She was so grateful he was all right. The pain of the past collided with the fright of the present. Tears ran unleashed down her cheeks. She was so relieved that life hadn’t repeated itself.

“It’s okay,” Ethan murmured. “Everyone is safe.”

She sniffled as she pulled away. She swiped at her cheeks and then she smiled at him. “You’re Nikki’s hero.”

He shook his head as he shuffled his feet. “Not yours?”

She stood several feet from him with her arms hanging limply at her sides. Her gaze met his briefly, making her heart beat faster. Then she glanced away. “You should go.”

“Hannah, I can’t talk now but later—”

“No.” She shook her head. “There’s nothing to say.”

“I disagree.”

“Ethan, I can’t do this.” She turned with a heavy heart that felt as though it were cracking in two. She retreated into the kitchen. When she turned around, he was gone.

In that moment, she realized he was a hero in every sense of the word. He couldn’t walk away from firefighting any more than she could walk away from baking. So where did that leave them? Nowhere good.

Chapter Twenty-five

Hannah yawned…again.

The sun wasn’t even up yet.

It was the following day and Hannah was tired. She’d been at her brother’s place until late. She’d finished making the pancakes and then proceeded to add hash browns, eggs, and bacon to the menu. And then her family had quietly gathered around the kitchen table. Each had been lost in their own thoughts as they ate the quiet meal.

When Hannah had gotten home, she’d knocked on Ethan’s door but he hadn’t answered. It wasn’t until later when she was lying in bed, staring into the dark that she heard him come up the steps. He’d lightly tapped on her door and called her name, but she hadn’t answered.

She felt as though she’d just fallen asleep when the alarm had gone off. It went off again. This time she pressed the silence button instead of the snooze.

No matter how much she didn’t want to get out of bed, the children of Bluestar were counting on her to hide the Easter eggs.

In zombie mode, she moved quickly through her morning routine. She could do this. She yawned. It was going to be an extremely long day.

With her coffee topped off, Hannah tightened the lid on the thermal cup. With four large bags full of eggs hanging off her arms, a flashlight, and three copies of the map of the park. Hannah headed for the door. It was past time to start hiding eggs.

She tiptoed past Ethan’s door and headed down the stairs. She knew that he’d volunteered to help her, Josie, and Lily hide the eggs, but that was before the fire—before she realized that his occupation would always stand between them.

The ride to Beachcomber Park in her golf cart was quiet as was the town. She met up with Lily and Josie. They didn’t look much more awake than she felt.