After the customer left, Graced filled Dan in on her dinner plans with Sean and Suki and asked if she could borrow the beach house key to start dinner before they arrived.
He opened the register drawer, pulled out a spare key, and handed it over. “Keep it.”
Grace stared at the brass key resting in her palm. “Are you sure?”
His grin came easily. “You may not be blood-related, but you’re still family. Feel free to use the cottage anytime you want.”
The quiet sincerity in his words caught her off guard, leaving her throat unexpectedly tight. Before she could overthink it, she leaned across the counter and pressed a kiss to his cheek.
He blinked in surprise. “What was that for?”
“For considering me part of your family. It’s very sweet of you.”
A flush crept across his weathered face, and he waved a dismissive hand. “Well, it’s true. You’re the niece I never had.”
The affection in his words tugged at her heart. The Malones had welcomed her back with such easy acceptance that, after only a few weeks, being with them already felt like coming home.
The thought nudged another question to the surface. “Can I ask you something, Dan? It’s personal, so you can tell me it’s none of my business if you want.”
He folded his arms across his chest and leaned back against the shelves behind the counter. “Okay, shoot.”
Grace hesitated only a moment. “You lost your wife at such a young age. I know it must have been hard in the beginning, but didn’t you ever think of getting married again?”
His expression softened at once. A fond smile touched his mouth, the kind that came from memory rather than the present. “I only had two wonderful years with Annie. You know, we eloped after knowing each other for only a few weeks.”
She smiled and nodded. She’d heard pieces of their story before.
“And you’re right, it was very tough at first. I thought we’d grow old together, but fate threw us a nasty curveball. Thankfully, I had family and friends who made sure I didn’t bury myself right along with her. I was still in my late twenties then. Before she died, Annie made me promise that someday I’d date again.”
Leaning against the counter, she studied him. “And did you?”
He shrugged and absently adjusted a display of fishing lures hanging beside the register. “Here and there, starting a few years after I lost her. I just never found anyone special. Why do you ask?”
She glanced down at the key still curled in her fingers. Sean hovered at the edge of her thoughts, impossible to ignore. Admitting why this suddenly mattered so much felt far too revealing.
“I don’t know. Just curious, I guess.” The words sounded thin even to her own ears, but there was no taking them back now.
Drawing a breath, she asked what she’d really wanted to know. “When you first met Annie, when did you know she was the one? And how?”
Dan’s whole face brightened. “Now that’s easy. The moment I saw her face the day we met, I knew. Not sure how I knew, but it was almost like my guardian angel was sitting on my shoulder saying, ‘That’s your future wife, in case you were wondering.’”
Grace giggled, though his response gave her hope. “Really?”
“Really.”
He studied her for a long moment, his eyes sharpening with amusement. “Now, who’s caught those pretty hazel eyes of yours, hmm?”
Her answer came too fast. “Nobody.”
When Dan raised his eyebrows, Grace’s cheeks flamed, betraying her. “That obvious, huh?”
“It wouldn’t happen to be my nephew by chance?”
She didn’t need to ask which one. “At first, I thought it was just my teenage crush coming back…”
“But you’re no longer a teenager,” he said.
“Exactly.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, suddenly self-conscious. “Please don’t say anything to Sean… or Aunt Bonnie, for that matter. I’m not sure what’s going on between us yet. We’ve had a good time this past week, but it’s not like we’re dating.”
