Although I saw a happy ending for Viola and Lucas, I wasn’t sure there was one in the cards for Lucas and West. His father just couldn’t let it go, and if it would mean losing his youngest son, then I pitied him. I pitied the bitterness that was choking the life out of him slowly but surely.

“Right, hand over your answers, you lot,” Milly said, approaching our table with a beaming smile.

Roane handed them to her as I shot a look over my shoulder to make sure Shadow was okay. He was sprawled in front of the roaring fire and had been since we’d arrived two hours ago.

“Maybe we should pull him over to us.” I turned to Roane. Shadow had a habit of staying in front of a fire too long.

“You know he’ll move when he’s too hot,” Roane assured me as he always assured me.

Less than ten minutes later, Dex retook the mic to announce, “And the winner is Maggie, Annie, and Liz!”

We looked over at their table, pretending to boo at the same time we raised our glasses to them. Maggie blushed in delight as Dex placed the huge hamper in front of them.

“See,” I said, “age and experience matter in a pub quiz. Don’t”—I raised a finger at Lucas, whose eyes were sparkling with some mischievous comment about my age—“even say it.”

Choking on his laughter, he buried his head in Vi’s throat as she grinned at me.

Roane’s arm slipped down my shoulder to my waist, and I felt his fingers slip under my shirt to tickle me lightly. Shivering, I turned into him with a soft smile. “You feeling me up in public?” I murmured.

His dark eyes dropped to my mouth. “When am I not feeling you up in public?”

“True. You’re very handsy. You should stop. I’m a married woman, you know.”

“Oh, I know.” He bent his head toward mine, seconds from stealing a kiss when—

“Evie, how’s the new tenant working out?”

Roane and I moved away from each other as Dex pulled a seat up to our table.

“Good,” I answered. “So far so good.”

Once I’d bought the store from Penny and realized I’d have an empty apartment upstairs when I moved in with Roane, I had a new door put on the rear of the building and closed off the entrance to the bookstore at the back to separate the apartment from the store. I was intending to let it as a holiday apartment, but a guy called Bryan Holmes, some financial dude from London, paid me up front for three months’ rent.