Sunset on Moonlight Beach - Sheila Roberts Page 0,81

camping in a war zone, but she was relieved to see that her great-aunt was still alive.

The Jones women and Brody were the first to return the next morning, bringing Jenna fresh clothes and toiletries, as well as coffee and cinnamon rolls from Sunbaked, the town’s bakery.

Winston arrived right on their heels, along with his wife and son. “How’s the patient doing?” he asked cheerfully, setting a small vase of flowers on her bedside table. “I brought you some flowers, Aunt Edie.”

“So I see,” she said, and left it at that.

For years he’d been MIA, never even bothering to send cards or gifts on her birthday. Even when Jenna had been caught up in trying to keep her head above water financially and then coping with her divorce, she’d always tried to remember Aunt Edie on special occasions. She’d never wanted anything from her aunt, never stopped to think what she could get out of her. She’d simply loved the old woman and cherished the memories of happy times with her when she and Celeste were kids. Winston’s fake love offended her.

“I think you’re looking better today, Aunt Edie,” he said.

Jenna didn’t think so.

“Thank you, Winston,” said Aunt Edie. “Now, if you all don’t mind, I’d like to see Brody alone for a few minutes.”

“Brody? Why him?” Winston demanded.

“Never mind why him. Let’s just do what she asks,” Jenna said, moving her irritating cousin out of the room.

Why Brody?

“Can we go home now?” Win-Win asked as they all stood around in the hallway.

A good idea, thought Jenna.

“No, we need to be here for our family,” Winston told him.

“We don’t all have to be here,” Jenna said. “Go back to the motel. We’ll call you if there’s any change.”

“No. I’ll stay,” Winston said.

“Daddy,” Winston Junior whined.

Winston fished car keys from his pocket and handed them over to Kelly. “You two go back. I can catch a ride home later with someone.”

It wouldn’t be Jenna. She wasn’t leaving.

Brody wasn’t in with Aunt Edie long, and after he came out he said he had to make a call and excused himself. A call? For Aunt Edie?

Jenna was even more curious when Aunt Edie’s lawyer showed up right before lunch.

“What’s going on?” she asked Brody when, once again, they were all shooed out of the room.

“Updating the will, eh?” said Winston, shoving his hands in his pockets and rocking back on his heels. With that disgusting grin on his face he was the very picture of avarice.

“Is she?” Jenna asked Brody.

He pressed his lips together and nodded.

“But why?” Aunt Edie had already updated her will.

“She had a few things she needed to fix,” he said. Jenna looked at him in confusion, but he shook his head and said, “It’s not my place to tell you your aunt’s business.”

“I’m sure she knows what she’s doing,” put in Winston, and she wanted to kick him. It was horrible talking about things like wills at a time like this, anyway.

Pete arrived, bearing flowers and ready to go in and see Edie. “You can’t right now,” Brody told him. “She’s with her lawyer.”

“Oh, God,” he said weakly. “She is dying.”

Jenna laid a hand on his arm. “She’s okay, Pete. Really.”

He bit his lip and nodded, then stared down at his beat-up, dirty sneakers.

Poor Pete. He looked like the ancient mariner with his scruffy chin and his bloodshot eyes. The skin under them was sunken and had turned lavender. He obviously hadn’t slept any better than Jenna.

“Come on,” Brody said, “let’s all get some lunch.”

Pete refused to budge. The rest of them trooped down to the cafeteria. Jenna got coffee and left it at that. Winston went through the lunch line and loaded up his plate.

“There’s no sense starving yourself,” he said to Jenna as he joined her and Brody at a table. “That won’t help her.”

“He’s right, you know,” Brody said. “How about some salad? Or soup?”

She shook her head. “I’m not hungry.”

Neither was Sabrina. Jenna didn’t urge her daughter to eat. Mel nibbled on a roll and drank a cup of tea, patted Jenna’s hand a lot.

By the time they returned from the cafeteria, the lawyer was gone and Pete was no longer standing outside in the hall. Once again, they all crowded into the room to find him sitting next to the bed, his flowers on the bedside stand, dwarfing Winston’s offering.

“I’m feeling better,” Aunt Edie said. “Really, you don’t all have to be here.”

“What else are we going to do?” Pete said. He held up