“Oh.” Sadie closed her eyes and wished she could pour herself a drink. “Well, of course. I understand.”

She’d always considered her parents an emergency backup. Not people to call upon except in great need. And here she was and the answer was no.

“We’ll work something out though. My friends tell me their kids are hiring night nurses or doulas or whatever they call them these days to help out. Maybe we could pitch in for something like that?”

“No. No, it’s fine. We’ll be fine.”

But as they said their goodbyes, she wanted to throw a tantrum of her own. Beg to be taken care of. While her parents had always provided a roof over her head, nutritious meals on the table, and stylish clothes in her closet, they hadn’t been the types to stay up late reading her bedtime stories or spend entire weekends camped out at the beach together.

No, it hadn’t been until Sadie met Ethan that she felt truly and completely taken care of by another person.

But what if she ended up not being enough and pushing that person away?

Outside the window, a foghorn sounded, long and lonely.

Chapter Eight

What’s this?” Dr. Dan smiled, as Renee set a masterpiece of a pie in front of him.

“Just a little something to get the week off to a sweet start.” Renee had spent her entire Sunday cleaning, watching old home videos of Tansy, and baking pies. This raspberry pie had been her most beautiful one of all, and she’d known there was only one recipient deserving of its perfection.

“Would you judge me if I had a piece for breakfast?” he asked in great seriousness. “I don’t want my street cred as a medical care provider to be tarnished.”

“I promise your secret is safe with me.”

“Wow, wow, wow,” he moaned with his mouth full. Renee hated when people talked while chewing, but when Dr. Dan did it? Well, she didn’t seem to mind at all. “This is incredible, Renee.”

It was satisfying to watch anyone enjoy her pies, but to see Dr. Dan take such obvious pleasure? That had left her a little dizzy.

“Breakfast will never be the same,” he declared practically licking the plate. “I’ll keep the rest of this pie hidden in my office, not to be greedy.”

“Don’t worry, there’s more where that came from,” Renee said, before she realized how that sounded and blushed.

Luckily she heard the sound of the door opening. “It’s Declan Shroeder,” she reported. “Another Lego stuck in nostril emergency.”

They both laughed. The five-year-old had been in just last week with the same predicament.

“Renee, wait.” Dr. Dan reached out, gently touching her shoulder. “I forgot our last word of the day. Here it is.”

Ebullient: cheerful and energized.

“Here’s to an ebullient week,” he said.

“I’ll toast to that,” she whispered, raising a mason jar half-filled with chamomile tea.

She stared at the fish tank, tapping a pen on her cheek as she played the image of Dr. Dan taking a bite of her pie over and over again.