Governor Sam gave a mighty yawn and lumbered to his feet, right through the freshly painted section of the porch. He left a trail of paw prints as he sauntered to a new sunny spot.
Jack burst out laughing. “Looks like we’ll have to fix that.”
“No,” she said, surprising herself. “It’s perfect.”
He looked at her, then at the paw prints, a slow smile spreading across his face. “You’re right. It adds character.”
“It looks amazing,” she said softly. “Lolly would’ve loved it.”
His expression softened. “Yeah, she would have. Maybe we should celebrate with some of her famous peach iced tea? I’ve got a batch in the cooler.”
The offer was tempting. But as she looked at him, shirtless, sweaty, and altogether too appealing, she knew she was in dangerous territory.
“I should get cleaned up,” she said, taking a step back. “I’ve got calls to make, potential buyers to contact.”
A flicker of something crossed his face, but he nodded. “Right. Don’t let me keep you.”
After washingthe paint out of her hair and trying desperately to scrub away the lingering thoughts of Jack’s muscles flexing as he fixed the porch boards, Cora curled up on an armchairin the café with one of Lolly’s old photo albums. She told herself she needed a distraction, something to ground her after the whirlwind of the morning. But as she flipped through the pages, she got lost in the memories.
Lolly’s life had been vibrant, full of laughter and love, and each photo told a story. Her standing in front of The Salty Spoon as a young woman with her parents on opening day, beaming with pride; a candid shot of her mid-laugh, covered in flour; and countless pictures with the people who made this small town feel like home. Cora could almost hear her voice, warm and comforting, as she traced the edges of a particularly faded photo.
She was so wrapped up in the past, she didn’t hear the door open until Aggie and Winston bustled in, arguing over a word game on their phones.
“I swear, you’re making up words at this point,” Winston muttered, frowning at his screen.
Aggie shot back, “I’m not the one who tried to use ‘zoot’ as a word!”
“Don’t you two ever knock?” Cora grumbled.
“Knocking is for people who don’t have spare keys,” Aggie said breezily, settling herself in the chair next to Cora’s. “Besides, we brought reinforcements.”
On cue, Bea swept in, her arms loaded with baked goods. “I hope you’re hungry, honey,” she said, plopping the bounty onto the coffee table. “I stress-bake when I’m worried, and let me tell you, this whole situation has me whipping up a storm.”
Cora eyed the mountain of cinnamon rolls and cookies warily. “I can see that. Are you planning to solve our problems by putting the Worthingtons into a sugar coma?”
Winston chuckled, helping himself to a cookie. “Not a bad plan. It would be sweet revenge.”
Aggie, her eyes twinkling with mischief, turned to Cora. “Speaking of sweet, how are things going with our residentchef? You two seemed awfully cozy out there on the porch earlier.”
Her stomach did a flip. “How did you know we were out there?”
Aggie grinned. “At least three people called to report on your behavior.”
Cora rolled her eyes, laughing despite herself. “The gossip mill in Sunrise is as efficient as ever.”
“So, what’s the deal?” Bea asked, far too casually. “You make a nice couple.”
“We were painting. Not planning a wedding,” Cora said. “And I thought you didn’t trust him.”
The three of them exchanged guilty glances before Aggie sighed. “Okay, maybe we were a little hard on him at first. But after seeing how much he’s helping you?—”
“Let’s just say he’s growing on us,” Winston cut in, reaching for a cinnamon roll.
Cora blinked, caught off guard by their sudden change of heart. “Who are you, and what have you done with the real Aggie, Bea, and Winston?”
Bea waved a hand dismissively. “Oh, hush. We’re allowed to change our minds. Besides,” she added with a wink, “heisrather easy on the eyes, isn’t he?”
“Bea!” Cora spluttered.
