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He tapped his finger against his chin. “Hmm.” After a few seconds he shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“You’re looking sharp,” Annie said. “Get it? Sharp. Pencil.” Annie jabbed him playfully in the side.
Seemingly against his will, the corners of Declan’s mouth began to twitch with laughter. He settled back against his seat and chuckled. All of a sudden, his face resembled sunshine and blue skies.
Annie pointed at him. “See, I was able to make you laugh. Mission accomplished.”
Declan chuckled and shook his head at her. “That joke was so bad, it was good.”
Annie giggled. “Ouch! Well, at least you found it amusing.”
Declan reached out and placed his hand over hers. “Thanks, Annie, for being such a peach. I really meant it when I said you were fantastic out there in the forest. You showed a lot of heart and pluck and grit. And I know you were scared. But it didn’t stop you from fighting for survival and giving it your best. That’s what separates the ordinary from the extraordinary.” He squeezed her hand. “For what it’s worth, I think you’re one in a million.”
Annie felt tears pricking her eyes. She blinked them away. Her chest swelled with pride. “That’s awfully kind of you to say, Declan.”
“I’m not being kind. Just truthful. The town of Love is fortunate to have you as its newest citizen.” He was looking at her with such sincerity and goodness that, for a moment, she almost thought she heard a chorus of violins playing. She let out an unintentional sigh, earning herself a questioning look from Declan.
“I’m going to tell you something that I haven’t told a single other confidant. A secret.” She repositioned herself and edged closer, so that her shoulder was now brushing against his arm.
Declan raised his eyebrow. “What’s the secret?”
“You asked me why I was coming to Love.” She felt her smile widening into a huge grin. “I only told you half the story.” Annie turned toward the back of the plane to make certain the sheriff was still sleeping. After hearing the light buzz of his snoring, Annie turned back to Declan. “I not only intend to find my other half here in Alaska and serve as town librarian but I also plan to find my long-lost family in Love.”
Declan’s brows knit together. “Your long-lost family, huh? What is this, some genealogy investigation?” He chuckled lightly. “Are you going to be taking DNA samples?”
She wrinkled her brow. Declan seemed to think she was kidding. “Nothing that scientific, I’m afraid. At least, not right away. After my grandmother passed away last year, I began to read her journals. She was born and raised in Love. I grew up hearing heartwarming tales about life in your quaint little fishing village.” Another sigh slipped past her lips. “She made Love sound like something out of a fairy tale. When she left Alaska for Maine all those years ago, she was pregnant with my mother. Gram never revealed the identity of the father, so my mother, bless her heart, never knew who he was.”
“That’s a shame,” Declan said. “Everyone has a right to know who they are.” There was something radiating from Declan’s voice that made her believe he knew where she was coming from. He empathized with her situation. Relief washed over her. She had made the right decision by confiding in him.
“Exactly!” Annie said, her voice rising with excitement. “Gram’s diary pretty much tells the tale of the man she was in love with. A good-looking charmer she grew up with. She worshipped the very ground he walked on. And my goal is to meet this man and prove that he’s my grandfather. After all, I really don’t have any other family connections.”
Declan’s mouth twisted. “Annie, I understand your motivations, but don’t you think it might be a bit more complicated than some scribblings in a journal? That’s not really proof of anything.”
“But she left me plenty of bread crumbs. And the names of her best girlfriends and the boys who were in their circle. She left enough clues for me to figure it out.” Annie leaned in so that she could speak softly in his ear. She didn’t want to run the risk of Boone overhearing her in case he wasn’t fully asleep. Getting up close and personal with Declan wasn’t half-bad, she realized. He smelled of pine trees and the great outdoors. All of a sudden, she was having trouble concentrating. She had lost her train of thought.
Declan regarded her, a look of puzzlement etched on his face. “It sounds a bit tricky.”
“I promise you, it’s not complicated at all. Every word she wrote about him shimmers with meaning.”
“Does her journal say why she left town? Was it because she was pregnant?” Declan asked. His brows were knitted together.
Annie shook her head. It was something she’d always wondered about, especially since Gram had avoided the topic. “No, it doesn’t. Matter of fact, the journal ends rather abruptly. Right around the time she left Alaska for Maine.”
“Do you think perhaps she didn’t want anyone to know? It sounds like she had ample time to tell you if she’d wanted to share that information.”
“Gram was always ashamed of being a single mother who had never been married. That’s why she never talked about it!” she said in a defensive tone. “And I won’t rest until I resolve this once and for all. Since you’re a hometown boy, I was wondering if you could help me in my quest.”
Declan’s eyes widened. “Am I right in assuming that no one in Love knows that your grandmother was born and bred there?”
Annie bit her lip and nodded. “It may seem deceptive, but I really just want to do a little digging before I announce the connection. I could use your assistance.”
Declan clenched his jaw. He was clearly mulling over her proposition. Her heart sank. He seemed torn. Finally he answered. “I promise to help you, Annie, but secrets have a way of coming back to bite you,” Declan said, a concerned look gracing his handsome face.
“Gram and my mother, God rest their souls, deserve to be acknowledged rather than swept under the rug. If I have to bite my tongue about Gram until I figure it out, then so be it.”
She hadn’t meant to get on a soapbox, but the fact that two generations of her family had raised children out of wedlock didn’t sit well with her. The blame couldn’t be heaped solely on them. Part of digging up Gram’s past in Love meant making her grandfather accountable for not being in her mother’s life and for evading responsibility.
She wasn’t going to share that with Declan just yet. She’d already given him enough food for thought.
