On the first Saturday in March, Alex woke in a bad mood. Looking out at the grey sky and drizzle didn't help his mood or his pounding head. He definitely had one too many beers the night before. Thinking of the night before made his head hurt worse. He had plans to have dinner with Julia, the girl he had been seeing for the past six months. He stopped work in time to shower and shave, but she called, as he was dressing.

"Sorry, but I need to cancel."

She spoke about tickets to Wicked, a surprise, New York.

He listened until she said, "I'll be back late Sunday night."

Suddenly it registered, and he exclaimed, "Sunday! I asked you to come with me on Sunday!"

He had asked her to his nephew Joshua's christening. She hesitantly agreed. Since they were casual, she hadn't met his family.

Alex really wanted her with him because his sister, Kate was friends with his high school girlfriend and only true love, Cara. She had moved on with her life and was married. Meanwhile, he was still casually dating.

"Oh sorry. You don't need me at your family thingy. Gotta run! We'll talk next week." She left him holding the phone.

He fumbled with the coffee pod and made a cup. He preferred to get coffee at The Landing, but he was heading to Fortune's Rock and stopping would take him too far out of his way.

Julia was off to New York City, leaving him to face his ex. It was all Kate's fault ─ first, she got married with both Cara and him in the wedding party and then she had a baby. If only she stayed single and miserable like him. The only bright spot of the whole weekend was that his brother Tom was coming home, and he was single too. Tom had escaped Maine and was a lawyer in New York City.

He really didn't think his day could get any worse? It did when Sydney Thompson called to say that some big deal designer was coming up from New York to work on the house he was building. He wished he hadn't agreed to build Sydney's house, because it was too big and too ostentatious for the pristine piece of beach. If he hadn't built it, someone else would.

By the time he reached The Point, it was way past noon. His head was throbbing, and he was starving. He walked into The Landing. Rick was not there, instead, a strange woman was behind the counter.

Could this day get any worse?

Questions rolled around in her head as she drove. Sterling called again, but she ignored him. She tried to wipe the image of what she saw from her mind. It definitely shocked her. She wiped tears from her eyes.

It excited her to cross into New Hampshire, but she could hardly contain herself as she drove over the bridge into Maine. Even Sterling's ringtone didn't ruin her joy to be back.

It was almost one when she crossed the causeway onto The Point. The tide was low. She could smell it. Her stomach had a knot of excitement and nerves as she slid out of the car and stretched. She stopped only once to go to the bathroom. Although it had been raining all morning, it was just misting.

The bell was like music to her ears. He looked up, and she said, "Hi Daddy!"

Before he could greet her, Jen heard a scream followed immediately by a baby crying. Suddenly she was being hugged by her first ever best friend. When Megan let her go, Peter was right there to grab her and swing her around like he had in New York.

"Okay let me at this girl." Rick hugged her. She clung to him and heard him say to go get Alice. A moment later, her mother was crying and holding her, as she cried too.

When the greetings were over, she looked at everyone. Her parents looked good, but visibly older. Megan was as beautiful as ever with her baby on her hip. Obviously she had been upset when her mother screamed. Peter was still gorgeous, but different from the Peter she saw when he had been in NYC, because the sadness in his eyes was gone.

Rick said, "Jenny-girl, I wasn't sure I'd live to see the day you'd come home."

"I know. I'm actually here for work. The Thompson house."

All at once, everyone said, "Oh."

"Is it horrible?"

Megan said, "Come on." She turned to Peter, "I'll meet you at home." Outside she said, "You drive. It's too wet and damp to walk."

The house was so big, that she saw it before they were close. "It's huge! It would be beautiful in a suburb, but not here on our beach!"

"We all feel that way. How long are you here?"

"I'm not sure. I haven't worked it all out yet."

"Not today, but plan to spend time with us. Did you even see the twins in all the excitement?"

"Hardly, but I've seen their pictures. You know Peter's been a good friend."

"I think you were a good friend to him, while I was not a very good friend at all."

"I'm just glad you're happy." Megan told her to turn on Plover Way. She looked at the house. "Wow! These were all summer cottages."

"Come over tomorrow!" Megan said as she jumped out of the car.

Jen hated how the house looked and decided she didn't like Sydney's builder for ruining her beach. She didn't want to deal with some fat old guy who took beautiful beaches and profited from it.

The minute she walked in her father said, "Make yourself something Jenny, but leave room. Your mother's been cooking since you called. I have to run down to the pound for some lobsters. I wouldn't be long."

"Okay Daddy."

She went behind the counter and started making a lobster roll for herself. The bell rang and a guy in work clothes and boots came in, but he was rude and definitely not happy to see her.