“You should consider serving Mrs. Harvey’s soup to your customers at Hamilton House.”

“Her peanut butter fudge isn’t bad, either.” Sarah took a bite to prove her point. “Mmmmm.”

Watching her eat one of the candies she’d insisted they had to have, Bodie smiled. If a person was what he or she ate, it was no wonder Sarah was so sweet. The woman loved desserts.

“You sure you don’t want a bite?” she offered, holding a piece out to him.

He nodded. “I’m sure.”

“You shouldn’t be.” She tsked. “You just admitted that I was right about the soup. I think you should trust me on this and at least have a taste of peanut butter fudge.”

Sarah might be sweet as sugar, but she was also as stubborn as a mule.

“One bite, then.”

She rewarded him with a smile and a piece of fudge. “You won’t regret this. It’s delicious.”

The fudge stuck to her fingers when Bodie attempted to take the bite from her fingers.

“Here,” she offered, holding the bite up to his mouth, but Bodie managed to get most of the fudge in his grasp and popped the candy into his mouth.

The sweet peanut butter flavor practically melted in his mouth, but even though the fudge was good, Bodie thought Sarah had Mrs. Harvey beat. He preferred Sarah’s oatmeal chocolate chip cookies any day.

He started to tell her so but noticed a flurry of green outside the window.

“Aren’t those the moths?”

“Butterflies,” Sarah corrected, frowning at the ladies in the window. “Nosy Butterflies.”

Seeing that they’d been spotted, the three women waved, then came into the building. Harry lifted his head, eyed the trio, then laid his head back down on his front paws. His gaze never left them, though, as they made their way to where Bodie and Sarah sat.

“Brrrr, it’s nippy out there.”

“Nothing a little hot chocolate won’t cure.”

“Didn’t you already have hot cocoa?” Sarah reminded, her gaze going back and forth between the women.

“On our way back up here, we found my tree and had to make arrangements for it. That sweet boy of Carrie’s who works here offered to deliver it when he finishes his shift,” Maybelle pointed out. “Now we’re cold and need a round to warm us up.”

“There’s not an empty table,” Rosie stated the obvious, giving Sarah and Bodie an expectant look since there were empty chairs at their table.

Wincing at how painfully obvious her friends were, Sarah met Bodie’s gaze. Her eyes were full of pleading that he’d understand and not judge the women too harshly.

In all actuality, he found them entertaining, if a bit annoying. And he admired their dedication to Sarah. How many women out there had people who cared so much about them that they’d go out in such ridiculous get-ups? He’d venture to guess not many.

Sarah gave him an apologetic look, as if she expected him to be furious. That surprised him. Did she have any idea how often he spotted one of them around town? If he was going to get angry, surely she knew it would have already happened by now.