Staying up late talking to Kate had caused her to sleep through her alarm, so this morning would be an easy and quick breakfast of pancakes and cheese grits. Not exactly a winning combination, but it would work.

“Mornin’,” Dave said as he walked into the kitchen.

“Good morning, Dave,” Mia said, wiping pancake batter off the counter.

“You seem a little flustered this morning,” he said, smiling.

“It’s been a crazy couple of days.”

“Oh yeah. Why’s that?”

Mia looked at the stairs to make sure her sister wasn’t coming. “That woman, Kate… Well, she’s my long lost sister I never knew I had. And Evie is my niece.”

“Long lost sister? That must be quite a story.”

“It is. Momma gave a baby up for adoption when she was seventeen. I never knew about her until I did one of those online DNA tests.”

“Wow. That’s something else. You just never know what secrets someone is keeping.”

Mia shrugged her shoulders. “I know. I’m a little upset that Momma never told me.”

He smiled. “Sugar, we all have our secrets. Things we might be ashamed of or embarrassed about. Your Momma probably didn’t want to bring up that kind of pain.”

“I suppose so. But, you know, my sister and I seem awfully different. I mean, she was raised up north…”

“Oh, the horror!” Dave said jokingly, putting his hand over his heart.

Mia laughed. “Don’t you worry. I have a week to turn her into a southerner, and you know I’ll die trying.”

Dave chuckled as Kate and Evie appeared on the stairwell. He zipped his lips and turned around.

“Good morning, ladies!”

“Good morning!” Evie said. Kate smiled, but she looked very tired.

“Sorry we’re a little late. I overslept a bit.”

“Me too.”

“Mom says we’re staying a week,” Evie said, grinning.

“And I’m so excited!” Mia said, clapping her hands. “I can’t wait to show you how the B&B works, take you around town, maybe even do some hiking.”

“Hiking? Yeah, we’re not really hikers,” Kate said, sitting down at the breakfast table.

“We have some of the most beautiful hiking trails in the world around here. The views are breathtaking.”

“Come on, Mom. Live a little,” Evie groaned.

“We’ll see,” Kate said, pouring herself a cup of coffee from the carafe on the table. She loaded it up with cream and sugar until the mixture was almost white.

“Well, you ladies have a great breakfast,” Dave said as he stood up.

“Wait, you’re not having breakfast with us?” Mia asked.

“Not today, but I’ll be back before dinner. Doing a little fishing in the river.”

“Oh. Well, have fun and bring back something we can eat,” Mia said with a wink.