Page 79 of The Sandbar saga

"What?"

"I love this house. Can I mess it up, or is it a rental?" Callie held on to Katie's hand and jumped.

"I'm glad, and yes, you can throw all your toys on the floor, in your room, as long as you pick them up afterward." She walked to the car and helped Katie into the backseat, into her car seat, and then climbed into the driver's seat.

She couldn't help feeling excited.

Going from a small, two-bedroom duplex in Newport to a six-bedroom, five thousand square foot house in Astoria on a full acre with the amenities of a gated community would be a change for Callie. A good change.

She drove around the circle driveway and stopped at the street for an oncoming car. A silver Mercedes drove in front of her, and she got a glimpse of a profile in the driver's seat that left her lightheaded.

Race.

He hadn't even looked in her direction. Her heart pounded, leaving her shaken.

Just one glimpse of him, and she couldn't tell if he looked different, the same, or how he felt. All the questions that plagued her every single day since she'd left him.

Was he okay?

Had he found someone to love?

Were his days and nights filled with sadness and pain?

Had he ever thought about her and wished to do their last night together over again?

Five years seemed like a lifetime not to have him in her life. She'd gone on because she had someone else more important than herself to love. What helped him to go forward?

He drove a new car. The one she remembered had been black.

She knew he still lived on the next street up the hill because she'd scoured the internet looking for any information on him throughout the years of being apart. He still counseled patients in the cottage behind his house.

Had she been easily replaced?

"Mommy? Can we stop and get a toy meal? I'm hungry," said Callie from the backseat.

Her head pounded. She also needed to eat. It wouldn't do her or Callie any good if she let the stress of being back in Astoria wear her down.

"Sure, I'll buy us both lunch. Then, we'll call Pete and have him meet us at the storage unit." She tapped her fingers on the steering wheel, trying to steady her emotions.

"Can Darla come?"

"Oh, I don't think so, but maybe Pete's wife will come with him. She's super nice."

"Can I show her my new room?" asked Callie.

"Absolutely." She looked both ways and pulled out onto the street.

She could do this. It was one step forward with many more to go.

Her daughter deserved everything she hadn't received growing up. She knew that in her heart, and she was strong enough to make it possible.

"Look!" shouted Callie.

Katie scanned the street. "What is it?"

"Over there. A bridge."

Her chest squeezed. "We never have to go on that one, honey."

"But I want to go. It's so tall. It looks broken. Did it fall in the water?" Callie flapped her arms in the back. "Can cars swim?"

"No." Her jaw ached. "Cars don't swim."

She'd refrained from telling Callie the dangers of the sandbar. She'd refrained from telling Callie a lot of things she deserved to know. That's why she was here.

It was time to fix the mistakes she'd made. Both for her, and Callie.