“Uncle Chase, we’re here,” a young boy’s voice sing-songed through the foyer.
“What have I told you about yelling in the house, young man?” I heard an exasperated woman’s voice say. Emalee.
Of all of Chase’s family, she was the one I least dreaded seeing again. I didn’t think she had a mean bone in her body. She was always cool to Mason, but greeted me with smiles that never felt forced. I was still grateful she’d offered to board Jack while I stayed a few nights at TheDogtrot. But I hadn’t seen her since, and I didn’t know how she’d feel that I was here today.
A blur of energy rounded the corner and slid into the dining room.
“Whoa,” a young boy whispered as his big green eyes that matched his uncle’s took in the food. “Did you buy a restaurant, Uncle Chase?”
Chase laughed. “No. You’ll need to thank that lady over there. Her name is Anna, and she’s an amazing cook. As good as your own mama’s.”
His eyes widened. “No way.”
“You outdid yourself, Anna.” Emalee entered behind her son, holding an adorable toddler on her hip. “Iain is right. This looks like a professional buffet.” She smiled warmly. “If it tastes anything like it smells, you could put me right out of business for breakfast.”
I flushed, not used to such praise. “I think your job is safe. It’s nice to see you again.” I turned my attention to the little one in her arms. “And who’s this adorable girl? I don’t think she was with you the last time I was in town.”
It was probably because Mason never wanted to linger downtown any longer than it took to flash his money around. And we certainly didn’t stay at Emalee’s bed-and-breakfast, no matter how much I wanted to. Mason would have never considered sharing common space with strangers, no matter how nice the place was.
Emalee shifted her daughter’s weight, giving me a better view. “This is Olivia. Say hi to Anna, sweetheart.” She waved Olivia’s little arm, who just stared at me with big, solemn brown eyes.
“Hey, everyone,” a new voice chimed in.
Zach, Em’s husband, appeared with a diaper bag in one hand and a plastic cake carrier in the other. He wasfollowed by the man I met in the woods, Trey. He nodded at me but lingered near the wall, clearly happy to be an observer rather than part of the crowd.
“Here’s the bag you wanted,” Zach said, handing it to his wife. Then he paused as he looked around the dining room. “Whoa,” he said, a near-perfect imitation of his son. “Are we expecting the entire town? This looks incredible. Not sure where to put this.” He held out the container.
“There’s plenty of space.” I reached for the dish, which he handed over carefully. I opened it to find an incredible truffle cake with thin, perfectly stacked layers topped by a glossy chocolate ganache. My mouth watered in anticipation of trying it.
“This looks amazing. Did you make this, Em?”
She nodded with a modest smile.
Zach turned back to me. “Hi, Anna. It’s nice to see you again. How are you? And how’s my buddy, Jack?”
“I’m fine, thank you. And Jack is doing great. He loves having all this space to run around. How’s the vet business going?”
“Never a dull moment.”
For the first time that morning, the conversation felt easy, like this was going to be okay after all.
“We’re here,” another voice called from the front entry.
Bristol and Reid walked in, a young girl between them who I hadn’t met but assumed was Reid’s daughter from his first marriage.
Like the rest, Reid’s eyes widened when he saw the spread and gave a low whistle. He looked at me with amused eyes. “I see you cooked up a storm again.”
Bristol came to an abrupt halt. “Again?” her voice echoed. “What doesthatmean?”
“Didn’t I tell you?” Chase said, his tone carefullyneutral. “Anna lives here now. She’s taken over for Marta. She has been for a while.”
That stopped me cold.He hadn’t told his family? After all this time?
The easy feeling from moments earlier vanished, and my stomach twisted into even more knots.
Bristol eyed her brother. “Chase, seriously?”
“Yes, seriously.” He stared at her unflinchingly, his eyes flashing as if he dared her to say anything else.
