The woman bent her knees and wrapped her arms around them, the silver rings showing off her slender fingers. “I wanted…to make a home for him. Just once.”

Blue’s own mother would never have thought of anything like that. Virginia Bailey understood nuclear disarmament treaties and international trade agreements, but she knew nothing of homemaking. “Don’t you think he’s a little old?” Blue said softly.

“Yes. Too old.” The long blunt ends of her hair fell over the crocheted whirls of her camisole. “I’m not a horrible person. Not now.”

“You don’t seem horrible.”

“You probably think I shouldn’t have done this, but, as you can see, I didn’t have anything to lose.”

“Still, hiding your identity probably wasn’t the best way to manage a reconciliation. If that’s what you’re looking for.”

The woman drew her knees closer to her chest. “It’s too late for that. I just wanted to fix up this place for him, then get away before he figured out I was his Mrs. O’Hara.” With a self-conscious laugh, she lifted her head. “I’m April Robillard. I haven’t even introduced myself. This must be embarrassing to you.”

“Not as much as it should be. I have an unhealthy curiosity about other people’s business.” She noticed a little color returning to April’s pale cheeks, so she kept talking. “I don’t actually buy the tabloids, but if I walk into a Laundromat and see one lying around, I’ll dive over a row of washers to get to it.”

April gave a shaky laugh. “There’s a certain fascination in reading about other peoples’ screwups, isn’t there?”

Blue smiled. “Would you like me to get you something? A cup of tea? A drink?”

“Would you…just sit with me for a minute? I miss being around women. The men who work here are great, but they’re men.”

Blue had a feeling April didn’t easily ask for help. She understood all about that. The smell of fresh lumber drifted up the stairs as she sat on the floor across from April and searched for a neutral topic. “I like what you’ve done.”

“I tried to make the renovations fit the bones of the house. He’s so restless. I wanted him to be able to relax here.” She gave a choked laugh. “I guess tonight wasn’t the best way to get a start on that.”

“He seems pretty high maintenance.”

“He gets it from me.”

Blue ran her hand over the worn, polished floorboards. In the sunlight, they’d gleam like honey. “You’ve accomplished a lot.”

“I’ve loved doing it. You should have seen what it looked like when I got here.”

“Tell me about it,” Blue said.