“And we’ve got a lot to talk about!” Impulsively, Christina leaned over and kissed Harriet’s cheek.

The women exchanged warm smiles and went their separate ways to open their shops. So something good had come out of this terrible day, Christina thought.

—

It felt wonderful to unlock the door and step inside her shop. It was cold, but that would change once she flicked on her little electric radiator. The room was familiar and orderly. Each shelf displayed wooden lighthouses, wicker picnic baskets, bejeweled mermaid books, all unpacked by her own hands and placed exactly where she wanted them. The small shop was bright and cheerful with color, all her treasures waiting expectantly to be discovered and cherished.

She loved this shop.

She was not going to let it be taken away by Oscar Bittlesman without a fight.

Christina was barely behind the counter with her coat off when customers flocked in. The rest of the afternoon she had no time to think, or to check her phone, which lay on a shelf beneath the cash register with her purse, pinging every five minutes, or so it seemed. When six o’clock arrived, darkness had fallen and a breeze had kicked up. By then, Christina was feeling the effects of her fall. She wanted to go home, curl up in front of the television, and drink chicken noodle soup. She turned off her electric radiator, locked her door, and carefully and quickly made her way over to her car on Union Street. She was glad she’d driven to work this morning. She didn’t have the energy to bike home.

And it wasn’t simply her body that ached. Her heart hurt so much when she thought of Andy that she whimpered. She was proud of herself for keeping it together all afternoon. She drove home, jacked up the heat, and turned on the Christmas tree lights. Mittens rubbed up against her ankles, mewing. The world might be coming to an end for Christina, but Mittens wanted her dinner, now.

Christina opened a can of Fancy Feast, set it in a clean bowl—Mittens liked her bowls clean—and put it on the floor for the cat. She was pouring herself a glass of wine when her phone buzzed. Wink!

“Christina, are you okay? Mommy said that Uncle Andy said that you had an accident!”

Christina was so touched by Wink’s concern that she felt like she was nine years old. Maybe the Bittlesmans weren’t such monsters after all, if Andy had thought to tell Delia and Delia had allowed Wink to call Christina.

“Christina? Are you there?”

Christina laughed. “I’m here, Wink, and I’m just fine. It was such a crazy thing! A water pipe broke beneath the bricks on the wharf and exploded right under me! For a moment I felt like I was on a ride at Disney World!”

“That’s cool!” Wink laughed. “I wish I’d seen it!”