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The woman grasped her by the hand. “I knew your grandmother almost as well as I knew myself. My name is Cilla. And Alice was my sister.”
Sister? Gram had never mentioned a sister! Annie felt as if she’d fallen down the rabbit hole and entered a whole new world.
Zachariah shook his head. “Your grandmother was my sweetie. I made the fool mistake of breaking up with Alice. I was young and foolish, and I resisted the idea of settling down,” Zachariah said. “When you’re young and immature, sometimes you think sowing your wild oats is of vital importance.” He let out a ragged sigh. “For a time there, Alice kept running after me, trying to convince me to take her back.”
Cilla made a tutting sound. “Alice was crazy about Zachariah, but she’d also had crushes on several other young men in our circle in the past. Being her older sister, I felt it was my duty to rein her in, since back then it was real easy to have your reputation tarnished. In an effort to dissuade her from making a fool of herself over Zachariah, I said some harsh things to her that I feel incredibly guilty about.” Cilla bowed her head. “In my heart, I was trying to protect Alice, but she didn’t see it that way. When she left Alaska, Alice made it pretty clear she wanted nothing to do with any of us.”
“And you never heard from her again?” Annie asked. As loving as Gram had always been, she couldn’t imagine that a rift could have kept her from her family for so many years.
; Cilla dabbed tears away from her eyes. “There were a few postcards and letters over the years. And a few baby pictures of your mother. But we were led to believe she had gotten married to someone in New Hampshire. You have to remember, Annie, that having a child out of wedlock during that time would have been considered quite scandalous. She kept that secret all those years. And kept away from Love in the process.”
“I give you my word, Annie,” Zachariah said in a raspy voice. “I never knew Alice was pregnant when she left Alaska. She led me to believe that she was leaving to marry a pen pal she had been corresponding with. I was sad about it, but considering the way I had treated her, I had no right to stop her.”
Eli walked up and grabbed Cilla’s hand. “In the end, Zachariah never did marry. He’s been an eternal bachelor all of these years.”
Annie looked over at Zachariah. “Would you have married Gram if she had stayed here?”
“I’d like to say yes to that question, but my whole life, I’ve had trouble wrapping my head around the idea of settling down. Who’s to say what might have happened?” he said, his eyes blinking like an owl’s.
“Do you think you have room in your life for a granddaughter?” she asked.
Zachariah’s eyes filled with tears. “Oh, Annie. You have no idea how much room is in this old heart of mine.”
Annie reached out and hugged Zachariah as the townsfolk broke into applause. Tears were streaming down her face, and she whispered, “Thank you for making my dream come true, Zachariah. I’ve always wanted a grandpa.”
“Please call me Grampy. It would mean the world to me.”
“Okay, Grampy,” Annie said, nestling herself against his chest. Her heart swelled with joy at the notion that she did have a family here in Love. Not only a grandfather, but Aunt Cilla and Uncle Eli. And, she hoped, a cousin or two.
As the meeting was adjourned due to special circumstances, Annie found herself being led to the main hall by Declan. He pulled her behind a tall white column and pressed a dizzying kiss against her lips.
“I’m not sure if I made it clear in there, but I love you, Annie,” Declan said. “I’m crazy about you.”
Annie let out a sigh. “I love you, too, Declan. Thank you for showing up tonight and laying it all on the table. I needed that huge push off the ledge.” She bowed her head. “I think I also needed to know that you were on my side.” Her eyes were moist with tears. “And you showed me that quite convincingly.”
“I’ll always be on your side.” He stroked her cheek with his thumb. “I’m sorry about last night. I don’t need to protect the Prescotts. From now on, you’re my main priority, Annie. Without you, my life isn’t half as interesting. You bring everything into sharp focus. Suddenly I can see my future, and it’s not this big old blank slate. It’s in vivid color, all reds and purples with big swirls and curlicues.”
“Loving you has made me stronger,” Annie said. “You’ve helped me live out my motto of living courageously, Declan. And you’ve helped me find my roots. And not just a grandfather. I have an aunt. And Eli is my uncle. And there are probably cousins, too,” she gushed.
“Settle down, Annie. There will be plenty of time to figure all that out,” Declan said with a grin. “I have a present for you.” He reached down behind the column and pulled out a box.
“Open it,” Declan instructed. “I ordered it right after our adventure in Chugach National Forest. I’ve been waiting for the right moment to spring it on you.”
“What’s inside?” Annie asked as she eyed the prettily wrapped package.
Declan resembled the cat who had swallowed the cream. “You have to open it to find out,” he teased.
With the eagerness of a child on her birthday, Annie began to rip open the package. Within seconds, gift wrap and ribbons were everywhere. Annie let out a squeal as she gazed upon her present. “It’s a copy of Under a Dark Moon, Leslie Lemon’s first book. There are only a few hundred copies of this in existence.” She pressed it against her chest and heaved a tremendous sigh. Tears slid down her face. “How on earth did you do this? It must have cost a small fortune.”
“Hey! What’s with the waterworks? I have a pilot friend who has connections with the European publisher of that gem. He owed me a favor. When I saw how brave you were when we crash-landed, I knew that I wanted to do something special for you.” Declan appeared to be bursting with satisfaction at being able to make her happy. His over-the-top grin was contagious.
Annie smiled. “Other than Gram, I’ve never had anyone in my life care enough about me to do something like this. I’ve never had anyone know me so well, so completely as to understand my heart’s desires.”
Declan dipped his head and placed a firm kiss on her lips. He cupped her face between his palms and murmured her name as the kiss ended. “Well, you’ve got me now, and I’m not going anywhere, sweetheart. You’re stuck with me.”
Annie couldn’t stop looking at the book. “It’s amazing, Declan. I love it.”
