Sunrise on Cedar Key by Terri Dulong

spree? We had talked nonstop on the drive to Gainesville and back. No, not about anything profound, just enjoyable conversation. And over lunch—at that intimate French restaurant he suggested—he had reached out and squeezed my hand, thanking me for accompanying him to make furniture selections. The look in his eyes had been genuine, which led me to think that he cared about me.
    I blew out a deep breath. That’s just it, I thought, maybe even though he feels the attraction that I do, he’s not willing to follow through on it. Maybe that deep love he has for his wife won’t allow him to.
    â€œAnd how do you feel about that, Gracie?” I asked myself out loud.
    I’m not sure, I thought, but possibly it’s better to have only a friendship with Lucas than no contact at all?
    I had no answers, but maybe the cards did. I stopped shuffling and removed the first one—the Page of Fire/Mastery of action card indicating playfulness . This card could definitely represent me, because the meaning for it was to start seeing the lighter side of life, the playfulness. When this card appears in a reading, something fresh and new is going to enter your life and you are ready for it.
    Hmm, well, this certainly made sense. Especially in relation to Lucas.
    I removed the next card and was surprised to see the Knight of Clouds. This one shows a knight completely covered in armor. The armor has buttons all over it, and they could detonate if touched.
    This card seldom showed up in my spread. Could it represent Lucas? The figure in the card is angry and his face is full of pure rage. This person shows so much anger because beneath this anger is profound pain from something in his past.
    Immediately, I recalled the pain I saw in his eyes Tuesday night when he told me about his wife’s death.
    The definition of this card also states that his anger is his armor to avoid further pain. This individual can change, but it will take time and a lot of understanding from those around him.
    Well, I certainly had never seen Lucas display any anger, so I now doubted that this card represented him. I laid it aside and reached for the third one. The Thunderbolt card again, which represented Chloe. Not surprising, since she was due to arrive on the island within a few hours.
    I returned the cards to their velvet pouch, got up, stretched, and blew out a deep breath.
    Annie had been napping on the kitchen floor. She looked up at me expectantly.
    â€œYeah, come on,” I said. “You can have a romp in the garden before I get to work on the computer.”
    Â 
    I was sitting on the porch, sipping an iced tea and working on a gorgeous lacy scarf pattern, when the Lexus pulled up. A woman got out, stretched, and stood looking toward the end of the street at the water.
    Chloe? True, I hadn’t seen my sister in ten years, but still... Had I bumped into her out in public, I’m not sure I’d have recognized her right away. Gone was the slim and trim Chloe I’d always remembered and in her place was a middle-aged woman looking ... well, there was no kind way to put it—frumpy. It was easy to see that she’d packed on about thirty pounds, and although the yellow pantsuit she wore was obviously pricey, the style would have been more suited to Aunt Maude. Her hair, which I’d always envied, had morphed from chestnut brown to a distinct salt and pepper, adding a few more years to her overall appearance. And the shine and sleekness was now missing. But there was no doubt that, yes, this was my sister.
    I got up and walked down the stairs with Annie trailing behind me.
    â€œChloe,” I hollered. “Welcome. Did you have a good drive?”
    She turned to face me, and I now saw that lines had appeared around her eyes that weren’t there ten years before.
    â€œGrace,” she said, and her gaze swept over me. “You’re looking great, as usual.”
    Was that surprise I detected in