“Do I have to pickone?” Jenna asked, twisting the heart-shaped pendant with her fingers.
“Of course not.”
“But the list said—”
“The point of the list is to push you outside your comfort zone. Haven’t you figured that out already?” Cody looked to Ava. “Ring them both up. You should have my credit card on file. Oh, and toss a couple of your homemade dog treats in there, too.” The Forget Me Not was the store he frequented online when he was in other parts of the world and wanted to give Alaskan-made gifts to new friends. If his mom ever knew how much business he gave Ava, she might have a heart attack.
“You don’t have to pay for this,” Jenna said from the dressing room door. “I have money.”
“I really enjoyed your grandpa’s company, but I don’t need his ghost haunting me.” Cody made a shooing motion. “Get changed. We’ll grab Graham, then head to lunch at Willamina’s Big Dipper.”
“Oh, The Dipper’s closed on Mondays during the off season,” Ava said after the dressing room door closed. “Willamina just posted her new hours last week.”
“Good to know.” Cody pulled his phone out again while he waited for Jenna to change, but before he could pull up the list, Sadie’s name appeared on the screen.
Sadie:Dinner at Bear Tooth?
Sadie:What time does your flight leave tomorrow?
Sadie:I have to work, but I’ll take off early.
Cody might be the only Evans sibling who truly understood Sadie, which was why he knew a call was necessary if he didn’t want his phone to explode with dozens of frantic texts. But she sent him to voicemail on the second ring.
He let out a groan before the beep. “Sadie, this is your favorite brother. Call me back.”
Sadie:In a meeting.
Sadie:I’ll see you tomorrow.
Sadie:Just tell me what time???
“Something the matter?” Jenna asked as she carried the folded blouse and pendant to the checkout counter. He didn’t hear her approach, but now that she stood beside him, her cinnamon-vanilla scent swarmed around him.
“Sadie,” he said, scrubbing a hand once over his face. “The sister you didn’t get to meet.”
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah. Just . . . typical Sadie.” Though Haylee was the sibling who was the most vocal about wanting Cody to give up his three-year-long gig and stay in Sunset Ridge, Sadie was struggling the mostinternallywith his departure. Without him around, she felt she didn’t have an ally in the family. A point she’d emphasized on dozens of occasions since he told his family about his longest gig. “Change of plans.”
“You could grab a pizza at Warren’s Sea Shack,” Ava suggested, wrapping the pendant in tissue paper and sealing it with a store sticker.
“Seafood on pizza?” Jenna asked, her nose wrinkled.
“Yeah, it’s not really my thing either. But lots of people love it.” Ava slid a handled paper bag across the counter. “Or you could check out Whitmore Patio. I think Tessa adjusted the hours for the off season. She might be open since The Dipper isn’t.”
“Great idea,” Cody said, thanking Ava and handing her his phone to snap a picture to satisfy the photographic evidence requirement for item number twelve. “If Sophie’s working, we can knock at least one more thing off the list today. Her husband’s the author we need to track down.”
ChapterSix
Jenna
For the first time in three long months, Jenna felt the feather’s nudge of inspiration tickling her senses. A fresh idea for a story was forming in wisps. She didn’t know much beyond that the main character starring in her new children’s book series would be a moose, but it felt like a promising start.
“Is that a smile?” Cody teased from across the round table. Whitmore Patio had moved indoors now that the peak tourist season was finished and the weather favored cold, rainy days like today rather than sunny patio-friendly ones. They chose a table by a window covered in streaks of rain.
“What? I smile.”
“Not all that often.”
