She let Pippa down, and the dog went about sniffing every inch of the place. Sophie surveyed the space with renewed wonder. She could hardly believe what had been done in one day. Not only had her neighbors helped with this disaster, but she’d gotten numerous offers for further help once the bookcases were installed. She was overwhelmed by the generosity of this town.

Aiden drove a nail into the last piece of drywall, then descended the ladder, surveying his work. “That does it for the drywall. Now I just need to do the mudding. It can dry overnight, and I’ll finish in the morning. Dave and Jim are coming to help paint midmorning. Leonard and his crew can install the shelving in the other rooms and finish this room last. What do you think?”

“I didn’t think it was possible but . . . I think we’re going to make it.” Sophie took in the room that had, only hours ago, housed a tree. Someone had even swept the floor and put a tarp down to protect it.

Aiden gave her a hopeful smile. “I think maybe we are.”

“I can’t believe everything that’s happened today.” As if suddenly realizing how many hours she’d been on her feet, gravity pulled at her shoulders, and her ankle began throbbing. She felt every hour of hard labor she’d put in.

When she swayed Aiden’s gaze sharpened on her. “Sit.” He grabbed the chair they’d pushed into the corner and placed it behind her. “You’ve been on your feet for hours. Your ankle’s probably swollen up like a watermelon.”

“You might be right.” She did as he said, and when he dragged over an empty five-gallon bucket, she gladly propped her foot on it.

He pulled over another bucket and took a load off. “I should take you home and come back to finish. You can’t be up on the ladder anyway.”

She scowled. “I’m not going home while you work on my shop. I can at least fetch you tools so you don’t have to come down off the ladder.”

“I admit it would be nice to have the company. Can you believe we’ve been at it for . . . fifteen hours? And we had at least that many people here today.” He propped his elbows on his knees. “As my dad always said, ‘many hands make light work.’”

“He wasn’t kidding. A few of the women are even coming on Monday to help me shelve books. Isn’t that nice of them?”

He gazed at her thoughtfully. “I think you’ve found yourself a really nice community.”

Sophie let her gaze drift around the room, now quiet and still after the hubbub of bustling people and buzzing saws. “I’m starting to see why my mom loved it here. Seeing the way everyone pulled together today was . . . inspiring. Humbling.”