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“You think so?”

“Definitely. She had been after me for years to convert the fireplace to gas. She hated having to haul wood in and light a fire and she said she was always cold in here.”

Stanley and Rose Kenner had shared a deep, abiding love. They had been devoted to each other, always thinking of the other’s happiness before their own.

The men in his family loved fiercely, completely, sometimes at great cost. His father had taken a bullet, trying to protect his wife.

While Wes had been too cowardly to stay and fight for the woman he loved and had broken her heart instead.

“What about you?” Stanley asked, breaking into his thoughts.

“About me?” Wes blinked back to the conversation.

“What happens now? I assume you’ll be heading back to Portland right after the holidays.”

“That’s the plan.”

The words felt hollow even as he spoke them. He didn’t tell his grandfather about the phone call he’d had that morning. His lieutenant had ostensibly called to check on Wes’s health and that of Kodi. In the course of the phone call, he had pushed again, urging Wes to consider the upcoming detective’s exam.

Wes knew he should be eager to take the next step in his career. Instead, he felt only a strange emptiness.

Kodi’s injury complicated everything. Over the weeks he had spent in Shelter Springs, Wes had come to the grim realization that the dog would likely never chase suspects again. The damage was too severe for full recovery.

Maybe there would be other roles for a well-trained dog like Kodi. Therapy work or community outreach, maybe. But their days as a tight, cohesive K9 team were likely over. “I’ll wait until after Christmas, then I probably do have to go,” he answered. “Kodi has a follow-up appointment with his vet coming up and I have other things to take care of back in Portland.”

Stanley studied him with those sharp blue eyes that saw too much. “Just like that? You’re going to walk away again?”

Guilt twisted in Wes’s stomach. “You knew this was temporary. I was always planning to go back.”

“Doesn’t have to be that way.” His grandfather’s voice carried a gentle challenge. “With your experience, you could have your pick of jobs here. Haven Point needs a new police chief. You would be excellent. Any of the local cop agencies would love to have someone with your background and experience on board.”

The possibilities were undeniably enticing. Working here, being part of this community, held more appeal than he wanted to admit.

And there was Hannah. Whenever he thought of leaving her again he felt as if everything inside him was unraveling.

“It’s not that simple, Pop,” he protested. “I can’t just abandon a career I’ve built over more than a decade.”

“You wouldn’t be abandoning anything. You would be walking toward something better. That’s different.”

Stanley gave him a steady look. “Being part of a community. Coming home. Tell me that doesn’t appeal to you more than going back to Portland.”

Wes couldn’t lie to this man he loved and respected. Instead, he said nothing.

Stanley settled into one of the few pieces of furniture left in the house, a comfortable leather armchair Wes had come to enjoy in the evenings.

“I miss your grandmother every single minute of every single day. But I have not one single regret. Do you know why?”

He shook his head.

“Because I know I spent every day we had together trying to make her happy. Trying to show her how much she meant to me.”

While his grandfather had spent nearly sixty years cherishing the woman he loved, Wes had done nothing but hurt Hannah. Why would she ever consider giving him another chance?

Not that he wanted one. Did he?

“I should get you back to the Inn,” he said, his voice rougher than intended.

Later, after dropping Stanley off at the Shelter Inn, Wes couldn’t stop thinking about his grandfather’s words. They echoed in his mind as he sat in the same armchair by the fire, Kodi resting peacefully on the floor.