Hunt gave her a thumbs-up and hastened his steps. He got out of his dirty clothes and washed up. It occurred to him how glad he’d be to get home and back to the wardrobe in his closet. His choices of clothing here were limited to what he’d brought with him. He dressed in clean ones and went back to the kitchen and sat down beside Ava.

“How are you feeling, honey?”

“I’m feeling good. I slept a lot today, as you know. I missed seeing you when you came by at noon because I was still sleeping then, too.”

“That’s what you needed to be doing,” he said.

“How did it go at the house today?” she asked.

“Good. A lot done. We’re almost finished, and the auction is set for a week from today. My boss is being understanding, but he sent me a text today asking when I thought I’d be returning. I told him I’d be able to let him know in a few days.”

“I won’t be a holdup,” Ava said. “I’ll be back to my normal self within a couple more days.”

“We’re not putting you on a deadline, and we’re not leaving Blessings until you are a hundred percent.”

Ava nodded. “Mom and Dad made a very generous offer that will take the pressure off of me and what to do with my house.”

“What do you want to do with it?” Hunt asked.

“Sell it. Mom and Dad offered to handle that for me.”

“But what about your things? You don’t have to give up the furniture you want to keep, or anything else you want to take. I don’t have an attachment to anything in my house. It’s just stuff I picked up here and there. Nothing matches or coordinates.”

She laughed. “None of that matters, but we’ll fix it together, okay?”

Hunt stroked the side of her cheek. “Together sounds perfect. So, how about we get a moving van to load up what you want to keep, toss my Harley in with it, and they can bring it to us. In the meantime, we’ll drive your car to Houston. If I’d known I was going to be bringing back the love of my life, I would have driven the Hummer, not the Harley.”

Ava’s eyes widened. “A Hummer? What else do you have that I don’t know about?”

“A house with a pool?” he said.

“Oh my gosh! Jackpot, Hunter Knox! You are just full of surprises, aren’t you?” Ava said.

“Maybe,” he said, and then grinned.

“Cornbread’s done,” Karen said. “Bring your bowl. I’ll fill it with chili from the stove. Everything else will be on the table.”

Ava started to get up, when Hunt stopped her with a touch.

“You sit. I’ll get yours.”