“Too late,” he teased.
He thought she smiled back but couldn’t be sure. He was enjoying their chat. And, he noted, since he’d come out here his stress level had seemed to drop tenfold. Maybe Mia just had that effect on him.
“So,” she said after a moment’s quiet. “Why didn’t you try the long-distance thing with your Denver friend? Or are you staying here indefinitely?”
“My plans are to make the inn profitable, at which point we can sell it as a viable business. Our mom and dad dreamed of turning the place back into an inn, but they wouldn’t have wanted us to give up our own dreams to follow theirs.”
“Dodging the subject?”
“Darn.” His lips twitched. “Didn’t work.”
“At least you don’t have your love life splashed across every celebrity magazine nationwide.”
“I can’t even imagine.”
“What was her name? What did she do?”
“You’re not going to let me off the hook, are you?”
“You already know all about my love life.”
“Fair enough.” He didn’t even know why he was reluctant to talk about it; there was no big story here. “Her name was Gretchen, and she was an admin assistant. And to answer your question—”
“Finally.”
“I wasn’t sure how long I might be here. I didn’t feel it was fair to leave her hanging.”
“Do you miss her?”
Mia was very direct out here in the dark. He thought about her question, wanting to be honest but needing to clarify things in his own head. “I missed her for a while, but now I think I just miss having someone special. My life’s too full for that right now though. I have responsibilities that need my full attention.”
“The inn, you mean?”
“That and my sisters. Speaking of which—they don’t know about Gretchen, so I’d appreciate it if we kept that between us.”
“You’re keeping my secret, so I can certainly keep yours. But why don’t you want them to know, if you don’t mind my asking?”
He lifted a shoulder. “I guess I don’t want them feeling guilty about what I gave up.”
“It was an unselfish thing you did.”
“We all made sacrifices. Molly gave up a great internship in Italy that she’d worked hard for. Grace gave up a lot of activities at school her junior and senior years.”
“It was all for your parents?”
“That and also for Grace. We wanted her to be able to finish high school here, and the inn seemed like the only viable way to do that.”
“I think it’s really special what you’re doing—all of you. Your parents would be really proud of you.”
He heard a wistful tone in her voice and wondered again about her own family. “I hope so.”
“You seem close. I never liked being an only child. Other kids have imaginary playmates; I had imaginary siblings.”
He chuckled, easily able to picture little Mia having tea with her “sisters.”
“The reality is probably less appealing than the fantasy. Believe me, we fuss and argue and annoy each other, even now. Running a business together hasn’t been easy. If left to her own devices Molly would spend us out of house and home. She’s all about whatever it takes to make the guests happy. Grace is more low-key, but the inn is just a means to an end for her. She wanted to finish school here, and she did. Not that she doesn’t care about our parents’ legacy.”
“Sure, but she’s only, what, eighteen? I was pretty self-absorbed at that age.”
