“I better grab my keys and get to work.” Liam gave Tessa a wink—at least she thought it was for her. But it could have easily been for Caroline or Ed. No matter, Tessa still found breathing more laborious.It’s not fair.
“That’s very thoughtful of you,” Sophie told Tessa. “I don’t know how to make much more than muffins from a boxed mix. We thought about donuts and pastries from downtown, but the daily expense was too much to justify this early.”
“I don’t mind.” Tessa gave a shrug. “Least I can do while I’m here. I can leave the recipe. Caroline will be a pro at this by the time we’re done, won’t you?”
“Yeah!”
“You know,” said Sophie, “if you’re staying through the weekend, there’s a clam chowder contest for the Blueberry Festival. Cadence and I are going to try out Aunt Patty’s recipe. You should do it with us. We’re even digging our own clams Friday afternoon.”
“Yeah, maybe,” Tessa answered, wishing she could just say yes and mean it. But any day the producers might figure out how Derek framed her and call her back. She hated to commit to more than one day at a time on the chance she needed to board a plane. Even if Tessa wanted to stay—should her presence be requested—well, the contract she signed wouldn’t allow her.
“The winning chowder gets five thousand dollars. We thought we could invest it in the lodge if we won.”
“Sounds like a great idea.” Liam poked his head into the doorway, likely headed back out and unablenotto eavesdrop. “You should do it, Tessa.”
“You should do it, Aunty Tessa!” Caroline seconded. “Do it!” Tessa wondered if the child even knew what she was asking or if she was simply repeating everyone else.
“We’ll see,” she said again. Tessa hated to break a promise and tried hard not to make any she couldn’t keep. Maybe that was why she was still single at thirty. Her gaze flickered to Liam lingering in the doorway.Or maybe it has to do with a little bit more. “Aren’t you late for work?”
“Leaving.”
“Bye, Uncle Liam!” Caroline called out.
“Bye, Care Bear.”
The adorable nickname both touched and irritated Tessa. Liam shouldn’t be closer with her niece than she was. But how could she be jealous of that relationship when she had no plans to stay in Alaska?
“Let’s get these scones started,” Tessa said to Caroline, turning her back to the doorway Liam had vacated.
* * *
Both Tessa’s sisters had sold their cars where they lived before. Since Sophie used the money to buy plane tickets, a detail that still made Tessa’s heart ache—Why didn’t she call me?Tessa would’ve bought the tickets in a heartbeat—Cadence bought an SUV they could share. Tessa tried borrowing it, but Sophie needed it to take Caroline to tee-ball practice. That left Tessa without a vehicle, and Liam’s shop was at least a mile hike from the lodge.
“I’m size eight,” Cadence said from the doorway of Tessa’s room, dangling a pair of sneakers by the laces. “A little birdy told me you might not have a pair of sensible walking shoes.”
“Thank you!”
“Where’re you headed?”
“Just want to pick up a few groceries from the store.”
“It’s a warm day. Maybe you should wait until Sophie gets back with the car for that.”
“Good idea.” But Tessa couldn’t just sit here. She needed to find her necklace. “But . . . I think I’ll take a walk into town. For old times’ sake, you know?”
“Of course.” Cadence set the shoes on the chair near the door. “If you ever want to talk . . .”
“Thanks.” Though the urge to talk tugged at her constantly, Tessa’s priority was finding her necklace. Tomorrow the forecast called for an eighty-five percent chance of rain. She didn’t want to dig through muddy puddles if it wasn’t necessary. “Maybe later?”
“Sure.” Before Cadence left, she added, “I have a bottle of wine that needs to be opened.”
Before hopping off the porch and heading down the driveway, Tessa surveyed the yard for Ed. The moose seemed to have it out for her, but she couldn’t understand why. From now on, she’d watch for him everywhere.
Though her intention had been to rush to Liam’s shop as quickly as her feet would take her, she found herself slowing her step. Tessa’d spent a lot of that teenaged summer on foot because Aunt Patty wasn’t a fan of sharing her car. Tessa laughed out loud remembering her words,You might hit a moose. “Good call, Aunt Patty.”
The blocks of houses transitioned into the postcard-worthy downtown strip. Even the streets had charming names. “Mooseberry Lane.” She shook her head. “Of course it would have a name like that.”
Waiting on the only crosswalk sign in town, the years rewound. Tessa could see her younger self standing on the sidewalk outside the ice cream shop, sharing a cone with Liam. It was always a game between them to see who could get the other on the nose first with ice cream.
