“Were you angry with Hillary?”
He looked down at his hands. “Incredibly disappointed. She already had half of everything we owned, but she wanted more. I was appalled when she threatened to take Adele away from me. From the moment she left, she never wanted her. Why would you use your daughter as a bargaining chip?”
“I don’t know.” Shona pulled her knees toward her chest and sighed. “Her lawyer and new partner could have talked her into what happened.”
“Maybe.” Joseph hoped that was the case, but she’d never apologized or tried to rebuild her relationship with Adele.
“I’ve never been divorced, so I don’t know how it feels to go through that. Even after Chris died, I was cushioned from what happened.”
“How long were you in the hospital?”
“About five weeks. The accident caused a lot of damage around my pelvis and lower spine. I can’t have any more children.”
“I’m sorry. That must have been difficult to hear.”
Shona shook her head. “Not really. I was in my late thirties. Chris and I had tried to have another child, but it never happened. Nate was a gift, and we’d already resigned ourselves to being a small family. Have you thought about having more children?”
Joseph smiled. “Adele is enough. We’ve been on our own for so long that having more children in the house would seem strange. Besides, I’m fifty years old. I can’t imagine changing dirty diapers and going through teething issues again.”
“A lot of people have families when they’re your age.”
She’d said that with such a straight face that he thought she was serious—until he saw the twinkle in her eyes. “You almost had me fooled.”
“Only almost? I must be slipping.”
“Tell me about your husband. Do you miss him?”
Shona’s smile disappeared. “The hole in my heart is still there, but it doesn’t hurt so much. I used to feel as though I was betraying him by moving on with my life.”
“Do you still feel that way?”
“Sometimes.”
The softly spoken word made Joseph’s heart pound. “Do you feel that way when we spend time together?”
“Only when I kissed you.” She sent him a shaky smile. “I’m a work in progress.”
“We can take whatever’s happening between us as slowly as you like. I have issues I have to deal with, too.”
Shona bit her bottom lip. “I think we should have our lunch before we talk ourselves out of spending more time together.”
Leaning sideways, he gently nudged her with his shoulder. “You could be right. Do you want to have dinner with me tomorrow night?”
“As long as there are no emergencies in the store, that should be okay. What about Adele?”
“I’ll ask Mabel if she’ll look after her for a couple of hours.”
Shona’s eyes widened. “You know what she’ll think, don’t you?”
“That I can’t take my eyes off the beautiful woman who’s opened a quilting store?”
She blushed. “She’ll think something’s going on between us. And, before you know it, half of Sapphire Bay will be talking about us.”
Joseph grinned. “That’s okay with me. As long as I speak to Adele before I ask Mabel to look after her, we’ll be fine.”
Shona picked up his plate and handed it to him. “Let’s eat. If I keep thinking about Mabel, it will spoil my appetite.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He bit into his pie and smiled. He was already looking forward to tomorrow night.
