Brambleberry House. RaeAnne Thayne

would be perfect for Brambleberry House so we ordered extra.”

      “What was wrong with the old ones?”

      “They were cracking and warped in places from water damage a long time ago. We tried to repair them but it was becoming an endless process. And then when she decided to take down a few walls, the moldings in the different rooms didn’t match so we decided to replace them all with something historically accurate.”

      He started to add more, but Maddie slid over to him and held out her cone.

      “Mr. Garrett, would you like to try some of my strawberry cheesecake ice cream? It’s really good.”

      A slight edge of panic appeared around the edges of his gaze. “Uh, no thanks. Think I’ll stick with my vanilla.”

      She accepted his answer with equanimity. “You might change your mind, though,” she said, with her innate generosity. “How about if I eat it super slow? That way if decide you want some after all, I’ll still have some left for you to try later, okay?”

      He blinked and she saw the nerves give way to astonishment. “Uh, thanks,” he said, looking so touched at the small gesture that her heart broke for him all over again.

      Maddie smiled her most endearing smile, the particularly charming one she had perfected on doctors over the years. “You’re welcome. Just let me know if you want a taste. I don’t mind sharing, I promise.”

      He looked like a man who had just been stabbed in the heart and Julia suddenly couldn’t bear his pain. In desperation, she sought a way to distract him.

      “What will you do on Brambleberry House after you finish the moldings?” she finally asked.

      He looked grateful for the diversion. “Uh, your apartment is mostly done but the third-floor rooms still need some work. Little stuff, mostly, but inconvenient to try to live around. I figured I would wait to start until after Sage is married and living part-time in the Bay Area with Eben and Chloe.”

      “I understand they’re coming back soon from an extended trip overseas. We’ve heard a great deal about them from Sage and Anna. The twins can’t wait to meet Chloe.”

      “She’s a good kid. And Eben is good for Sage. That’s the important thing.”

      He was a man who loved his friends, she realized. That, at least, hadn’t changed over the years.

      He seemed embarrassed by his statement and quickly returned to talking about the repairs planned for Brambleberry House. She listened to his deep voice as she savored the last of her cone, thinking it was a perfect summer evening.

      The children finished their treats—Maddie’s promise to Will notwithstanding—and were romping with Conan in the sand. Their laugher drifted on the breeze above the sound of the ocean.

      For just an instant, she was transported back in time, sitting with Will atop a splintery picnic table, eating ice-cream cones and laughing at nothing and talking about their dreams.

      By unspoken agreement, they stood, cones finished, and started walking back down the beach while Conan herded the twins along ahead of them.

      “I’m boring you to tears,” Will said after some time. “I’m sorry. I, uh, don’t usually go on and on like that about my work.”

      She shook her head. “You’re not boring me. On the contrary. I enjoy hearing about what you do. You love it, don’t you?”

      “It’s just a job. Not something vitally important to the future of the world like educating young minds.”

      She made a face. “My, you have a rosy view of educators, don’t you?”

      “I always had good teachers when I was going to school.”

      “Good teachers wouldn’t have anywhere to teach those young minds if not for great carpenters like you,” she pointed out. “The work you’ve done on Brambleberry House is lovely. The kitchen cupboards are as smooth as a satin dress. Anna told me you made them all by hand.”

      “It’s a great old house. I’m trying my best to do it justice.”

      They walked in silence for a time and Julia couldn’t escape the grim realization that she was every bit as attracted to him now as she had been all those years ago.

      Not true, she admitted ruefully. Technically, anyway. She was far more aware of him now, as a full-grown woman—with a woman’s knowledge and a woman’s needs—than she ever would have been as a naive, idealistic fifteen-year-old girl.

      He was bigger than he had been then, several inches taller and much more muscled. His hair was cut slightly shorter than it had been when he was a teenager and he had a few laugh lines around his mouth and his eyes, though she had a feeling those had been etched some time ago.

      She was particularly aware of his hands, square-tipped and strong, with the inevitable battle scars of a man who used them in creative and constructive ways.

      She didn’t want to notice anything about him and she certainly wasn’t at all thrilled to find herself attracted to him again. She couldn’t afford it. Not when she and her children were just finding their way again.

      Hadn’t she suffered enough from emotionally unavailable men?

      “Look what I found, Mom!” Maddie uncurled her fingers to reveal a small gnarled object. “What is it?”

      As she studied the object, Julia held her daughter’s hand, trying not to notice how thin her fingers seemed. It appeared to be an agate but was an odd color, greenish gray with red streaks in it.

      “We forgot to bring our rocky coast field book, didn’t we? We’ll have to look it up when we get back to the house.”

      “Do you know, Mr. Garrett?” Maddie presented the object for Will’s inspection.

      “I’m afraid I’m not much of a naturalist,” he said, rather curtly. “Sage is your expert in that department. She can tell you in a second.”

      “Oh. Okay.” Maddie’s shoulders slumped, more from fatigue than disappointment, Julia thought, but Will didn’t pick up on it. Guilt flickered in his expression.

      “I can look at it,” he said after a moment. “Let’s see.”

      Will reached for her hand and he examined the contents carefully. “Wow. This is quite a find. It’s a bloodstone agate.”

      “I want to see,” Simon said.

      “It’s pretty rare,” Will said. He talked to them about some of the other treasures they could find beachcombing on the coast until they reached his house.

      “I guess this is your stop,” Julia said as they stood at the steps of his deck.

      He glanced up the steps, as if eager to escape, then looked back at them. “I’ll walk you the rest of the way to Brambleberry House. It’s nearly dark. I wouldn’t want you walking on your own.”

      It was only three houses, she almost said, but he looked so determined to stick it out that she couldn’t bring herself to argue.

      “Thank you,” she said, then gave Maddie a careful look. Her daughter hadn’t said much for some time, since finding the bloodstone.

      “Is it piggyback time?” Julia asked quietly.

      Maddie shrugged, her features dispirited. “I guess so. I really wanted to make it the whole way on my own this time.”

      “You made it farther this time than last time. And farther still than the time before. Come on, pumpkin. Your chariot awaits.” Julia crouched down and her daughter climbed aboard.

      “I can carry her,” Will said, though he looked as if he would rather stick a nail gun to his hand and pull the switch.

      “I’ve got her,” she answered, aching for him all over again. “But you can make sure