She glanced over at his lap, which was all it took to make his situation even worse.

“Knock it off,” he said in a low growl.

She smiled at him, and the most incredible sense of rightness overcame him, leaving him staggered by the realization that he wanted much more than this week with her. He wanted everything with her, and he’d never wanted that with anyone else.

“What?” she asked, her brows knitting with concern.

He forced himself to rally. “Nothing. Just looking forward to having you all to myself again later.”

Erin leaned her head on his shoulder and linked her fingers with his, deepening the feeling of rightness.

Before this, before her, he might’ve tried to disengage from something that smacked of seriousness. But with her, the last thing he wanted was to disengage. He wanted more, much, much more of her.

Talk turned to Evan and Grace’s upcoming wedding in Anguilla, travel plans and excitement to escape winter on the island for a week.

“Speaking of our wedding,” Evan said, glancing at Grace, who smiled at him. “Gracie and I have a little news about what’s going to happen after the wedding.” Taking hold of her hand, he said, “Buddy has talked me into riding the hit record for a while longer, and Grace is coming with me on the road. Her friend Fiona from school has agreed to come over to manage the pharmacy, and Josh will cover me at the studio.”

After a moment of stunned silence, everyone spoke at once, congratulating them on their news and firing off questions about where they were going.

“We’re joining the second half of Buddy’s current North American tour that starts up again in February, and then we’ll see what happens after that.”

“I’m happy for you, son,” Big Mac said. “As much as we’ll miss you both here, I’d hate for you to have regrets later about what might’ve been.”

“Thank you, Dad. That’s what my very wise future wife said, too.”

“I suppose I should mention that after Anguilla, Steph and I are heading to LA for a couple of months,” Grant said.

“Was it something we said?” Linda asked her husband.

“Ha-ha, Mom,” Grant said. “I’ve got some work to do with the company that’s producing the film about Charlie and Stephanie’s story, and it’s easier for me to be there for a while. Since the restaurant is shut down for the rest of the winter after this week, Steph’s coming with me.”

“Dan and Kara are going to be out there, too, aren’t they?” Joe asked.

“They are, and we’re looking forward to hanging out with them.”

“You’ll be back for the summer, though, right?” Adam asked.

“Wouldn’t miss summer on Gansett for anything,” Grant said, “and my lovely wife has a booming business to tend to.”