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Henry was dead to Joel. It was as if the last forty years had never happened.

Joel, however, wasn’t as convinced about Rick’s guilt when it came to the embezzlement. So far, it was all Henry’s fault. He was trying to get Zack to convince Sam to rehire him.

Fat chance of that happening. And there wasn’t much that Joel could do about it either. The doctors had told him that he wouldn’t be returning to work. He was done. Retired. The old man wasn’t taking the news well. He’d been in a thunderous mood since that news had dropped.

“You did a great job with Henry’s story. I’m just sorry that you had to be put through all of that. If I hadn’t had my head up my ass, it would have all been different.”

“Not this again,” Alli groaned. “We’ve been over it all. I forgive you. We can move on and think about the future now. I hate dwelling in the past. You know that.”

She did hate that. He was learning all sorts of new things about her each and every day. It was amazing.

“You didn’t have to forgive me.”

“I kind of did,” she laughed. “How could I be mad at a guy who pushed me away because he thought he wasn’t good enough? It was sort of sweet in a weird and terribly twisted way. Don’t do it again.”

“I was protecting my heart,” Sam explained again. “And I thought I was protecting you. I thought I’d lost too much of it to love you the way you deserved.”

“I get it, although I want to kick you under the table for it. Sam, we give pieces of our heart to lots of people in our lives. Family, friends, loved ones. No one comes to the table with a whole heart intact. No one. The secret is to love someone with all that you have. If you do that, it’s enough.”

“I do love you.”

“I love you, too. Now, tell me what you’re ordering because I may want to try a bite of it.”

She was into sharing food. He’d learned that, too. She’d give him half of her plate if he’d share some of his. She opened her menu, but then grimaced slightly as she nodded in the direction of the restaurant entrance.

Sam turned to see Sheriff Finn walking towards them. He had a funny expression on his face, and that always made Sam nervous. What now? Had he found out more about Lily Winslow?

“Folks,” Finn greeted them as he sidled up to their table. “I’m glad I ran into you tonight.”

“You weren’t looking for us?” Alli asked.

“No,” Finn said with a grin. “I was here to pick up dinner, but I saw you sitting here. This was a chance for me to give you my news before you hear it somewhere else.”

“News?” Sam echoed. “You have news? Is it about Mom?”

“This isn’t about the case,” Finn replied, shaking his head. “This is about me. I’ve resigned as sheriff of Winslow Heights.”

Sam heard Alli’s audible intake of breath, and he was just as shocked.

“You’re leaving?”

“It’s not because I’m not happy here,” Finn explained. “But my wife’s mother has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. She’s an only child, and she wants to be there. There’s no way I could say no, and frankly, I didn’t want to. I got hired by the local police force as a detective. She and I both love it here, and we’re hoping to come back at some point in the future.”

“Is Dave taking over?” Sam asked.

Dave was the senior deputy, and a nice guy, but he wasn’t the lawman that Finn was. Sam hated to think selfishly, but this wasn’t good news for the investigation into his mother’s death.

“Dave? No, he’s not interested and lacks the experience needed, I think. Actually, a good friend of mine, Ryan Bradley, is taking over. He’s a good man and a good cop. You’ll like him.”

“We’ll be sorry to see you go,” Sam said. “And I’m sorry to hear about your mother-in-law.”

“Thanks, I just want to be there for Annie. She’s taking this hard.”

They chatted for a few more minutes, and then Finn excused himself when his food order was ready.

“I didn’t expect that,” Alli said.

“I didn’t either,” Sam replied. “This town is going to miss Finn. He’s a good cop. But I guess change is inevitable.”