“For lunch. We insist.” Birdie glanced at Peaches. “Don’t we, girl?”

Peaches barked her agreement.

Hannah smiled. “How could I resist such a lovely offer? Thank you.”

“Good. We’ll see you tomorrow at noon.”

Hannah said her goodbye to both of them and then made her way out into the cheery sunshine that seemed to mock her gloomy mood. Without Ethan in her life, her heart ached. She wondered if she’d ever see him again. She hoped so. Maybe after the busy tourist season, she’d take a trip to New York. She could do with a shopping spree and perhaps a visit to a certain firehouse. The thought gave her a little comfort.

What had happened?

She’d been so certain about those two.

Birdie frowned as she watched Hannah walk away. She was certain more now than ever that Hannah had feelings for her nephew—deep feelings. So why wasn’t he doing anything about it?

She moved to the phone and dialed his number. It was time they had a serious conversation about matters of the heart. She needed to understand what was going on with him.

The phone rang and rang. Then it switched to voicemail. Birdie considered leaving him a message, but this was too important for a message. She would call back later.

In the meantime, she opened the white pastry box with four large muffins in it. Birdie’s mouth watered as she looked at them. The doctor did say she should eat a little more. Now appeared to be the perfect moment to follow the doctor’s orders.

Chapter Thirty

He’d missed a call.

No. He’d missed two.

Ethan noticed Hannah had just called followed by his aunt. He wondered what was going on. Neither had left a message so it couldn’t have been anything urgent.

He would call Hannah back in just a moment. He clutched his phone in his hand as he kept moving. His strides were long and fast as the sunshine warmed his face and invigorated him. This was going to be a good day. No, it was going to be a great day.

In the three weeks since he’d left Bluestar, he’d missed Hannah so much—more than he’d thought possible to miss anyone. He knew he should have called her before now, but he’d forced himself to slow down and think things through. When he made a decision about the future, he wanted to be certain what would truly make him happy in the long term. Now he had to hope that Hannah would understand his reason for the silence.

He was finally ready to call her. He dialed the still familiar number. As the phone rang once, twice, his heart beat faster. What if she was furious with him for not calling sooner? What if she didn’t give him a chance to explain?

“Hello.” In the background dishes and pans clanged. People called out to each other. However above it all was the sweet lilt of Hannah’s voice.