Brambleberry House. RaeAnne Thayne

one simply by turning around and starting up.

      She didn’t let him gloat for long. “I understand you know our new tenant.”

      His gaze flashed to hers. Uh-oh. Here comes the inquisition, he thought. “Knew. Past tense. A long time ago.”

      The words were becoming like a mantra since she showed up again in Cannon Beach. A long time ago. But not nearly long enough. Like a riptide, the memories just seemed to keep grabbing him out of nowhere and sucking him under.

      “She’s lovely, isn’t she?” Sage pressed as they hit the halfway mark on the stairs. “And those kids of hers are adorable. I can’t wait until Eben and Chloe finish up their trip to Europe in a few weeks. Chloe’s going to be over the moon at having two new friends.”

      “How are the wedding plans?” he asked at her mention of her fiancé and his eight-year-old daughter. The question was aimed more at diverting her attention than out of much genuine interest to hear about her upcoming nuptials, but it seemed to work.

      Sage made a face. “You know I’m not good at that kind of thing. If I had my way, I would happy with something simple on the beach, just Eben and me and Chloe and the preacher.”

      “I guess when you marry a gazillionaire hotel magnate, sometimes you have to make sacrifices.”

      “It’s still going to be small, just a few friends at the ceremony then a reception later at the Sea Urchin. I’m leaving all the details to Jade and Stanley Wu.”

      “Smart woman.”

      She went on about wedding plans and he listened with half an ear.

      In a million years, he never would have expected a hippie-chick like Sage to fall for a California businessman like Eben Spencer but somehow they seemed to fit together.

      Sage was more at peace than he’d ever known her, settled in a way he couldn’t explain.

      She was one of his closest friends and had been since she moved to town five years ago and found herself immediately drawn into Abigail’s orbit. He loved her as a little sister and he knew she deserved whatever joy she could find.

      He wanted to be happy for her—and most of the time he was—but every once in a while, seeing the love and happiness that seemed to surround her and Eben when they were together was like a slow, relentless trickle of acid on an open wound.

      Despite knowing Julia was inside, he was relieved as hell when they reached the top of the stairs and turned into the apartment.

      “Oh, my Stickley! We bought that when I was pregnant with the twins. I know the apartment is furnished but I couldn’t bear to leave it behind. Thank you so much for carrying that heavy thing all that way! That goes right here by the window so I can sit in it at night and watch the moonlight shining on the ocean.”

      He set it down, his mind on the rocking chair he had made Robin when she was pregnant with Cara. It was still sitting in the nursery along with the toddler bed he had made, gathering dust.

      He really ought to do something with the furniture. Sage would probably know somebody who could use it....

      Not today, he thought abruptly. He wasn’t ready for that yet.

      He turned on his heel and headed back down the stairs to retrieve that mysterious blanket-wrapped item. When he reached the U-Haul, he stood for a moment studying it, trying to figure out what it might be—and how best to carry it up the Brambleberry House stairs—when the enticing scent of cherry blossoms swirled around him.

      “It’s a dollhouse.” Julia spoke beside him in a low voice and he automatically squared his shoulders, though what he was bracing for, he wasn’t quite sure.

      “My father made it for me years ago. My...late husband tried to fix it up a little for Maddie but I’m afraid it’s still falling apart. I really hope it survived the trip.”

      So she was a widow. They had that in common, then. He cleared his throat. “Should we take the blanket off?”

      She shrugged, which he took for assent. He unwrapped the cord and heard a crunching kind of thud inside. Uh-oh. Not a good sign. With a careful look at her and a growing sense of trepidation, he pulled the blanket away and winced as Julia gasped.

      Despite her obvious efforts to protect the dollhouse, the piece hadn’t traveled well. The construction looked flimsy to begin with and the roof had collapsed.

      One entire support wall had come loose as well and the whole thing looked like it was ready to implode.

      “I’m sorry,” he said, though the words seemed grossly inadequate.

      “It’s not your fault. I was afraid it wouldn’t survive the trip. Oh, this is going to break Maddie’s heart. She loved that little house.”

      “So did you,” he guessed.

      She nodded. “For a lot of reasons.” She tilted her head, studying the wreckage. “You’re the carpentry expert. I don’t suppose there’s any way I can fix this, is there?”

      He gazed down at her, at the fading rays of the sun that caught gold strands in her hair, at the sorrow marring those lovely features for a lost treasure.

      He gave an inward groan. Dammit, he didn’t want to do this. But he was such a sucker for a woman in distress. How could he just walk away?

      He cleared his throat. “If you want, I could take a look at it. See what I can do.”

      “Oh, I couldn’t ask that of you.”

      “You didn’t ask,” he said gruffly.

      She sent him a swift look. “No. I didn’t.”

      “I’m kind of slammed with projects right now. It might take me a while to get to it. And even then, I can’t make any guarantees. That’s some major damage there. You might be better just starting over.”

      She forced a smile, though he could see the sadness lingering in her eyes. Her father had made it for her, she had said. He didn’t remember much about her father from their summers in Cannon Beach, mostly that the man always seemed impatient and abrupt.

      “I can’t make any promises,” he repeated. “But I’ll see what I can do.”

      “Oh, that would be wonderful. Thank you so much, Will.”

      Together, they gathered up the shattered pieces of the dollhouse and carried them to his truck, where he set them carefully in the back between his toolbox and ladder.

      “I’m happy to pay you for your time and trouble.”

      As if he would ever accept her money. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s see if I can fix it first.”

      She nodded and looked as if she wanted to say something more. To his vast relief, after a moment, she closed her mouth, then returned to the U-Haul for the last few boxes.

       CHAPTER FOUR

      BETWEEN THE TWO of them, they were able to carry all but a few of the remaining boxes from the U-Haul up the stairs, where they found Sage and Julia pulling books out of boxes and placing them on shelves.

      “You’re all so wonderful to help me,” Julia said, gratitude coursing through her as she smiled at all three of them. “I have to tell you, I never expected such a warm welcome. I thought it would be weeks before I would even know a soul in Cannon Beach besides Abigail. I haven’t even started teaching yet but I feel as if I have instant friends.”

      Sage smiled. “We’re thrilled to have you and the twins here. And I think Abigail would be, too. Don’t you think, Will?”

      He set down the boxes. “Sure. She always loved kids.”

      “She was nothing but a big kid herself. Remember how she used to