Out of Focus #SYTYCW15 Top10 Finalist! [COMPLETED]

3| No means No

She looked up at the house they'd moved into. A leased property owned by Declan Mackenzie, the son of the late widow, Mabel Mackenzie. Lavender Cottage, the locals called it. With its walls painted a barnyard red, despite its name. All white trim and shutters, sitting high on the island's south point, poised between water and stone.

The raised deck gave way to a wild tangle of flower beds and a stretch of vegetable garden she'd taken great care and pride to plant last year. While it wasn't hers in name, the home was hers in spirit. In heart. And her hopes were once Out of Focus earned enough she could take her offer to Declan so that Lavender Cottage could be hers in entirety. 

Finished her coffee, Eva returned to find Lottie on the porch rocking away on in a faded red chair. Eva slipped on her shades against the glare of rising sun and strode towards the veranda at the back of the house to join her.

"Morning." Eva swooped in to plant a kiss against a powder soft cheek. Grey curls, just about every shade possible and soft as fine mink, were cut into a short wedge. From what she could see, there wasn't much of Jenelle in her, Eva mused. But they shared the same laugh. A rich, bawdy sort that brought a room to stitches every time.

"You've been at yourself again." Lottie glanced up from a narrow face tucked behind round spectacles and brushed a hand over Eva's freshly shorn hair.  "Looks like you tangled with a lawnmower and lost."

"Yeah." Eva plopped into the wicker seat next to her, boosted her feet onto the paint-chipped rail. "But you should see the mower. Got my licks in, too."

Lottie chuckled at that, toying with water blue stones draped at her ears and throat. She had the wide hips of a woman who'd birthed seven children, but the toned discipline of one who knew the importance of keeping fit and healthy. Eva could only hope that she'd look half as good at her age.

"I brought some of my chowder with me for the girls." Lottie rocked gently. "There should be enough left over for you to enjoy for dinner when you get back."

"Great. Now I'll be daydreaming about your soup while I'm stuck at the gallery."

"Planning a long one, today?" she asked when Eva grumbled wearily.

"Not too late, promise. I know you've got the committee to worry about."

"I can manage from here, just fine," Lottie dismissed, patting her arm. "I brought my laptop with me, in case. And besides, the Bartelli's don't arrive until Thursday. Plenty of time to roll out the Welcome Wagon." Blue eyes, quiet and steady as a mountain stream, returned to Eva. "I remember when you and your girls first showed up on Haven. Such a quiet, skinny and reclusive little thing you were. Jumped at every noise. So...unsettled."

Eva squirmed, the cushion padding suddenly hot as the sunbaked rocks along the bluffs. She would always remember that day, too. She hadn't expected the likes of Lottie Davies, head of Haven's Welcome Wagon Committee, a woman who had hammered and chiselled until Eva had no choice but to let her in. She was every bit as stubborn as her headstrong daughter, Jenelle. And just as observant as her eldest son, Ethan, the head of Haven's police department. 

"You rolled in like you'd weathered a hurricane. I always wondered what brought you here, to us."

"Change of scenery," Eva said. The same answer she gave time and time again.

"I've never asked. I've never pried."

Eva softened, all defensive instincts calming. "I know."

"And I won't," Lottie assured, gripping Eva's hand firmly. "Just promise me something? That should you ever feel the need...remember that I'm here? That I love you?"