the first day she’d moved back in. It had been a work in progress ever since, growing and changing with Maeve’s every trip to the beach.
The platter she’d been looking for was right there where she’d left it on the desk by the window.
She turned back to the door. Startled, she stopped. “Hailey? I didn’t hear you come in.”
“I got lonely waiting.” Her head swiveled from one side of the three-windowed walls to the other. Not floor-to-ceiling windows like you might see in newer homes, but small individual panels, one framed above the other, each one a perfect three foot wide by two foot tall. Maeve knew because she’d used the deep wooden frames as shelves for her treasures.
At that moment, light hung around the child as though an angel had dropped her from the heavens. Hailey stood there mesmerized. “This is the prettiest room in the whole wide world.”
The discovery of beauty from a child’s eyes overwhelmed Maeve. She turned and looked at the treasures she’d collected. Her life’s work.
“This is my sunroom,” Maeve explained. “I like to come in here and relax while enjoying all the special things I’ve found.”
Hailey’s blond brows set in a straight line. “This isn’t a sunroom. This is a shell room. Look at ’em all.” She pointed her finger, air-tracing her way around each window. Taking it all in, and in no hurry at all. “They are everywhere.” The last statement was barely above a whisper.
“Yes, they most certainly are.” Maeve smiled at this little one. “Maybe more than my fair share.”
“It’s sparkly in here.” Hailey blinked, then started toward the window that Maeve treasured the most. The one full of her most precious pieces of sea glass. “Look at these. They are like Christmas lights.” She reached out and touched the outside of a tall apothecary jar filled with pieces of sea glass in shades of red, and she placed her finger over a brilliant orange piece. “Wow! That’s the prettiest one.”
“You have excellent taste. That’s my most treasured piece.”
Her eyes lifted.
“You can touch it. It’s okay.”
“Can I hold it?”
“Sure.” Maeve walked closer and watched Hailey dip her hand into the jar to reach the dazzling nugget. She knelt down next to her. “It’s the rarest color of all sea glass. My second favorite is this one.” In a separate glass canning jar, Maeve picked up a cobalt-blue piece. “Look, it’s the exact color of your eyes.”
Hailey’s eyes opened wide, and she pressed her face next to Maeve’s hand as she held the sea glass, offering her the chance to compare the two. “I love this room.”
“I do too. It’s my happy place.” The overstuffed white chair in the middle looked lonely now, but she’d never been lonely in this room. There was one other chair—a smaller one that she’d put a slipcover over—and then her momma’s old Queen Anne ladies’ writing desk.
For the first time, she pictured herself in this room differently: not alone but rather with Hailey and Jesse at her feet. It would be so much more colorful with their light in the room. Like shimmering curtains of sun with their energy and innocence in here.
Hailey leaned forward and whispered, “I can keep a secret. You’re my new best friend.” Hailey zipped her lips and threw away the key.
“You are my most special friend.” Maeve took her by the hand and went back to the kitchen to gather lunch and take it outside.
Amanda and Jesse sang, “Row, row, row your boat gently down the stream.”
Maeve carried the tray of sandwiches and drinks. Hailey opened the door, and the two of them joined in for the finale. “Life is but a dream.”
“To dreams,” Maeve said.
They ate lunch, and the afternoon offered a few puffy clouds that were a welcome relief on the scorching day. The conversation was easy, and the laughter made Maeve feel ten years younger. Thank goodness I lived long enough to experience this.
They finished eating and then Hailey got up. “Me and Jesse will take all the dishes to the kitchen.” She collected plates, and Jesse gathered what he could. “We know how.”
“Well, thank you.” Maeve sat back in her chair, letting the two fuss around her. “That’s quite wonderful. I feel like a queen for a day.”
“Queen mermaid,” Jesse said.
“That’s our secret.” As the two youngsters walked through the door toward the kitchen, Maeve sat there enjoying their delight. “Oh, Amanda. Remember when we were talking before and you said you had no