“Do you enjoy running?” he asked.
Jackie shook her head. “It’s not my thing. I prefer to walk or ride my bicycle when I want to exercise.”
“In that case, I won’t invite you for an early morning run.”
“Definitely not.” She smiled as she took the lids off the other boxes. “If you’ve met Pastor John, talk to him. There’s at least one running group at the church.”
His watch beeped again. Sometimes, he wasn’t impressed with technology. “That’s a good idea.”
Jackie laughed. “You’d better leave before your watch zaps you.”
“If it did that, the company would go out of business. I’ll see you around town some time.”
“I’ll look forward to it. Have a great day.”
“You, too.” And before the next set of beeps sounded an alarm, he headed outside. Only this time it wasn’t the scenery he thought of. It was a woman with stunning blue eyes and auburn hair who liked making flower arrangements, riding bicycles, and knitting baby clothes.
He reset his watch, turned right, and headed toward Flathead Lake.
Jackie was completely different from the women he’d met in New York. There was a genuine warmth to her personality that drew him to her, a simplicity about her life that made his own seem too complicated.
Before he spent too much time thinking about her, he’d better ask David what he knew about his fiancée’s friend. Jackie wasn’t wearing a wedding band, and she hadn’t mentioned having a partner. But, as he’d discovered more than once, that didn’t mean much to some women.
* * *
Jackie leanedagainst the doorframe of the workroom in The Cozy Quilt Shop. Shona’s head was bent over her sewing machine, stitching another quilt, and listening to country music on the radio.
Being here always made Jackie feel happy. With colorful fabric filling the store’s shelves, gorgeous quilts hanging from the walls, and beautiful thread, ribbon, and beads on display, it was heaven for anyone interested in quilting.
Shona could have sold quilts and nothing else, but she was using the store to showcase other local artists’ work. There were hand-carved ornaments, gorgeous glass vases, and a display of ceramic beads and plates. In some ways, having a more diverse range of goods made The Cozy Quilt Shop even more popular with its customers.
Jackie was impressed with the showroom, but the workroom was even more inspiring. A shelf of half-finished quilts sat along one wall. Boxes of additional supplies covered another set of shelves and, closer to the small kitchen, boxes of handcrafts were waiting to be sold. She admired what Shona had done over the last few months. Her quilting store had grown from a dream into a thriving business. Groups of eager quilters booked the tables in the meeting area, sharing their skill, laughter, and friendship with anyone who wanted to be part of the magic.
Jackie tapped lightly on the door and stepped into the workroom. “Hey, Shona. What are you working on?”
Her friend looked up and smiled. “I’m finishing this quilt for Mrs. Jenkins. She wanted something with a Christmas theme for the winter months.”
Jackie nodded and took a closer look at the red and gold quilt. The colors were warm and inviting, reminding her of cuddling up with a mug of hot chocolate on a cold winter’s night.
“It’ll be a beautiful quilt.”
“I hope so. A part of me always dreads sewing commission pieces. Even with the design ideas and the fabric samples I show my clients, I don’t know if they’ll love the finished product. Has your friend left the store?”
For a moment, Jackie didn’t know who Shona was talking about. “Oh, you mean Aidan. He’s not my friend. I only met him the other day.”
Shona’s eyebrows rose. “Really? When you were talking, you sounded like old friends catching up.”
“He was being friendly, that’s all. I’ve left the boxes of knitting on the counter. Where would you like me to display them?”
A smile lit Shona’s face as she took the quilt out of the sewing machine. “I’ll photograph them for the store’s website first. Have I told you how much I love it when you bring in your baby clothes? You make each outfit look unique and incredibly sweet.”
Jackie was glad Shona was happy with the knitting. Sometimes, it was hard finding the time to add something different to each pattern, but she tried her best. “For these outfits, I’ve added crocheted flowers to the jackets and booties.”
Shona walked into the showroom and picked up the first box. When she pulled out the tiny pink jacket with white crocheted flowers along the bottom, she sighed. “This is adorable.”
Jackie grinned. “Thank you. I thought the little flowers were a nice touch.”
Nodding in agreement, Shona put the jacket back into the box. “They definitely are. It’s the little details that make all the difference. Show me the rest of the outfits.”
