His daughter picked it up and showed her. “It hasn’t unraveled again.”

“I’m glad to hear that.” She finally acknowledged him. “Hello, Jack.”

“Morning.”

“Are you a regular at this service?”

He hesitated.

Was that an innocuous chitchat type of query—or had she asked in order to alter her church schedule to avoid another awkward encounter?

Hannah stepped in before he could reach a conclusion—or formulate a response that wasn’t too telling.

“He doesn’t come every week. I had to wake him up today or we would have missed.”

Surprise flashed in Christi’s irises . . . and she waited. As if she expected him to explain why he was no longer a regular churchgoer.

Not happening.

“We should be going, Hannah. We didn’t have much breakfast, and you must be getting—”

“Good morning, Jack.”

At the greeting, he swiveled toward the aisle. Eleanor Cooper had stopped beside their pew, keeping a firm grip on her walker as other departing congregants edged around her. Despite her advanced age, the woman’s eyes sparked with life.

“Good morning, Eleanor.”

“I’m so pleased to see you here. For a moment when I spotted the three of you, I thought a new family had joined our congregation.”

“No—but this is my daughter.” Jack rested a hand on Hannah’s shoulder and introduced her. “She arrived a few days ago.”

If Eleanor was taken aback by the news of his fatherhood, she hid it well. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, my dear. I’ll have to whip up one of my chocolate fudge cakes to welcome you to town. I do that for all my new friends. Do you like chocolate?”

“I love it.” Hannah returned the woman’s smile.

“Excellent. I can see we’ll get along fine.” Eleanor patted her hand, then shifted her attention to Christi. “And who is your other lovely friend, Jack?”

Heat crept up his neck. “Actually, we’re not together. We just happened to sit in the same pew.”

“But we know her,” Hannah chimed in.

Of all times for his taciturn daughter to get chatty.

“Christi Reece.” She leaned forward and extended her hand to the woman. “I’m new in town too. I work for Beth at Eye of the Beholder.”

“Ah. I heard she’d found someone to help out at the shop—and none too soon, with that knee replacement putting her out of commission for a while. I hope she’s recuperating without complications.”

“She is.”

“Please give her my best. And as for that chocolate cake—perhaps Hannah and Jack will share it with you.”

“We will,” Hannah promised.

“Wonderful.” Eleanor beamed at Jack. “Cake is always best enjoyed with friends. Expect a delivery soon.” She gave his arm a squeeze.