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Ashlyn’s cheeks darken. “He’s a very persuasive man.”
I grunt. I don’t want to hear about how Rowan persuaded Ashlyn, a woman I’m beginning to think of as my little sister. “No details, please.”
“I wasn’t going to give you any.” She wiggles her eyebrows.
Back to the matter at hand. “Let me get this straight. For some reason, you believe the money someone—”
“Not someone,” she interrupts to say. “The Black Hat Bandit.”
“I stand corrected. You believe the money the Black Hat Bandit robbed in Nebraska in the middle of the previous century is actually here in Winter Falls?”
“We followed the clues and it lead us here.” Ashlyn gestures toward the stone.
“I think I’m going to need some whisky in my hot chocolate,” I grumble.
Ellery narrows her eyes on Ashlyn. “I forbid you to dig around the area. Do you understand?” Ashlyn nods. “I need verbal confirmation.”
“I promise not to go digging around,” Ashlyn mumbles.
Ellery holds out her pinky. “Sister pinky swear.”
Ashlyn stomps her foot and curls her bottom lip in a pout. “Do I have to?”
“Do you want me to tell Rowan about the time you followed him into the locker room—”
Ashlyn covers Ellery’s mouth with her hands. “Sister pinky swear! Sister pinky swear!” They link pinkies. “I swear I won’t go digging.”
They drop hands and Ashlyn tramps off. “I’m getting a drink!”
“It’s ten o’clock in the morning,” Ellery hollers after her.
“It’s five o’clock somewhere,” Ashlyn shouts with a wave.
Ellery frowns down at the mess of holiday lights Ashlyn left laying in the snow. “Great. Now I need to find someone else to finish the decorating.”
Is she serious? “Hello! Am I invisible? I’ll do it.”
Her nose scrunches up and she looks adorable. I hope our daughter resembles her. “I can’t pay you much.”
I cradle her face in my hands. “You’re not paying me a dime. We’re family. When you need help, you ask, and I’ll be there.”
Her green eyes sparkle up at me. “With bells on?”
I kiss the tip of her nose. “Whatever you want.”
Her breath hitches and her gaze drops to my mouth. She bites her lip and I want to taste those plush lips and dive into her mouth. I won’t, though. She barely agreed to stop hiding from me. If I push us past friends to lovers too quickly, she’ll be the one running.
I drop my hands and step back. “Where do you want me to begin, boss?”
She frowns but her expression quickly switches to a smile. “I have the decorations all mapped out. Let me get you the instructions.”
“Of course, you do,” I mutter as I follow her.
I don’t care if I spend the rest of the day freezing my ass off while decorating the bed and breakfast to Ellery’s very specific instructions. Today is already a win. Ellery invited me to the next ultrasound without too much prodding.
And I know she still wants me as much as I want her. I don’t know what I’m going to do with the information. She’s not wrong when she claims I’ll move back to Chicago sooner or later. But, unlike Ellery, I don’t believe physical distance has to mean an end to our relationship.
