‘‘It’s true,’’ Seth said with a shrug, but happily let the subject drop when Linda came back bearing pizza.

‘‘Y’all enjoy, now,’’ she told them, leaning over the table just a little farther than necessary in case Ethan had missed the view the first time around.

Seth snagged a piece and bit in, knowing it was going to scorch the roof of his mouth. The flavors exploded, making the burn more than worth it. ‘‘Grace makes pizza from scratch,’’ he said around a mouthful. ‘‘It’s even better than this.’’

Ethan only grunted. The thought of Grace after he’d entertained—however unwillingly—a brief and sweaty fantasy about Linda Brewster made him twitchy.

‘‘Yeah. We ought to see if she’d make it for us one of the days she comes to clean and stuff. She comes tomorrow, right?’’

‘‘Yeah.’’ Ethan took a piece, annoyed that most of his appetite had deserted him. ‘‘I suppose.’’

‘‘Maybe she’d make one up before she goes.’’

‘‘You’re having pizza tonight.’’

‘‘So?’’ Seth polished off the first piece with the speed and precision of a jackal. ‘‘You could, like, compare. Grace ought to open a diner or something so she wouldn’t have to work all those different jobs. She’s always working. She wants to buy a house.’’

‘‘She does?’’

‘‘Yeah.’’ Seth licked the side of his hand where sauce dripped. ‘‘Just a little one, but it has to have a yard so Aubrey can run around and have a dog and stuff.’’

‘‘She tell you all that?’’

‘‘Sure. I asked how come she was busting her butt cleaning all those houses and working down at the pub, and she said that was mostly why. And if she doesn’t make enough, she and Aubrey won’t have a place of their own by the time Aub starts kindergarten. I guess even a little house costs big bucks, right?’’

‘‘It costs,’’ Ethan said quietly. He remembered how satisfied, how proud he’d been when he’d bought his own place on the water. What it had meant to him to know he’d succeeded at what he did. ‘‘It takes time to save up.’’

‘‘Grace wants to have the house by the time Aubrey starts school. After that, she says how she has to start saving for college.’’ He snorted and decided he could force down a third piece. ‘‘Hell, Aubrey’s just a baby, it’s a million years till college. Told her that, too,’’ he added, because it pleased him for people to know he and Grace had conversations. ‘‘She just laughed and said five minutes ago Aubrey had gotten her first tooth. I didn’t get it.’’