After Lucinda made it home, she and Merrill went about having dinner. He did most of the talking while she just nodded or mumbled responses. Typically she had more to contribute than a silent nod, which was why Merrill couldn't shake the feeling that something heavy was on her mind. However, he figured that she would tell him what was wrong once she felt ready to, so he decided not to push it.

Later as they put away the leftovers and washed the dishes together, the doorbell rang. When Lucinda opened it, it was to both of their suprise to find Aundrey there. The woman's red hair shone brightly under the porch light, giving her an elegant glow with the emerald green shawl draped around her shoulders. As Lucinda stepped aside, allowing her to come inside, she explained how she was just stopping by to say goodbye. She was leaving the next day and wanted to see them one last time.

After visiting for a while, Lucinda excused herself with a wink to Audrey as she explained how she needed to put a load of laundry in the wash. Catching the hint in her voice, Merrill cleared his throat, suddenly nervous to be alone with the woman and the obvious set up. Yet, Audrey settled into the couch even more as she propped her legs underneath her.

"I've really enjoyed my time getting to know you this weekend, and I was thinking... maybe on your way home when you stop in Berryville, you can stay for a while. I can fix you dinner and you could even spend the night in my guest bedroom if you'd like to break up the trip?"

Merrill took a deep swallow and could feel sweat beading up on his forehead. "I would love to have dinner, but I'd like to get back on the road after. I've been away from my farm long enough."

"What's one more night?" Audrey asked.

He took a nervous hand and placed it behind his neck which felt damp. "I know, and it's a nice offer, but once I get going I don't like to stop for too long."

"I understand," Audrey sighed. "It was worth a try."

"Well, I'll tell you what. Now that I've gotten to know you better, I now have a place where I can make regular stops on my way to and from here. So maybe on one of my next visits I'll stop in Berryville a bit longer and you can show me around town?"

"Deal." Audrey held out her hand and Merrill shook it.

Their gazes lingered on each other for a moment, with their hands still in each others grips. Merrill could feel the thump thump of his heart as he took in her rusty red hair and big brown eyes. For the first time since his wife passed away, he was actually paying attention to the attractiveness of another women. Realizing it, he slipped his hand out of Audrey's and glanced away.

"Well, I should get going, it's getting late and the road back to my sister's house is a bit of a drive and I still have to pack my things..." Audrey explained.

"It was great visiting with you."

"Likewise." Audrey winked. "If you change your mind about Berryville, then you know where to find me."

"I do." Merrill nodded.

As Audrey began to get up, she pulled the strap of her purse over her shoulder and then paused to get a good look at him. They both stared at each other again for several silent seconds, until Audrey leaned into Merrill and pulled his face into hers. Her kiss was gentle, soft and quick. Before Merrill could even wrap his head around what was happening, she pulled away and stood up from the couch.

"I'm leaving now, Lucinda," she called out.

"Ok," she said as she appeared back into the living room to hug Audrey goodbye.

"You take care of my nephew, ok love-bug?"

"I will." Lucinda nodded.

There was silence once again as the door closed behind her, but it didn't feel empty with Audrey gone, it just felt different. Perhaps because in the back of Merrill's mind, he knew it wasn't, goodbye, but rather a, see you later. He yawned and excused himself for bed but Lucinda stayed awake. She felt tired from what had happened earlier, and her mind was still a whirlwind after buying a pregnancy test. For the first time in months, she wished she had the tiny pebbles from the bridge she used to walk across. She wanted so badly to be able to hold them in her hands, trace their smooth surface and marvel in the beauty of their various subtle colors.

She sat down on the couch and curled her knees up to her chest. Over the months so much had changed in her life and mostly for the better. A new town, new job, new friends, new dreams and a new love-life... but things always had a way of raining down and washing away her happiness. If things went back to being the way they were before her move to Breeze Bay, then Lucinda would officially lose hope for happily ever afters.

Except, there was no way she could go back to her life before the jump from the bridge. That life was lonely, sad and pathetic... however, that's what she was. It wasn't who she was now. Was it?

She shook her head, hoping the thoughts would leave her mind, but they kept pulsating and reminding her of what she ran from. With the changes in her life, she managed to suppress the little voice in the back of her mind that whispered she wasn't good enough and didn't deserve joy. Rachel showing up in Raif's life didn't help either. Just one look at the woman and Lucinda suddenly felt below par in comparison.

"Stop it!" Lucinda whispered to herself. "Stop it!"

She clenched her teeth together and balled her fingers into a fist as they held her knees. Her mind flashed to seeing her ex fiancé's face at the restaurant. How could a man be so handsome, yet so entirely ugly at the same time? There he sat with a hand on his wife's knee, while his children sat across from him, and none the wiser of just how slimy he really was. A womanizing adulterer.

What a day that was, yet it also spun Lucinda's life in a new direction that brought so much positive change in her life. Which made the paranoia of losing everything good since moving, feel so real. Especially with Rachel shaking things up. Chuck's words at the cafe earlier didn't help. Instead they only stirred up Lucinda's insecurities. Insecurities which would perhaps never go away.

Lucinda sighed as she hugged her knees. Raif would know how to get her out of her own head and assure her that everything was fine. Especially between them. Deep down, however, Lucinda also knew that even if he were next to her, comforting her, that it wouldn't dissipate the tornado of thoughts going on in her mind, because that was something only she could change.

Lucinda closed her eyes and tried to focus on her breathing. She needed to relax and get out of her head.

🌊🌊🌊

When Lucinda woke up, it was to Merrill standing over her. She blinked her eyes several times, trying to make sense of why she was still on the couch? As she moved to stretched her arms, pain shot through her stiff neck and she rubbed it with a grimace.

"Are you alright? Did you sleep on the couch all night?"

"I didn't mean to. I guess I must have dozed off." She rubbed her eyes.

"Should I take you to the doctor?"

"No." Lucinda shook her head. "Let me just get up and get moving. I'm sure I'll feel better after having some breakfast."

"Ok. I'll get it started."

Merrill headed for the kitchen while wearing a worried expression the entire way. So Lucinda put on a smile and sat up, but then immediately began feeling sick. Cupping her hand over her mouth, she ran straight to the bathroom and emptied her stomach into the toilet. Merrill quickly raced after her and watched her with growing concern. He then grabbed a towel, handed it to her and crouched by her side to rub her back. Lucinda wiped her mouth, but then she felt her body lurch again, so her head went back into the toilet.

Her body heaved and heaved, but only yellow stomach acid kept coming up. Once she was finally done, she sat back, leaning herself against the vanity. Her hands were shaking as she brought them up to her face to push her hair back.

"I should take you to the hospital... you're not right." Merrill looked her over and felt her forehead the way he used to do for his children.

"No. I'm... I'm..." Lucinda studdered as her stomach still twisted.

A pounding at the door caused both of them to flinch. Merrill looked over his shoulder and then back to Lucinda. "I'll go get it. I bet it's Raif. You stay here ok?"

"He probably forgot his key..." Lucinda called out but Merrill was already gone.

🌊🌊🌊

Merrill walked briskly to the door and didn't bother looking through the peephole as he swung it open, expecting to see Raif. The moment he saw who was standing before him, however, he immediately regretted not checking the peephole first. There standing before him was his son, Aaron... and he certainly did not look pleased.

Ever the dramatic one out of his two children, Aaron barged past Merrill, not bothering to be welcomed inside and stood in the middle of the living room. He folded his arms while shaking his head and looking about in disgust.

"So this is where you run off to?" he said, stretching out his arms.

"What the HELL are you doing here?" Merrill barked.

"Better question is, what the hell are you doing here dad? Good grief! Sylvia says you come here regularly to visit some woman!?"

"She's not just some woman. She's my friend and has become like a daughter to me!"

"Have you gone insane? You're in your seventies and parading around from Redwood Village all the way to Breeze Bay! What if something happened to you? Would this woman even care? Not to mention that you haven't breathed a word about going on these little trips. You simply get up and go without telling anyone!"

"Sylvia knows where I am and I keep in touch with her. Besides, what's it to you!" Merrill fired back. "You've never given a damn!"

"You're my father. Of course I give a damn!" Aaron pounded his fist into his chest, emphasizing his words.

"Well you sure don't act like it. Wanting to sell MY land." Merrill stepped forward and pointed into Aaron's sternum. "Wanting to move me into the city cause you're too damn absorbed in your own life to even visit me!"

"I'm too absorbed? Look who's talking! I don't know what kind of spell this woman has you under but you've become so engulfed in it that you've turned your back on your family."

Hearing the commotion, Lucinda used the vanity to pull herself up from the bathroom floor and looked at her pale reflection in the mirror. She could hear angry mumblings coming from the living room, but couldn't recognize from who? Working quickly, she rinsed her mouth with wash, spit out the fluid and dried her lips with a towel. Her stomach still felt like a yarn ball of anxiety and she imagined walking into the middle of a spat between Merrill and Raif. Perhaps Merrill was scolding Raif for lord knows what, which would prompt her to explain her sudden illness. She simply wasn't ready to...

Lucinda gave herself one last look in the mirror, blew out a deep breath and then made her way to the living room. Maybe it was best to get everything out in the open? Letting it fester would only create more stress, when it wasn't even necessary. She needed to pull strength from the people around her, not internalize it the way she would in the past. As soon as she turned the corner she felt ready to confront what was plaguing her, but as soon as she looked at her guest, Lucinda froze.

"Sam??" she breathed out.

Aaron paused from arguing with Merrill and shifted his attention to Lucinda. Confusion, then recognition, took over his angry expression as he drew his head back in equal shock. Merrill looked from his son to Lucinda and then back to Aaron again, sensing something was about to combust.

"What are you doing in my home?" Lucinda now asked.

"Wait..." Aaron held his hand up with the other on his hip. "You're the woman my father has been visiting?"

"Merrill is your father!" Lucinda asked, her eyes wide with disbelief.

"Hold on a second," Merrill chimed in. "How do you two know each other?" He pointed to the both of them.

"He was my fiancé..." Lucinda replied with her flesh once again turning pale.

"WHAT!" Merrill shouted.

"I thought your name was Sam?" Lucinda managed to utter.

"Samuel is my first name," Aaron replied. "But everyone just calls me Aaron. It's a family name," he added.

"So let me get this straight." Merrill raised his hands to his temples. "You cheated on Marie and the person you cheated with was Lucinda??" Merrill kept his fingers at his temples and shook his head.

"How do you even know her, dad?" Aaron turned his attention back to Merrill, his momentary surprise replaced with a blank, cold gaze.

"What does it matter! You cheated on your wife... you ruined Lucinda's life!" Merrill threw his hands in Lucinda's direction.

Lucinda stepped towards Merrill as she tried to explain things and tears began collecting in her eyes. "I didn't know he was your son. I swear to you, Merrill, I didn't know. He told me his name was Sam..."

"Oh please," Aaron scoffed. "I bet you're hoping my dad drops dead so you can collect money from him as revenge!"

"What?" Lucinda gasped. "I would never... I love your father."

"All you sluts are the same!" he hissed.

"Lucinda isn't like that!" Merrill barked out.

"Give me a break! I bet she seduced you into making her your beneficiary when you croak. She always was a good lay."

"You shut your mouth!" Merrill growled.

Not being able to bare anymore of it, Lucinda pushed past them both and escaped from the house with the sound of Merrill shouting after her. Except she couldn't look back. Maybe if she ran far enough, then when she returned it would've all been a bad dream? Needing to feel Raif's arms around her, she pumped her feet against the pavement so fast that her legs felt like sand bags as she ran towards Raif's home.

🌊🌊🌊

Merrill faced the opened front door which was letting in warm rays of sun and he could hear the cooing of seagulls somewhere in the distance. If he closed his eyes, he could even hear the light crashing of the ocean waves on the beach. He wondered if perhaps he was dreaming, but then Aaron cleared his throat and Merrill snapped his head back toward his son. There wasn't a single sign of guilt or remorse on his Aaron's face.

"Nothing? You have nothing to say for what you've just done?" Merrill said through clenched teeth.

"What's there to say? I cheated on my wife." Aaron threw his hands in the air as if the answer was so simple.

"How about feeling some remorse over the matter?"

"Marie and I were on the rocks at the time, ok. I'm not proud of it. I was working long hours at work, trying to make partner, but she wanted to work less so she could focus on the girls. We were constantly at odds fighting about one thing or the other and I was becoming miserable, so I wooed some stupid girl at work."

"Lucinda is not some stupid girl, Aaron. Lucinda is a remarkable young woman, who you never deserved. You don't even deserve Marie or the beautiful daughters you created with her. You are selfish, no good and I've never been more ashamed!" Merrill roared.

"It was a mistake, alright! But what's your excuse? You're an old man sleeping with a woman that's younger that Sylvia. Aren't you ashamed?"

"Oh why don't you pull your head out of your ass!" Merrill snapped back. "I am not sleeping with Lucinda and I never have, we're just friends. She was my neighbor in Redwood Village, lived up the river from me... but I'm sure you already knew that." He narrowed his gaze at him.

"You better not tell Marie about any of this." Aaron glared back.

"Or what?"

"Or I'll tell everyone that you've been sleeping with a woman young enough to be your granddaughter. You sad, sick, old man."

With those words, Merrill's blood boiled over, causing him to lunge at Aaron and back him against the sofa by his shirt collar. As he struggled to straighten himself, Merrill began pounding his fists into Aaron's chest.

"For the... last time... I... am... not... sleeping with... her!" he pounded harder with each word.

The force behind it was so strong that it was causing Aaron's body to bend backwards over the sofa as he tried to avoid being hit. Then his body flipped completely over, but Merrill continued to pound his fists down onto him like a gorilla showing another his dominance. Aaron shielded his face from the blows, but then the hits became weaker and weaker until it stopped.

When Aaron lowered his arms, he saw that Merrill was clutching his chest and his mouth was gaping wide, but no sound was coming out.

"Dad? What's happening?" Aaron panicked.

With a pained moan, Merrill collapsed onto him, whispering to call an ambulance and continued to hold his chest.

🌊🌊🌊

Lucinda reached the front door of Raif's home but didn't have her key with her so she raced to the backyard. Knowing he kept the sliding glass door unlocked, she hurriedly made her way to it and slid it open. With her heart beating rapidly in her chest, she called out for Raif, still in shock over finding out her ex was also Merrill's son. As she walked through the kitchen and into the living room she was caught with yet another surprise.

Rachel had casually sauntered out of Raif's bedroom and was coming down the hallway towards her in one of his t-shirts... with no pants on. Lucinda looked her over from head to toe and could taste vomit rising up her throat again. By the looks of it, Rachel wasn't wearing a bra under the shirt either.

"Where's Raif?" Lucinda began shaking.

"He's in the shower," Rachel winked. At a loss for words, Lucinda shook her head from side to side and backed away. "I can get him for you if you'd like." Rachel nonchalantly pointed toward the bathroom.

"No..." Lucinda shook her head. "No," she repeated and spun around to run out of the house.

By the time Lucinda's feet made it back onto the sand, sirens could be heard in the distance. She was so overwhelmed with the noise going on in her own head, that she could barely hear anything else around her. She even cupped her hands over her ears, as if that would make her mind go silent. However, it didn't. Lucinda sunk to her knees with hands still cupped over hears, while salty tears dripped from her eyes as she squeezed them tight. Her queasiness had subsided but now her stomach just felt empty.

When she finally lowered her hands, she held her stomach and began rocking herself, but then paused. All of a sudden it was as if the morning fog bank had retreated from the beach and Lucinda's thoughts came to a halt. The sirens. Why were there sirens? They were louder now and her gut was telling her she should run back to the apartment. So, Lucinda pushed herself to her feet and sprinted across the damp sand towards home.

As she turned onto her street and saw the EMTs rushing into the apartment, she pushed her feet even faster.

"What happened!" Lucinda asked frantically as she burst through the front door.

"Step away ma'am, we need room." One of the EMTs said as they scooped Merrill onto a stretcher.

"Merrill!" Lucinda cried as she tried to reach for his hand as they went by.

She followed after them and didn't even notice how Aaron was on her heels as she tried to step into the ambulance.

"Oh no you don't!" Aaron pulled hard on her shoulder, ripping her backward. "You've done enough! He's MY father. I'M going with him!"

With a shove, he moved her out of the way and took one last cold stare at her before climbing into the ambulance. Lucinda stood back, absolutely dumbfounded as she watched the doors close. Then as the ambulance drove away with sirens blaring, she remained in the street, frozen.

Deep down, she felt responsible.