Page 93 of Peaks and Promises

“Well, Doris Tilburn said she saw your lovely wife at the Copper Kettle, so there’s that. But Suzanne Montgomery had it on good authority that the new waitress—that’s you, I assume—isn’t your wife at all. And perhaps the whole story of Reese returning with a family wasn’t true. Then, Dottie McNess told me she heard you do have a wife, but things are, shall we say, a bit rocky. She was quite convinced that you were only here to get her set up with a place to live and then you’d be off and who knows when we’d see you again.”

Reese was about to say something, but Louise took a breath and kept talking.

“That was my concern. If this,” she said, pointing between the two of us, “wasn’t going to last, and you were planning to jet off again once you got her settled, what a tragedy! You understand, don’t you dear? He’s a bit of a flight risk. So I thought to myself, Louise, if we can find him a good match—if he needs one, that is—then that will give him a reason to stay.”

“I’m…I don’t…” Reese fumbled his words. “No. Summer’s my wife, and everything is fine.”

With a smile, she tilted her head and sighed heavily. “That’s so good to hear. What a relief. Summer, you’ll have to excuse an old lady for wanting what’s best for her nephew. Aren’t you just lovely? I’m sure you two are very happy together.”

I shifted toward Reese, hoping he’d sell it by putting an arm around me, or at least clasping my hand.

He didn’t.

Louise looked back and forth between us. I had no idea if it mattered whether or not Reese’s aunt was convinced that we were a couple. But if it did, we were failing miserably.

Taking matters into my own hands—literally—I slipped my hand in his. Reflexively, his closed around mine. But his posture was stiff, and he didn’t make any effort to draw me closer to him.

Thankfully, Nate—approaching with Marlene—caught my eye. He had an ice cream cone and a big smile.

“Sorry for ruining his dinner,” Marlene said. “Sometimes that’s what grandmas do. Hi, Louise. I see you’ve met my daughter-in-law, Summer.”

“I did, and I wish you would have told me.”

“Told you what?”

Louise adjusted her sunglasses. “All the details. But no matter. We’ll catch up later. Reese, so good to have you home. And Summer, lovely to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you, too,” I said.

“Oh, look! There’s Dottie.” Louise waved and scurried away, calling her name.

Reese dropped my hand the moment she turned her back on us.

Ignoring the pointless dip of disappointment, I smiled at my son. “Hey, buddy. How was your day?”

“Good.” He licked around the edge of the cone. “Grandma bought me ice cream.”

My chest tightened. He’d called her Grandma.

A memory flashed through my mind. Meeting my mother at a truck stop diner so she could see Nate. She’d snapped at him, scolding him for calling her Grandma and insisting he call her by her first name. Nate had been upset, shutting down and refusing to talk much after that.

Marlene must have told him to call her Grandma, at least in public. And although it wasn’t real—she wasn’t his grandma—it still made my heart ache.

“Did you say thank you?” I asked.

“He did,” Marlene said. “He has very good manners.”

“Thanks again for taking him for the day,” I said.

Marlene smiled. “He’s no trouble at all. And if you notice some scrapes, don’t be alarmed. Zachary stopped by and took it upon himself to teach him how to climb trees.”

Nate lifted his arm and looked at his elbow. He had a few red scratches, but nothing that looked serious. “I’m fine. Didn’t even hurt.”

“Wow, tree climbing and ice cream,” I said. “You’ve had a big day.”

“You ready, chief?” Reese asked. “We should get going.”

“Can I finish this in the car?” He lifted his cone.