Debbie Macomber: 50 Harbor Street

Make time for friends. Make time for Debbie Macomber.

CEDAR COVE

16 LIGHTHOUSE ROAD

204 ROSEWOOD AVENUE

311 PELICAN COURT

44 CRANBERRY POINT

50 HARBOR STREET

6 RAINIER DRIVE

BLOSSOM STREET

THE SHOP ON BLOSSOM STREET

A GOOD YARN

OLD BOYFRIENDS

WEDNESDAYS AT FOUR

TWENTY WISHES

SUMMER ON BLOSSOM STREET

HANNAH’S LIST

THURSDAYS AT EIGHT

CHRISTMAS IN SEATTLE

Dear Friends,

Welcome to the fifth instalment of the Cedar Cove series. Whether this is the first Cedar Cove book you’re reading or the fifth, my hope is that you’ll feel right at home.

Like some of the residents of Cedar Cove you’ll find a few surprises – and a new romance in the making. And I hope there’ll be a lot of smiles and a laugh or two along the way.

I always enjoy hearing from my readers. You can reach me through my website by signing the guest book at debbiemacomber.com. Click the Cedar Cove button and you’re in for some fun. If you aren’t online, you can write to me at PO Box 1458, Port Orchard, WA 98366, USA. Three or four times a year I provide updates on the characters – letters from the characters themselves – and they often have a recipe they want to share.

So make yourself a cup of tea and settle down with your friends from Cedar Cove. Olivia, Jack, Grace, Charlotte, Ben, Roy, Corrie and everyone else – they’re all eager to fill you in on what’s happening in town. They’re delighted you’re back. And so am I!

Warmest regards,

Debbie Macomber

www.mirabooks.co.uk

To Mary Lou Carney whose friendship and wisdom have been a special blessing to me.

Some of the Residents of Cedar Cove, Washington

Olivia Lockhart Griffin:Family court judge in Cedar Cove. Mother of Justine and James. Married to Jack Griffin. Lives at 16 Lighthouse Road.

Jack Griffin:Newspaper reporter and editor of The Cedar Cove Chronicle. Recovering alcoholic. Married to Olivia. Father of Eric, who lives in Nevada with his wife, Shelly, and their twin boys.

Charlotte Jefferson:Mother of Olivia. Now married to widower Ben Rhodes.

Justine (Lockhart) Gunderson:Daughter of Olivia. Married to Seth Gunderson. Mother of Leif. The Gundersons live at 6 Rainier Drive.

Seth Gunderson:Justine’s husband. Co-owner, with Justine, of The Lighthouse restaurant.

James Lockhart:Olivia’s son and Justine’s younger brother. In the navy. Lives in San Diego with wife, Selina, and daughter, Isabella.

Stanley Lockhart:Olivia’s ex-husband and father of James and Justine. Now lives in Seattle.

Will Jefferson:Olivia’s brother, Charlotte’s son. Married and lives in Atlanta.

Grace Sherman:Olivia’s best friend. Librarian. Widow of Dan Sherman. Mother of Maryellen Bowman and Kelly Jordan. Involved in an on-again, off-again relationship with Cliff Harding. Lives at 204 Rosewood Lane.

Cliff Harding:Retired engineer and now horse breeder living near Cedar Cove. Divorced father of Lisa, who lives in Maryland.

Cal Washburn:Horse trainer, employed by Cliff Harding.

Maryellen Bowman:Oldest daughter of Grace and Dan Sherman. Mother of Katie. Married to Jon Bowman.

Jon Bowman:Photographer, married to Maryellen. Father of Katie.

Zachary Cox:Accountant, married to Rosie. Father of Allison and Eddie Cox, aged seventeen and eleven. Lives at 311 Pelican Court.

Anson Butler:Boyfriend of Allison Cox.

Cecilia Randall:Navy wife, living in Cedar Cove. Accountant, working for Zach Cox. Married to Ian Randall, submariner. Lost a baby (Allison). Is now pregnant.

Rachel Pendergast:Works at the Get Nailed salon. Friends with Bruce Peyton and his daughter, Jolene. Romantically involved with sailor Nate Olsen.

Bob and Peggy Beldon:Retired. Own the Thyme and Tide Bed & Breakfast at 44 Cranberry Point.

Roy McAfee:Private investigator, retired from Seattle police force. Two adult children, Mack and Lynnette. Married to Corrie.

Corrie McAfee:Roy’s wife and office manager. The McAfees live at 50 Harbor Street.

Lynnette McAfee:Daughter of Roy and Corrie. Moves to Cedar Cove to work as a nurse practitioner in the new medical clinic.

Gloria Ashton:Police officer for Bremerton force. Lynnette’s friend and neighbour.

Troy Davis:Cedar Cove sheriff.

Pastor Flemming:Local Methodist minister.

Corrie McAfee was worried. And she knew that her husband, Roy, was too.

Who wouldn’t be? Starting in July, Roy—a private investigator—had received a series of anonymous postcards, and while the messages weren’t overtly threatening, they were certainly distressing.

The first communication, which had been mailed to the office, spoke of regrets. During the intervening weeks, there’d been several others. Corrie had read each postcard so often she’d memorized them all. The first one stated: EVERYONE HAS REGRETS. IS THERE ANYTHING YOU’VE DONE YOU WISH YOU COULD DO OVER? THINK ABOUT IT. There hadn’t been a signature then, or on any of the other cards. They’d arrived at infrequent intervals and been mailed from different locations. The cryptic messages kept playing in her mind. The passing of time hadn’t helped; she was as much in the dark now, in October, as when she’d seen that first postcard.

There was a final gasping, gurgling sound as the coffee drained into the glass pot. The noise distracted Corrie from her worries for a moment—long enough to glance out the wide office window that overlooked downtown Cedar Cove, Washington. Serving as Roy’s secretary and assistant had its advantages, and in this instance, disadvantages. Sometimes ignorance truly was bliss; the current situation was definitely one of those cases. She’d sleep better if she’d never learned about the mysterious postcards.

And yet…even if Roy had managed to keep them hidden from her, she would still have known—because the last message had been hand-delivered, at night, to their front door. Not to the office like the others, but to their home. Late one evening, someone had walked up the sidewalk and onto the porch of their house. As it happened, Roy and Corrie were entertaining dinner guests that night—and had opened the door to discover that an unknown person had left a fruit basket and an accompanying note. Chills raced up Corrie’s spine at the thought that this person knew their home address.

“Is that coffee ready yet?” Roy called from inside his office. Apparently she hadn’t delivered it fast enough.

“Hold your horses—it’s coming.” Corrie didn’t mean to snap at her husband. Normally she wasn’t short-tempered. This uncharacteristic outburst revealed how upset she was by everything that was happening to them. Sighing, she filled a clean mug for Roy and carried it, steam rising, into his office.

“Okay, that does it,” she said, putting the coffee on the corner of his desk. “We have to talk.”

As if he didn’t have a care in the world, Roy leaned back in his chair and locked his fingers behind his head. They’d been married for twenty-seven years, and Corrie found him as attractive now as she had in college. Roy had played football for the University of Washington and been a “big man on campus,” as they used to say. He was tall and broad-shouldered, still muscular, his posture as straight as ever. He stayed in good shape without apparent effort, and Corrie envied, just a bit, the fact that he’d never gained any weight. His dark hair had thinned and was streaked with gray, which only added a look of dignity to his appearance.