“That’s what I’ve been doing lately. I’ve been focusing on the fact that Nanny Lucy fell off her pedestal instead of looking at the pretty flowers that are all around me and the freedom I had when I came here as a child. Does that make sense?” Nessa asked.

“Oh, yes, ma’am,” Jackson drawled. “It surely does make a lot of sense to me.”

“I’ve got a home that I don’t have to pay rent or a mortgage for, a beautiful waterfall, a way to make a living if I don’t want to teach, two cousins that aggravate me at times, but I wouldn’t take anything for, and”—she paused and looked right into his eyes—“a new friend I can talk to and who understands me.”

Jackson reached across the table and laid a hand on hers. “It took me about a year to realize that I’d landed in a pasture full of flowers. You’re getting there a lot faster than I did.”

“Maybe it’s because I’ve had a lot more help from my new friend and my cousins than you did.” Nessa didn’t blink or look away until Tilly stopped at their table.

“I hate to break up a romantic moment, but are you ready to share that sundae now?”

“Yes, we are,” Jackson answered without looking up.

“Was that a romantic moment?” Nessa whispered when Tilly had walked away.

Jackson squeezed her hand. “I hope so. I’m a whole lot rusty in that department. Did I pass?”

“Guilty as charged.” Nessa grinned.

He wiped his brow in a dramatic gesture. “I’ll take my punishment like a man, especially if it involves a good-night kiss.”

“Well . . .” Her eyes twinkled. “Since this is a second date, and we are protecting you from a pushy woman, maybe it would be all right.”

Tilly brought their sundae with two spoons and set it in the middle of the table, then focused on Nessa. “I sure wish I knew what you’ve got that I don’t.” She sighed.

“Red hair and blue eyes,” Jackson answered.

“I could dye my hair and get contacts,” Tilly said with a wink. “But I’ve got a feeling there’s more to it than that. Oh, well, I’ll just settle for Flynn. Don’t forget to give him my number.”

Nessa picked up a spoon and dug deep into the sundae. “I promise I will remember.” She looked back at Jackson. “So you like red hair, do you?”

“I do on you,” he answered as he waited for her to take the first bite.

“Well, then, I’m glad I didn’t dye it black like I wanted to when I was a teenager,” she said.