Lorraine snorted. “Sure he does. But only for people who’ve already had all the chances in the world.”

“Well, I think this is the wake-up call this town needs,” Naomi said.

“I hope it is,” Lorraine said. “New Falls used to have a real sense of community. Now it feels like everyone just grabs whatever they can for themselves. Farmland turned into houses, another field house being built at New Falls High, while community services for people who really need them go begging. And no one seems to care. As long as the football team is well funded and there’s a cute farmers market on Sunday mornings, they can tell themselves that this is a good place to raise kids. But it doesn’t surprise me that those kids thought nothing of breaking into your house, Maja. They’ve been raised to take what they want.”

Aneeta glanced over at Maja and put a warning hand on Lorraine’s knee. “Don’t scare Maja off before she moves in,” she said. “We need fresh blood down here!”

“I’m sorry,” Lorraine said sheepishly. “I’m only trying to justify sending my kids to the Montessori school when I could send them to the local school for nothing. Pay no attention to me.”

Maja was grateful when the server brought the check, and she grabbed it. The other women protested, but Maja stayed firm. “I hope we can do this again soon,” she said, and they agreed to meet up for lunch when Maja was back in town.

The server brought the check back, but instead of laying it down for Maja to sign, he leaned down and said, “I’m sorry, there’s an issue with your card.”

Maja double-checked to make sure it was the new card Ted had given her, and it was. “Can you try again?” she asked. “There shouldn’t be a problem.”

The server was back a minute later. “Do you want to try another card?”

Maja checked her wallet, and then realized she’d tucked her bank card into the pocket of her shorts that morning when she’d walked out to get coffee. “I’m sorry,” she said to Aneeta, her face red with embarrassment. “I’m not sure what the issue is. I’ll pay you back this afternoon.”

“Don’t worry,” Aneeta said, already handing her credit card to the server. “It’s my treat.”