He got up, got dressed, and threw back a cup of coffee.They got to the ferry with time to spare, then stood back watching.
“Is she going to bring a red rose or something?”Miles asked.
Bella shot him a look.“She won’t need to.I’ll recognize her.”
“Or him,” Miles muttered.“It still could be a fifty-year-old man.”
No response.
A blonde woman in hiking clothes stepped off the ferry, rolling a suitcase beside her.Bella waved at her wildly.
“She’s not an old man.See!”
Miles frowned.“I wouldn’t say fifty is old, but – ”
“Over here!”Bella flailed her arms.
The woman caught sight of her, and her face brightened.Miles watched warily as she approached, remembering the pictures Bella had shown him months prior.
To be fair, she looked just like them – big eyes, short blonde hair, and a slim figure.She was, by all measures, attractive.
“Bella!It’s so nice to finally meet you.”She clasped Bella’s hand with both of hers.She turned to Miles.“I’m sure this is very strange for you, Miles.I’m Gemma Birch.”
He offered her a handshake.There was no need to be rude.“A bit of a surprise, I can admit.”
She had the sort of warm smile that reached her eyes.They were blue and clear, framed with slight wrinkles.Her smile looked honest.“Well, please don’t let me impose on your weekend.I – ”
“Should we all get breakfast?”Bella asked brightly.“I’m really hungry, Dad.I’m starting to get dizzy, actually.”
He shot her a lazy look.“I’m sure Dr.Birch has plans.”
“Please, call me Gemma.And not exactly.I try to come up to the islands as much as I can to enjoy the calm and the hiking.”
“The islands are good for that,” he said.
His stomach growled.There was no use pretending he didn’t want breakfast, and maybe if he entertained Bella’s attempt at setting him up, she’d finally stop doing it.
“There’s a great breakfast joint in town,” he said.“I feel I owe you that much, since my daughter lured you here under false pretenses.”
Bella’s eyes bulged.“Dad!”
Gemma laughed.“There was nothing false about them.The billboard made me laugh out loud.I don’t know what possessed me to send the email but...here I am.”
She shrugged, a smile still broadly on her face.
Bella looked at him, her eyes full of hope.
How could he explain to her that life wasn’t a Hallmark Christmas movie?
He could start by making her watch one.Or by showing her that when a real person showed up, it was far more complicated than the movies.
“Shall we?”he said.
Twenty-three
There was no reason to worry.Things were going according to plan – positively, even.
Except anything positive triggered Annie’s suspicion.Things never went well for Annie, at least not recently.She’d had a slew of bad luck, and it felt like the natural flow of her life now.Her husband running off, not being able to finish her PhD, losing her home, losing her future…
