With a shake of her head, she seems to study her coffee. “When Pania and I moved to open the diner, we realised there’s a way things are done around here. After five, the pub serves meals, and they don’t like anyone treading on their toes. We’re not staffed to run seven days either. It works.”

“That’s a shame.”

“Small towns are very difficult to change. But I could never have afforded to set up somewhere larger. The costs were just too prohibitive. And we love it here.”

I place the cup on the coaster that sits on the coffee table, suddenly unsure about how to approach this. She must surely know I’m going to ask.

There’s no point in beating around the bush.

“Is she mine?”

Delaney tries so hard not to give anything away, but it only takes a moment before her expression crumples. She places her cup on the table, closes her eyes. “Yes.”

“You kept her from me?” Pain sears my body. All it took was a glimpse in the firelight of that little girl’s face and I knew. But there was still a part of me that thought there was no way Delaney would be capable of hiding her. Not when we’d had what I thought we did.

“Why?”

She buries her face in her hands and sobs. I’m right beside her with hot tears blurring my vision. Amelia is my blood. That sweet little girl who befriended me straight away is mine.

“We were over.” She sniffs and raises her gaze. Her eyes are already red, and I’m torn between walking away and pulling her into my embrace to comfort her.

Instead, I cross my arms to stop myself from touching her.

“I don’t even understand that, Delaney. We fell in love, and we had one magical night that I never wanted to end. And then you were gone. I tried to find you, but I didn’t know what your real name was.”

She wipes her cheeks with the palms of her hands. “You didn’t want me. And I tried to tell you. I tried to get in touch when I found out, but your phone was disconnected and the letter I sent came back return to sender.”

I swallow hard. She’s right about that. When I got the part, I left behind the apartment and went home until filming started. I had no money until I got paid for the film, so disconnected everything, including the phone.

She had no real way of getting in touch with me. Not directly. But that still doesn’t explain why she left.”

“What do you mean I didn’t want you?” I ask.

Delaney sniffs again, clamping her lips together like she’s fighting more tears.

“I heard you.” Her voice is so small, I nearly miss the words.

“What did you hear?”