"Didn't mean to startle you, sorry about that," Karen apologized. The woman had a new face, something Karen had grown to notice after years on the island. It was the ones that stayed for longer than a few months that stuck in her mind; anyone she didn't recognize qualified as a newbie.

And the woman certainly seemed to act like one, even if she'd made herself comfortable in the kitchen.

She returned the smile and took a closer look. "Nice. The most I can hope for when I come into the kitchen is a snack or leftovers. Cooking and I don't exactly get along."