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Posy shook her head. “It’s Christmas Day—it’s the wrong time to talk about this.”
“Does ‘this’ have anything to do with Luke?”
“Not really. Well, sort of, I suppose—” Posy paced to the window. “It’s pretty out there today.”
“Do you love him?”
“I don’t know. Maybe. Probably.” She swallowed. “He’s asked me to climb Denali with him next summer.”
Suzanne felt her heart pound a little harder. It was a reflex reaction. She ignored it. “That sounds like a wonderful adventure. I’ve never climbed it, but Stewart has. You should talk to him.”
Posy turned, cautious. “It wouldn’t upset you if I went?”
It would scare her senseless, but she’d control it.
Hiding her response from her daughter, Suzanne walked across to her. “Is this what you wanted to talk to me about? You’ve been worried about telling me? How long have you been thinking about it?”
“Awhile. I didn’t know how to raise it. I didn’t want to worry you. And you need my help here, and summer is a crazily busy time and—” she spread her hands “—well, you’ve always assumed I was going to take over the café one day, and—”
“And you don’t want that.”
There was a long pause.
“I don’t think I do.” Posy looked so miserable it made Suzanne’s heart hurt.
“You’ve obviously felt this way for a while. Why didn’t you say something sooner?”
“Because you need me here.”
“Oh, honey.” Suzanne pulled her in for a hug. “Do I love having you here? Of course. You’re my daughter and you also happen to be great company. But if you weren’t here, I’d find someone else to do the work. As it happens, Vicky wants to increase her hours, so that’s perfect timing.”
Posy sniffed. “She does?”
“Yes. And although this might come as a surprise to you, Stewart and I are capable of feeding Martha. We’ll even water Eric, although I can’t promise to talk to him the way you do.”
Posy gave a choked laugh. “I don’t want to make you unhappy. I never want that.”
“What I want is to see you happy and doing something you love. If there are things you want to do, you should do them.” Suzanne realized she should have said this long before. “Climb Denali. Travel with Luke. Take risks. Have adventures. Look forward and leave regrets behind. I don’t ever want you to wonder if you should have done something, or could have done something. Go and do it. Live a full life.”
“I’ve never gone far from home before. I’ve never left you.” There were tears on Posy’s cheeks and Suzanne brushed them away.
“Home will always be here. We’ll be right here whenever you want to come back. And the world is a small place now. We can talk on the phone, and Skype, and who knows—maybe it’s time Stewart and I became more adventurous in our traveling. We should take a few risks of our own. We can all meet up somewhere.” As she said it, she realized that it sounded good.
She and Stewart needed to look forward, too.
Posy kissed her on the cheek. “You’re amazing—do you know that?”
“She is amazing.” Stewart walked into the kitchen. “I hate to interrupt your heart-to-heart, but Ruby and Melly are desperate to ride on the sleigh if you’re ready. Beth has dressed them in so many layers I doubt they’ll be able to bend in the middle.”
“That sounds like my sister. No doubt they are also equipped with avalanche transceivers.” Posy blew her nose and went to fetch her coat. “Girls? Your carriage awaits.”
There was a flurry of activity—squeals, giggling, chatter, Bonnie barking.
One minute the kitchen was crowded with people and the next moment they’d gone in a flurry of cold air and laughter.
Beth and Hannah were the last to leave and Suzanne heard the two of them talking.
“Where did you find Bugsy?”
