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Poppy’s shoulders sagged. “You’re right. I’m worried you’ll see him and decide you can’t live in Peace Falls anymore, and I would have gotten my hopes up for nothing.”
“I’m not calling Gwen before I see Cal because she’s wrangling her kids to daycare right now. I owe her a real conversation.That’s all. I promise, Poppy, Red Blossoms Bakery is happening, and it will be amazing.”
She surprised me by leaning forward and pulling me into a tight hug. When she sat back, her eyes were wet. “Ok, get out of here,” she said, swatting my arm. “I need to sleep at least two more hours to be human.”
“Love you,” I said as she rolled onto her stomach.
“Same,” she said into her pillow.
After I finished getting ready, I headed downstairs where Mom and Chris were voguing in the kitchen.
“Don’t let me interrupt,” I said, grabbing the keys to the station wagon.
Chris tugged my arm and spun me around. “Come on, Ann. You know this is how Mom celebrates. If I have to do it, so do you. It’s your fault, anyway.”
“Don’t pretend like you’re not thrilled I’m staying,” I said and struck a ridiculous pose. Mom danced around the kitchen with a huge smile on her face. Chris performed a kneeling spin move that looked more breakdance than voguing. The song finished, and I hugged them both.
“Now that I’m warmed up, I better get going. I’m stopping at Karma on the way to PT to check how many scones I need to bake later.
Chris frowned. “I can take you and wait while you finish your session.”
Mom shook her head. “Nope, you’re helping me bring a load of Rowan’s boxes to the storage unit. I want my living room back, and your sister can handle herself just fine.”
“Thanks, Mom,” I said, giving her hand a squeeze. “You too, Chris. I marked all the boxes that can go with an S.”
“You’re welcome, sweetie,” Mom said and restarted the song. Chris let out a sigh but struck a pose. I grabbed my purse andopened the front door but came to a stop when I found Cal and Skye on the porch.
All the air whooshed out of my lungs. He looked handsome as usual, despite the dark circles under his eyes. Part of me wanted to retreat inside, another wanted to run down the steps and wrap my arms around him. But all of me wanted to know why he’d come to see me outside his office.
“Um, hi,” I said, pulling the door closed behind me and muffling the ’80s music inside.
Cal swallowed hard. “I thought we could start today’s session with a walk,” he said. “Assuming that’s where you’re headed.”
At the word walk, Skye spun in a full circle.
“Ok,” I said.
He handed me Skye’s leash and then stepped close to take the bag from my shoulder. My body came alive when he neared, my heart racing, my breath shallow. Skye bumped into me, tail wagging. I knelt to pet her, relieved to put some distance between me and Cal.
Skye licked my face and I laughed. “I missed you too, girl.”
“We should get going,” Cal said, walking down the stairs with his shoulders bunched to his ears.
“Sure,” I said, standing.
Skye and I followed him to the street. He walked on the asphalt, giving us the full sidewalk. We walked past a few houses without talking, our pace painfully slow. I was beginning to think he planned to walk all the way to Main Street without speaking when he cleared his throat.
“Thank you,” he said softly. “For your review.”
“No problem. I saw Avery removed hers.”
He nodded. Well, if that was all the conversation he had, this was going to be a very uncomfortable walk.
“I’m happy for you, Cal,” I said. “I meant what I wrote. You really are great at your job.”
“You could have canceled your sessions,” he said, stopping and staring ahead toward Broad Street. “Once Adam sees the review sites, my job won’t be in danger.”
“Did you want me to cancel?” I asked.
