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been falling in love with Mark, and I was afraid of the answer.
    “Does he feel the same way about you?” Mom asked me, her voice gentle and careful, as if she was afraid the question would bring me pain.
    “I believe he loves me.” Mark had as good as said he was in love with me. “He won’t tell me why he has to leave, but whatever it is has to be serious. He’s done something he refuses to discuss with me or apparently anyone else.” Our conversation from three weeks ago lingered in my mind.
    “Do you think he’s done something illegal?” Mom’s voice dropped to a whisper as if the FBI had tapped my phone line and was listening in at this very moment.
    “No, I don’t think so,” I said, though I couldn’t be sure. Almost from the first time I’d met him, I’d suspected Mark Taylor was hiding some deep, dark secret. Everything about him was mysterious. I’d done copious amounts of research to dig into his past and had come away with no significant information. At one point I’d considered making an appointment to talk to Roy MacAfee, a retired Seattle police detective who did a bit of private investigation on the side. In the end I’d decided against it.
    “Okay.” Mom didn’t sound convinced. “What could it be, then?”
    I so badly wanted the answer. “I don’t know; I just don’t know.” Whatever it was tormented Mark. From the way he held and kissed me I knew that he no more wanted to leave than I wanted him to go.
    “Oh, sweetie. I am sorry, but in some ways I think his leaving might be for the best.”
    I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “What do you mean?”
    My mother’s hesitation told me this was a matter that had weighed heavily on her mind. “I’ve watched you over the last eighteen months, Jo Marie, and you’ve used Mark as a crutch.”
    “A what?” She wasn’t making sense.
    “A crutch. He’s become your friend and your confidant, and that’s all well and good, but it’s time, Jo Marie. Time for you to break out of that protective wall you’ve built, insulating yourself from the world. You were crazy about Paul and he about you. He was your whole world and then he was gone. You were lost, alone, drifting, and then there was Mark…”
    “Mom—” I started to protest, but she cut me off.
    “My goodness, Jo Marie, look at your life—Your best friend is a cranky handyman you’ve kept at arm’s length. You no longer go out with friends. You behave like a grandmother, baking cookies, pruning roses.”
    “I’m an innkeeper. I don’t have a lot of free time,” I argued.
    “Make time,” Mom countered. “You’re young and full of life—it’s time you started acting like it. Yes, I know you’re grieving, but really, is this what Paul would have wanted?”
    I didn’t want to argue with my mother. “Okay,” I whispered, “I’ll give it some thought.” What I’d wanted were some gentle words that would ease the ache in my heart. “I called to talk about Mark,” I reminded her.
    “I know. Perhaps I shouldn’t have said anything, but I’ve been worried about you for quite a while now and hesitated to mention it. I know it’s a blow that Mark’s leaving, but maybe it’s for the best.”
    “He put his house on the market.”
    “Let him go, Jo Marie, and use this time to reach out and make new friends.”
    My mother had certainly given me something to think about. I didn’t necessarily agree with her, but what she said was worth considering.
    “Would you like me to come over and spend a few days with you?” my mother offered.
    I was tempted to accept, but then decided it would be a hardship for my dad to be without Mom. If I said the word, she’d be on the next ferry to Cedar Cove, but it would disrupt their lives for my own selfish reasons. I’d survived much worse and I would get through this, too.
    “I appreciate that you would be willing, but no thanks, Mom.”
    “You’re sure?”
    “I’m sure.”
    “Call me if you change your