“I’ll think about it. Let’s leave it at that for now.”
“I guess that’s all I can ask,” Hannah answered. “Thank you for even considering it.
Yeah. As he and Audrey said goodbye and headed for the checkout, Ryan had a feeling he would be thinking about her suggestion for a long time.
Chapter Seven
HOLLY LOVED LIVING IN THE MOUNTAINS OF IDAHO. SHE REALLYdid. She loved the people, she loved the splendor of the scenery and she loved the recreational opportunities from living next to a beautiful body of water.
She did not, however, love shoveling snow.
If she ever won the lottery—probably unlikely to happen since she never played—the first thing she planned to do was hire somebody to clear her driveway and sidewalks in the winter.
“I’m helping, Mommy.”
She looked at the area Lydia tramped through, her little snow shovel dragging more snow across the section Holly had just finished clearing. Snow that would probably melt and freeze again into a treacherous line of ice.
No bother, she would come back after Lydi was in bed and clear it all away again.
Raising a daughter willing to help her and one who felt appreciated for her efforts was far more important than perfection.
It was one of the first and most enduring lessons she had learned as Lydia’s mother. Perfection wasn’t always what it was cracked up to be anyway.
“Thank you, darling,” she said with a grateful smile. “I don’t know what I would do without your help.”
Lydia grinned, her cheeks rosy in the moonlight and the reflection from the nearby streetlight.
“I can help more.”
Lydia headed off to “shovel” another section of sidewalk while Holly continued working on the driveway.
She was making slow progress when she saw a black truck she didn’t recognize pull up.
When the passenger door opened, Audrey hopped out, followed by Ryan coming around from the driver’s side.
Her heart gave a silly little kick hat made her want to roll her eyes. She hadn’t seen him in a few days. Somehow she had forgotten how gorgeous he was, all hard muscles and lean angles.
“Need a hand?” Audrey asked.
About a dozen of them, as long as they were all pushing snow shovels.
“You don’t have to do that. We’re almost done and I’m sure you have snow of your own to shovel. Thank you, though.”
“We don’t mind,” Ryan said. “Do we, Audrey?”
“Not me,” she answered. “I love shoveling snow.”
“Do you have another shovel?” Ryan asked.
Holly knew she should argue with them. She was a strong, independent woman who could shovel her own snow.
But one of the other important lessons she had learned from her time as Lydia’s mother was to accept help when it was offered. Sometimes it required her to swallow her pride, yes. That was a small price to pay for all the benefits, both to herself and to the person offering their help.
“I do, actually. Right inside the garage door, I have a few more shovels.”
Ryan headed in that direction while Audrey went to praise Lydia’s efforts, which made her daughter glow with pleasure.
A moment later, he came out carrying two more snow shovels. He handed one to Audrey then went to work alongside Lydia with the heavier one.
