidents where she’d actually spotted Scott Phillips. Not knowing his name, he’d looked as real then as he had last night.
    After some thought, she took out her phone, dialed the number for Promise Cove, decided Cord was right. It was best to ask the source.
     

     
    Eastlyn didn’t make it to the bed and breakfast until six-thirty that evening, a good twelve hours after her conversation with Cord.
    When she made the turn down the narrow lane toward the inn, she slowed her speed past the apple-green sign where Scott’s name appeared.
    As soon as the house came into view, Eastlyn saw Jordan waiting on the porch.
    “Thanks for making time to talk,” Eastlyn said getting out of the truck. “I know this is your busy season so I appreciate it.”
    “Don’t be silly. I always have time to talk about Scott. Come on inside, Nick’s on kitchen duty. Have you eaten?”
    Eastlyn sent her a wide smile. “I didn’t come to impose like that. But I wouldn’t turn down a plate of anything you have on hand. You’re a genius in the kitchen.”
    “Tonight it was buttermilk fried chicken with mashed potatoes and fried okra. The meal was in honor of the couple from Nashville staying here on their honeymoon. They’re due to check out tomorrow. They’re down at the cove taking pictures before they head back home.” In a casual tone, Jordan added, “So you’ve seen Scott.”
    “Last night. And a couple times while I was here but I thought it was a real person, you know, walking the hallways, out in the courtyard, down at the cove. I just assumed…”
    Jordan hooted with laughter. “That’s our Scott. He gets around.”
    “How can you laugh about it? When I got to work this morning Isabella did the same thing. She wanted to know what was bothering me. When I told her, she said Scott appeared to her like it was no big deal. She told me the whole story. How you were married to Scott when he left for Iraq. How you’re now married to his best friend. Isabella was the first one of you who actually used the word ‘ghost’ to describe Scott. You should know, I don’t believe in this kind of stuff.”
    Eastlyn followed Jordan into the kitchen where Nick, was indeed cleaning up the dishes. He caught the last bit of the conversation. “Then how do you explain what you saw with your own eyes? Tell me that.”
    “I need glasses? My vision’s always been twenty/twenty but I guess now that I’m getting older…” Her voice trailed off knowing she could still see just fine. “I don’t know.”
    “Scott brought me here, to this town, to this place, to this woman,” Nick said. “Without Scott’s interference in my life I wouldn’t have all this.”
    “What does that have to do with me? I’ve never even met Scott.”
    “But neither had Isabella,” Jordan pointed out. “Want something to drink?”
    “Iced tea would be fine.” Eastlyn stuck her hands in her back pockets, wandered around the room in a nervous stride designed to buy her some time to think. “Maybe you guys should start at the beginning. Cord said that the reason you made the drive to Bakersfield in the first place is to bring me back—at Scott’s request.”
    “I’ll fix you a plate and Nick will tell you everything.”
    Over savory chicken and