“Put it on the market, I guess. With a massive garage sale.”
“Sounds daunting.”
Kate shrugged. “The kids’ll help me.”
“Speaking of your kids,” Vivien said. “Emma was a surprise last night. Didn’t Matt want to tag along and spend the rest of his summer in Destin?”
Kate shook her head. “He’s happy at Jeffrey’s,” she said, referring to her ex-husband. “But Emma. Yeah. She’s…here.”
“Did you get any time with Eli last night?” Vivien asked, maybe misconstruing the wistful note in Kate’s voice.
She wrapped both hands around her coffee cup and considered how much truth to offer on a day that was supposed to be about Tessa’s happiness.
“Briefly,” she said. “But it was so late last night because of the layover delay. But I’ve missed him and I…think he’s missed me.”
“No thinking about it,” Vivien assured her. “The wordpiningcomes to mind. My poor dear brother has looked a little lost since you left, although he’s kept himself busy trying to land a big project.”
“Lakeside.” Kate remembered discussing the local master-planned community development that would be a coup for Eli’s Atlanta-based company, Acacia Architecture.
“Haveyoubeen pining?” Vivien pressed.
“I’m not really a pining type, but if you’re asking me if I love him, the answer is yes.”
Vivien chuckled, probably at the directness of the declaration. Why not? It was true. “Pull that old diary out, Viv, and you’ll see, like you and Peter, some dreams die hard.”
Vivien laughed at the line from the diary they’d read. “Well, Peter and I are together now. Rock solid. But you and Eli?”
“Maybe not so rock solid,” Kate admitted, setting down her coffee and staring out to the street for a moment.
“Because of the distance?” Vivien asked when Kate didn’t elaborate.
“Yes, but, believe it or not, I don’t think our distance is going to keep us from making this work. We’re smart and people move or adjust. The real issue might be…squishier.”
Vivien lifted a knowing brow. “His faith.” It wasn’t a question.
Kate nodded. “Eli’s Christianity isn’t casual, Viv. It’s not Sunday mornings and Christmas carols.”
“Oh, no, it isn’t,” Vivien confirmed. “It’s how my brother makes decisions, how he sees the world, how he…processes everything.”
“I realize that,” Kate said. “And I respect that. I genuinely do. But I’m a scientist and have been my entire adult life. I look at the world through data and evidence and peer-reviewed research, and when he talks about faith and God’s plan, I…” She trailed off, shaking her head. “I don’t see what he sees. I can’t.”
“You’ve talked about it?” Vivien asked.
“Yes, we’ve talked about it. We’ve talkedaroundit. We’ve had the gentle version and the not-so-gentle version of the conversation.”
“And?”
“And…he doesn’t try to convert me, and I don’t try to argue him out of it. We’re both very civilized and very respectful and it’s—” She pulled off her glasses and pinched the bridge of her nose. “It’s exhausting, to be honest. Because respect doesn’tchange the fact that we see life in fundamentally different ways, and at some point, those different opinions will collide. I don’t know when or how, but I know they will.”
Vivien was quiet, turning her cup slowly on the table. “I won’t pretend I understand Eli’s level of belief,” she said carefully. “He didn’t grow up with it.”
“He needed a crutch for the pain after his wife was killed in a plane crash,” Kate said matter-of-factly. There couldn’t be a question as to why Eli leaned into God.
But Vivien angled her head in doubt. “I’m not sure if it’s that simple. He and Melissa were exploring Christianity when she died. She might have been further along than he was, since she’d confided to me that she wanted to get baptized.”
Kate winced slightly. That’s the woman Eli would want—abaptizedwoman. Something she would never be.
“Look, Kate. I’ve seen you two together and it’s real.” Vivien reached across the table with a comforting hand. “The universe went to a lot of trouble to put you back in each other’s paths for a reason.”