The Parent Trap(57)
Jon suddenly had a newfound respect for a woman who had already impressed him beyond words. “How did you manage? Did your family help you?”
“They did, in their own way, at least. But I had a business degree and a good head for finances. My only real mistake was assuming that Jim did, too. Anyway, I sold the house and the boat, moved Casey and myself into a little apartment, and landed a job with the original owner of To the Nines, doing her books, taxes, that sort of thing. She was happy with my work and word spread and pretty soon I was turning down jobs. I worked from home a lot, which gave me lots of time to spend with my daughter.”
“How does an accountant make the transition to owning a clothing store?”
She laughed lightly. “It’s not as big a leap as you might think. Fashion had always been part of that big-city dream of mine. Living in a city didn’t happen, except while I was at college, but I’ve always followed fashion trends.”
“Off the grid?”
“Yes, even then. My mom was busy with her garden and cooking, my dad was always building something, and my older sister seldom had her nose out of a book. I was the odd one out, dreaming of owning my own business someday, maybe even a chain of fashion boutiques.”
“You’re amazing,” he said, and he meant it. In spite of some major hardships, she was well on her way. “Doesn’t living off grid mean no electricity?”
“It sure does.”
“Did you have solar power? Or does it rain too much on the west coast of the island?”
“Oh, it rains all right. Believe it or not, though, solar panels work even when it’s cloudy or foggy. We also had woodstoves for heating and cooking, and a diesel generator for backup.”
“Wow. I’m impressed.”
“Me, too. My dad’s an engineer but he mostly works as an environmental consultant. And these days my family’s home is no longer off the grid, it’s tied to it.”
“So when your dad produces excess electricity, he’s feeding it into the grid?”
“That’s right.”
“I’ve heard of people doing that but I’ve never known anyone who’s actually done it. Do you visit your family very often?”
“We spend a week or so with them every summer. Casey loves it there, the beaches, tide pools, doing science-y stuff with my dad and my older sister. She’s a professor of environmental studies in Montreal.
“Science-y.” He smiled at that. “I can see the appeal.”
Sarah unexpectedly pulled her hand away and covered her face. “What if she’s not okay?”
He was trying to think of something to say when her phone rang. They both jumped.
“It’s not Casey. Not the police, either.”
For a second or two, it seemed as though she might not answer it. Then she did, and her hesitation turned to jubilation the instant she said, “Hello?”
“CASEY! OH MY HEAVENS, girl! I’ve been worried sick! Are you okay? Where are you? Who’s phone—?” Her hands shook so bad, she could hardly hold the phone.
“Mom! I’m fine. Let me talk.”
“Where—?”
“Mom!”
“Okay, okay. I’m listening.” Over the thunder of her pulse pounding in her ears.
Jonathan leaned in, wanting to hear, too. Poor guy. She switched to speaker.
“I’m using Kate’s phone. We’re at the Langdale ferry terminal—”
“What? How did you get there?”
“On the bus. We—”
“I’ve been calling and calling and you didn’t pick up. Where—?”
“Mom! Kate went to the washroom and she forgot to take her phone with her. Let me finish before she gets back.”
“Sorry, sweetie. I’m listening.” This time she would.
“Kate’s mad at her dad...”
He and Sarah hadn’t broken eye contact since she’d answered the call. Now there was no missing the hurt, the sad set of his mouth. She touched his hand, and her heart lightened a little when he linked his fingers with hers.
“I was getting ready for soccer practice and Kate texted me. She said she was going to take the ferry to Vancouver and stay with a friend. How dumb is that? I’d put all my stuff in my gym locker when I went to talk to her. I couldn’t talk her out of leaving so I thought if I went with her, I’d have plenty of time to change her mind before she actually got on the ferry.”
“So your phone’s in your gym locker?”
“Yup, and Kate turned hers off in case her dad tried to call.”
Jonathan let out a sigh and shook his head. She could see that his relief was already morphing back into annoyance.