“Lily, go out front and check the door for me. I heard a knock right before you walked in,” Violet ordered. “We have it under control back here. Get a cup of coffee. Have breakfast.” She handed me two blueberry muffins from her tray. “Go on. Shoo.” I shooed. Whoever it was had knocked on the door again.

I turned on the lights in the front of the shop and saw Luke’s tall silhouette through the glass panels of the front door. I quickly ran over to let him in. “Hi, what are you doing here so early?” I asked.

“I saw you drive by, so I came over to tell you good morning. Did the zombies quiet down for you last night?” He grinned down at me.

“I barely got any sleep. I think Calla is going through a growth spurt. She wanted to eat all night. She was a little fussy and a lot hungry. But when my mother showed up and took her, she went right to sleep against her chest, the little booger.” I smiled up at him. My first instinct was to be happy he was here. Should that tell me something about my feelings? I took a step back to let him inside and tried to also take a step back in my mind. The more I was around him, the more I wanted him. And the more I wanted him, the more I wanted to stomp to my house and hide under the bed.

“She’s beautiful, Lily. Just like her mama.” The intense on-a-mission look was back on his face. I could feel the blush coming on, and it embarrassed me, which only made me blush even more. My blush made his smile turn into that half-grin, the one that always made me want to climb him like a tree.

“Thank you. I kind of love her a little bit,” I joked to cover my blushing response. “Do you want to have coffee with me?” What am I doing?

“I would love to. How is Dylan?” He followed me to the counter.

“He was asleep when I left, but my mother will bring him and Calla over here for breakfast after they wake up. It is Calla’s half birthday. She’s going to have her first bite of solid food. If you want, I can text you, and you can join us,” I offered without stopping to worry about it first. The smile that lit his face made me smile in return.