#1 New York Times bestselling author Sherryl Woods draws readers back into the world of strong friendships and heartfelt emotions in Serenity, South Carolina

Determined to build a new life for her family after her divorce, Adelia Hernandez has bought a home in the historic Swan Point neighborhood of Serenity. Promoted to manager of Main Street’s most fashionable boutique, she feels revitalized and ready for a fresh start as a single mom. But barely into this new independent phase, she crosses paths with the sexiest man to hit Serenity in years.

Gabe Franklin, back in town to make amends for past mistakes, has no intention of settling down, but Adelia’s proving irresistible. Cheered on by their friends, “the Sweet Magnolias,” Gabe is bringing long-absent passion and laughter into Adelia’s life. To his surprise—and hers—sometimes a rolling stone is just what it takes to build the rock-solid foundation of a family.

Praise for the novels of Sherryl Woods

“Woods is a master heartstring puller.”

—Publishers Weekly on Seaview Inn

“Woods’s readers will eagerly anticipate her trademark small-town setting, loyal friendships, and honorable mentors as they meet new characters and reconnect with familiar ones in this heartwarming tale.”

—Booklist on Home in Carolina

“Once again, Woods, with such authenticity, weaves a tale of true love and the challenges that can knock up against that love.”

—RT Book Reviews on Beach Lane

“In this sweet, sometimes funny and often touching story, the characters are beautifully depicted, and readers…will…want to wish themselves away to Seaview Key.”

—RT Book Reviews on Seaview Inn

“Woods…is noted for appealing character-driven stories that are often infused with the flavor and fragrance of the South.”

—Library Journal

“A reunion story punctuated by family drama, Woods’s first novel in her new Ocean Breeze series is touching, tense and tantalizing.”

—RT Book Reviews on Sand Castle Bay

“A whimsical, sweet scenario…the digressions have their own charm, and Woods never fails to come back to the romantic point.”

—Publishers Weekly on Sweet Tea at Sunrise

“Skillfully introducing readers to The Devaneys, Sherryl Woods scores another winner.”

—RT Book Reviews on Sean’s Reckoning

Swan Point

Sherryl Woods

www.mirabooks.co.uk

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Praise

Title Page

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

CHAPTER NINETEEN

CHAPTER TWENTY

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

EXTRACT

Copyright

CHAPTER ONE

Adelia watched with her heart in her throat as the moving van pulled away from the crumbling curb in Swan Point, one of the oldest and, at one time, finest neighborhoods in Serenity, South Carolina. With moss-draped oaks in perfectly maintained yards backing up to a small, man-made lake, which was home to several swans, the houses had been large and stately by early standards.

Now, though, most of the homes, like this one, were showing signs of age. She found something fitting about the prospect of filling this historic old house with laughter and giving it a new lease on life. It would be as if the house and her family were moving into the future together.

Letting go of the old life, however, was proving more difficult than she’d anticipated. Drawing in a deep breath, she turned to deal with the accusing looks of her four children, who weren’t nearly as convinced as she was that they were about to have an exciting fresh start.

Her youngest, Tomas, named for his grandfather on her ex-husband’s side of the family, turned to her with tears streaming down his cheeks. “Mommy, I don’t like it here. I want to go home. This house is old. It smells funny. And there’s no pool.”

She knelt down in front of the eight-year-old and gathered him close, gathered all of them close, even her oldest, Selena.

It was Selena who understood better than any of them why this move had been necessary. While they all knew that Adelia and their father had divorced, Selena had seen Ernesto more than once with one of his mistresses. In a move that defied logic or compassion, he’d even had the audacity to introduce the most recent woman to Selena while he and Adelia were still making a pretense at least of trying to keep their marriage intact. His action had devastated Selena and it had been the final straw for Adelia. She’d seen at last that tolerating such disrespect was the wrong example to set for her three girls and even for her son.

“I know you’d rather be in our old house,” she comforted them with a hitch in her voice. “But it’s just not possible. This is home now. I really think you’re going to love it once we get settled in.”

She ruffled Tomas’s hair. “And don’t worry about the funny smell. It’s just been shut up for a few months. It’ll smell fine once we air it out and put fresh paint on the walls.” She injected a deliberately cheerful note into her voice. “We can all sit down and decide how we want to fix it up. Then you can go with me to the hardware store to pick out the paint colors for your rooms.”

The girls expressed enthusiasm for the idea, but Tomas remained visibly skeptical.

“What about the pool?” he asked sullenly.

“We can use the town pool,” Selena said staunchly, even though there were tears in her eyes, too. “It’s even bigger than the one at home, and our friends will be there. And since we’re living so close to downtown now, we can walk to the bakery after school for cupcakes, then stop in and see Mom at work. Or go across the green to Wharton’s for ice cream.”

Natalia sniffed, but Adelia saw a spark of interest in her eyes.

“I like ice cream,” eleven-year-old Natalia whispered, then nudged Tomas. “You do, too.”

“Me, too,” Juanita chimed in. Until the divorce Adelia’s nine-year-old had been boundlessly enthusiastic about everything, but this was the first sign in weeks that her high spirits were returning.

Tomas continued to look unconvinced. “Will Abuela be able to find us here?” he asked doubtfully.

“Of course,” Adelia assured him. Tomas adored her mother, who’d been babysitting him practically from infancy because of all the school committees on which Adelia had found herself and, more recently, because she was working at a boutique on Main Street. “She helped me to find this house.”

Amazingly, for once, her mother had kept her lectures on divorce to herself and professed to see all the positives in the new life Adelia was fashioning for her children. She’d told stories about the days when the elite in town had lived in Swan Point. There had been lavish parties in this very house, she’d reported to Adelia. She’d stuck to focusing on the possibilities in the house and the quiet, tree-shaded neighborhood, not the negatives.

Her mother’s support had actually given Adelia the courage to move forward. To her surprise, Adelia had recognized that even in her early forties, she still craved her mother’s approval. It was one of the many reasons she’d waited so long to end her travesty of a marriage.

“Can we still go to Abuela’s house for cookies?” her son pressed.

“Absolutely,” Adelia said. “You can go every day after school if you like, the same as always.”

Though he was starting to look relieved, a sudden frown crossed his face. “What about Papa? Is he going to live here, too? He won’t like it, I’ll bet. He likes our real house, same as me.”

Selena whirled on him. “You know perfectly well he doesn’t live with us anymore. He’s not coming here. Not ever! He’s going to live in our old house with somebody else.”

Adelia winced at the disdain and hurt in her oldest’s voice. Ever since she’d realized that her father had been openly cheating on Adelia, Selena had claimed she wanted no part of him. Her attitude had hardened even more when she’d overheard Ernesto describing her as her mother’s child in a tone that made clear he wasn’t complimenting either one of them.

Adelia had even spoken to a psychologist about this rift between father and daughter, but the woman had assured her that it wasn’t unusual for an impressionable teenager—Selena had just turned thirteen—to react so strongly to a divorce, especially when Ernesto’s cheating had been so public and when he’d shown no remorse at all once he’d been caught. In fact, he’d remained defiant to the bitter end, so much so that even the judge had lost patience with him.

At Selena’s angry words, Tomas’s eyes once again filled with tears.

“Enough,” Adelia warned her daughter. To Tomas and the younger girls, she said, “You’ll still be able to see your father whenever you want to.” Like Tomas, Natalia and Juanita looked relieved, though they carefully avoided looking at their big sister, clearly fearing her disapproval. That was yet another rift she’d have to work on healing, Adelia concluded with a sigh. Ernesto certainly wouldn’t make any effort to do it.

As hurt as she’d been and as much as she’d wanted to banish Ernesto from her life forever, she’d accepted that her kids deserved to have a relationship with their dad. It would be selfish of her to deny them that.

Besides, she’d had enough explaining to do to the rest of her rigidly Catholic family when she’d opted for divorce. Then, to top it off, she’d insisted on moving out of the huge house on the outskirts of town that Ernesto had apparently thought was reasonable compensation for his infidelity. Her sisters had been appalled by all of it—the scandal of Ernesto’s cheating, the divorce and the move. Keeping her children away from their father—however distasteful his behavior—would have caused even more of an uproar.

Not that Adelia cared what any of them thought at this point. She’d made the only decision she could make. Her only goal now was to make this transition as easy for the children as possible. She’d do it with as much cheerfulness as she could possibly muster. She might not even have to fake it, since on some level she was actually eager for this fresh start.

For now, though, she forced a smile and looked each of them in the eye. “I have an idea,” she announced, hoping to turn this difficult day around.

“What?” Tomas asked suspiciously.

“I think we all deserve a treat after such a long day.”

“Pizza?” Natalia asked hopefully.

Adelia laughed. Natalia would eat pizza three times a day if she were allowed to.

“Yes, pizza,” she confirmed.

“Not here, though,” Tomas pleaded, wrinkling his nose in distaste.

“No, not here. The dishes aren’t unpacked,” she said. “We’ll go to Rosalina’s. I’ll call your uncle Elliott and see if he and Aunt Karen would like to join us with Daisy, Mack and the baby.”

This last was offered especially for Selena, who adored her uncle and who’d become especially close to his adopted daughter, Daisy. Adelia might not intend to keep Ernesto away from his children, but Elliott was the male role model she really wanted in their lives. Her younger brother was loving, rock solid and dependable. She’d be proud to see Tomas grow up to be just like him. And she desperately hoped her girls would eventually find men like him, too.

Once the decision to divorce had been made, Elliott had overcome all his own strong objections to offer her the support she’d desperately needed. She owed Karen for bringing him—and even her mother—around. Her own sisters continued to treat her as if she’d committed a mortal sin.

The prospect of pizza at Rosalina’s with Uncle Elliott and his family wiped away the last of the tears, and Adelia took a truly relieved breath for what seemed like the first time all day. Her family was going to be all right. There might be a few bumps along the way, thanks to her determination to shed any of her own ties to Ernesto, but they would settle into this new house.

And, she concluded with new resolve, they would turn it into a real home, one filled with love and respect, something that had been in short supply with her ex-husband.

* * *

Gabe Franklin had claimed a booth in the back corner of Rosalina’s for the fourth night in a row. Back in Serenity for less than a week and living at the Serenity Inn, he’d figured this was better than the bar across town for a man who’d determined to sober up and live life on the straight and narrow. That was the whole point of coming home, after all, to prove he’d changed and deserved a second chance. Once he’d accomplished that and made peace with his past, well, he’d decide whether to move on yet again. He wasn’t sure he was the kind of man who’d ever put down roots.

Thank heaven for his cousin, Mitch Franklin, who’d offered him a job starting on Monday without a moment’s hesitation. Recently remarried, Mitch claimed he needed a partner who knew construction so he could focus on his new family. He’d taken on a second family just as he’d started developing a series of dilapidated properties on Main Street in an attempt to revitalize downtown Serenity.

Gabe had listened in astonishment to Mitch’s ambitious plans as he’d laid them out. Despite his cousin’s enthusiasm, Gabe wasn’t convinced revitalization was possible in an economy still struggling to rebound, but he was more than willing to jump in and give it a shot. Maybe there would be something cathartic about giving those old storefronts the same kind of second chance he was hoping to grab for himself.

“You’re turning into a real regular in here,” his waitress, a middle-aged woman who’d introduced herself a few nights ago as Debbie, said. “Are you new in town?”

“Not exactly,” he said, returning her smile but adding no details. “I’ll have—”

“A large diet soda and a large pepperoni pizza,” she filled in before he could complete his order.

Gabe winced. “I’m obviously in a rut.”

“That’s okay. Most of our regulars order the same thing every time,” she said. “And I pay attention. Friendly service and a good memory get me bigger tips.”

“I’ll remember that,” he said, then sat back and looked around the restaurant while waiting for his food.

Suddenly he sat up a little straighter as a dark-haired woman came in with four children. Even though she looked a little harried and a whole lot weary, she was stunning with her olive complexion and high cheekbones. She was also vaguely familiar, though he couldn’t put a name to the face.

There hadn’t been a lot of Mexican-American families in Serenity back when he’d lived here as a kid, though there had been plenty of transient farmworkers during the summer months. For a minute he cursed the way he’d blown off school way more often than he should have. Surely if he’d gone regularly, this woman would have been on his radar. If there had been declared majors in high school, his would have been girls. He’d studied them the way the academic overachievers had absorbed the information in textbooks.

Instead, he’d been kicked out midway through his junior year for one too many fights, every one of them justified to his juvenile way of thinking. He’d eventually wised up and gotten his GED. He’d even attended college for a couple of years, but that had been later, when he’d stopped hating the world for the way it had treated his troubled single mom and started putting the pieces of his life back together.

He watched now as the intriguing woman asked for several tables to be pushed together. He noted with disappointment when a man with two children came in to join them. So, he thought, she was married with six kids. An unfamiliar twinge of envy left him feeling vaguely unsettled. Since when had he been interested in having a family of any size? Still, he couldn’t seem to tear his gaze away from the picture of domestic bliss they presented. The teasing and laughter seemed to settle in his heart and make it just a little lighter.

When his waitress returned with his drink, he nodded in the woman’s direction. “Quite a family,” he commented. “I can’t imagine having six kids. They look like quite a handful.”

Debbie laughed. “Oh, they’re a handful, all right, but they’re not all Adelia’s. That’s her brother, Elliott Cruz, who just came in with two of his. He has a baby, too, but I guess she was getting a cold, so his wife stayed home with her.”

Gabe hid a grin. Thank heaven for chatty waitresses and a town known for gossiping. It hadn’t been so great when he was a boy and his promiscuous mother had been the talk of the town, but now he could appreciate it.

“Where’s her husband?”

The waitress leaned down and confided, “Sadly, not in hell where he belongs. The man cheated on her repeatedly and the whole town knew about it. She finally kicked his sorry butt to the curb. Too bad the whole town couldn’t follow suit and divorce him.” She flushed, and her expression immediately filled with guilt. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have said that, but Adelia’s a great woman and she didn’t deserve the way Ernesto Hernandez treated her.”

Gabe nodded. “Sounds like a real gem,” he said.

In fact, he sounded like a lot of the men who’d passed through his mom’s life over the years. Gabe felt a sudden surge of empathy for Adelia. And he liked the fact that his waitress was firmly in her corner. He suspected the rest of the town was, too, just the way they’d always stood up for the wronged wives when his mom had been the other woman in way too many relationships.

Funny what a few years could do to give a man a new perspective. Back then all he’d cared about was the gossip, the taunts he’d suffered at school and his mom’s tears each time the relationships inevitably ended. He’d witnessed her hope whenever a new man came into her life and then the slow realization that this time would be no different. His heart had broken almost as many times as hers.

Still, he couldn’t help thinking about all the complications that came with a woman in Adelia’s situation. He had enough on his own plate without getting mixed up in her drama. Much as he might enjoy sitting right here and staring, it would be far better to slip away right now and avoid the powerful temptation to reach out to her. Heaven knew, he had nothing to offer a woman, not yet, anyway.

“Darlin’, could you make that pizza of mine to go?” he asked his waitress.

“Sure thing,” Debbie said readily.

She brought it out within minutes. As Gabe paid the check, she grinned. “I imagine I’ll see you again tomorrow. Maybe you’ll try something different.”

“Maybe so,” he agreed, then winked. “But don’t count on it. I’m comfortable in this rut I’m in.”

She shook her head, then glanced pointedly in Adelia’s direction. “Seems to me that’s just when you need to shake things up.”

Gabe followed the direction of her gaze and found the very woman in question glancing his way. His heart, which hadn’t been engaged in much more than keeping him alive these past few years, did a fascinating little stutter step.

No way, he told himself determinedly as he headed for the door and the safety of his comfortable, if uninviting, room at the Serenity Inn. He’d never been much good at multitasking. Right now his only goal was to prove himself to Mitch and to himself. Complications were out of the question. And the beautiful Adelia Hernandez and her four kids had complication written all over them.

* * *

“Looks as if somebody has an admirer,” Elliott commented to Adelia. Though his tone was light, there was a frown on his face as he watched the stranger leaving Rosalina’s.

“Hush!” Adelia said, though she was blushing. She leaned closer to her brother. “That is not the sort of thing you should be saying in front of the kids. The ink’s barely dry on my divorce papers.”

Elliott laughed. “The kids are clear across the restaurant playing video games. You’re only flustered because you know I’m right. That guy was attracted to you, Adelia. I recognize that thunderstruck expression on a man’s face. I wore it a lot when I first met Karen. I saw it in the mirror when I shaved. It happened every time she crossed my mind.”

Adelia smiled at the memory of her little brother falling hard for a woman no one in the family had approved of at first simply because she’d divorced a deadbeat husband. Elliott had fought hard to ensure that they all came to accept Karen and her kids and love them as much as he did. After her own marital troubles, Adelia had come to admire her sister-in-law’s strength.

“You were a goner from the moment you laid eyes on her, weren’t you?” she said.

“No question about it,” he said. “I still am, and I don’t see that ever changing. I want that happily-ever-after kind of love for you.”

“Maybe someday,” she said, not really able to imagine a time when she’d be willing to risk her heart again.

Elliott nodded in the direction of the door. “So, any idea who your admirer is?”

“Stop calling him that,” she ordered, blushing again.

“Just calling it like I see it,” he teased. “And it’s nice to see some color in your cheeks.”

She gave him a mock frown. “Don’t make me sorry I called you tonight,” she scolded. “There are some aggravations I can’t avoid, but you’re not one of them.”

He grinned. “You needed me here to help you corral those kids. And don’t even try to pretend that you didn’t enjoy the way that man was looking at you. You’re not just a mom. You’re a woman. You’ve seen far too little of that sort of appreciation in recent years.”

“That may be so, but I’m not even remotely interested in dating anytime soon,” she repeated emphatically, though she knew she was wasting her breath. Her brother loved getting under her skin and he’d just found a new way to do exactly that.

“You didn’t recognize him?” he persisted, proving her point that he didn’t intend to let this drop. “You work right downtown. You’re involved in every activity in the school system. You see people all day long.”

She shook her head. “I’ve never seen him before. He must be new in town.”

“And Grace Wharton hasn’t sent out a news bulletin?” he asked, only partially in jest. Grace, who ran the soda fountain at the local drugstore, prided herself on knowing all the comings and goings in town and being the first to spread the word. “Or are you just pretending that you missed the latest edition?”

Adelia tried a stern look that on rare occasions worked with her kids. “Drop this, please. There’s been enough turmoil in my life these past months to last a lifetime. These days I’m a mom first and foremost. I need to get the kids settled in our new house and on an emotional even keel. That’s my only focus for now.”

“You’re still a vibrant, attractive woman,” Elliott reminded her, clearly undeterred by her expression or her words. “You deserve to find a man, the right man, who’ll appreciate and respect you in a way that Ernesto never did.” His expression darkened. “I still wish you’d let me teach him a lesson about mistreating my big sister.”

She almost smiled at his zealous desire to stand up for her but didn’t because she didn’t want to encourage him. “I dealt with Ernesto. Thanks to Helen Decatur-Whitney, he’ll be paying for his misdeeds with those generous support payments for the kids for years to come. Every penny is going in the bank. They’ll have enough money tucked away to attend any college they choose when the time comes.”

“I still don’t get why you refused any alimony,” Elliott told her, his frustration plain. “The man owed you, Adelia. You have a business degree, but you never used it so you could concentrate on being the perfect wife and mother. Who knows what you might have achieved by now if you’d started a career after college?”

“Being a wife and mother was the career I chose,” she told him. “I don’t regret that for a second. Now that I’m a single mom, I’ll put just as much energy into working and being a good parent. Being independent is important to me, Elliott. I need to know I’m in control of my life.”

“I’m just saying that Ernesto’s money might have made it easier,” he argued.

“Don’t forget that Helen got enough money in a lump sum to pay for the new house and to keep our heads above water for a year, longer if I’m careful. I’m making decent money at the boutique, especially since Raylene made me the manager. I want to show my girls they can grow up to take care of themselves.”

“I guess that’s an admirable goal,” he said, though his tone was doubtful.

She smiled at him. “Isn’t that what your wife did after her husband left her with a mountain of debt? Karen made a life for herself and her kids. It was a struggle, but she persevered. That’s one of the reasons you fell for her, because she was strong in the face of adversity.”

“I suppose.” He grinned. “But then she found me and now it’s my mission to take care of her and our family.”

“Funny,” she said. “Karen seems to think you have a partnership.”

Her brother winced at the reminder. “Sorry. Apparently the Cruz macho tendencies die hard.”

“As long as they die,” she told him. “But I’ll leave it to Karen to teach you that lesson.”

Elliott frowned. “How did we get off track and start talking about my marriage? We were talking about you and that man who just walked out of here after giving you a thorough once-over.”

“While the idea of any man staring at me appreciatively is a welcome change,” she conceded, “I’m not looking for a relationship now. Maybe never. How many times do I need to say that before you believe me?”

Elliott looked dismayed rather than convinced by her response. “Don’t let what Ernesto did shape the rest of your life, Adelia,” he said fiercely. “Not all men are like that.”

“You’re certainly not,” she agreed. “And for that I am eternally grateful.” She touched his cheek. “I imagine Karen feels the same way. She must count her blessings every night.”

“Most nights,” her brother corrected with a grin. “At least when she’s not exasperated with me for one thing or another, like forgetting about that whole partnership thing, for instance.”

“Yes, I can see how you might test a woman’s patience,” she told him. “As a boy you were certainly a pest.”

“Gee, thanks.”

She patted his cheek again. “Don’t fret, mi hermano. We all wind up loving you just the same. Even though this conversation is making me a little crazy, I know you mean well and I love you for caring.”

Elliott’s expression suddenly sobered. “Adelia, promise me something, okay?”

“Anything.”

“If a man comes along, you’ll leave yourself open to the possibilities. I’m not talking about the man who just left here, but any man.”

“Any man?” she echoed, amused.

“After I’ve checked him out thoroughly,” he amended.

“Now that sounds much more like the overly protective brother I know and love,” Adelia said.

“Promise,” he repeated.

Though she couldn’t imagine it would be a promise she’d have to keep, at least not anytime soon, Adelia nodded. “Promise.”

Just then the pizza and the kids arrived at the table simultaneously and, thankfully, further conversation was impossible.

Time and time again, though, she found herself glancing toward the door and thinking about the man who’d cast a lingering look in her direction. Whether it was the openly appreciative way he’d studied her or her brother’s teasing, she felt the oddest sensation stirring deep inside. It was a sensation she hadn’t anticipated and didn’t especially want, but it felt a whole lot as if she might be coming alive again.

CHAPTER TWO

If Rosalina’s had become his restaurant of choice in the evening, the bakery was the place where Gabe satisfied his sweet tooth every single morning. Not only was Sweet Things owned by his cousin’s new wife, Lynn, but he’d quickly discovered that the woman made the best cookies, pies, pastries and cupcakes he’d ever put in his mouth. If Mitch hadn’t beaten him to it, he’d have courted Lynn himself, not that he’d mentioned that to his cousin. He needed Mitch as an ally, not an enemy.

Thank goodness, though, ever since Gabe had arrived in town, Mitch had insisted on starting their mornings here over coffee and pastry warm from the oven as they planned how Gabe was going to fit into the company. His cousin filled him in on the work needed on the neighboring properties. Lynn joined them from time to time, but she was usually far too busy baking to take a break just past the crack of dawn.

At full daylight and after getting his fill of coffee and pastries, Gabe walked the length of Main Street with Mitch, trying to get a feel not only for downtown Serenity as it currently existed, but for his cousin’s vision.

The historic brick town hall at one end of the large, tree-lined green housed the city’s offices. Wharton’s, which had been in business as far back as Gabe could remember as a combination pharmacy and soda fountain, anchored one side of Main Street. A hardware store revitalized by Ronnie Sullivan anchored the other side.

Sweet Things was in that block, along with Chic, the stylish women’s boutique next door. The remaining storefronts were empty and mostly boarded up, victims of the economic downturn and of the tendency in too many small communities for business to flee to the outskirts of town and more modern strip malls. The one exception in the next block was the relatively new and apparently wildly successful country radio station with its studio window facing the green so the on-air hosts could report on Serenity’s many holiday festivals and everyday happenings.

Gabe had been able to view the recent progress with appreciation, but he was still mindful that a lot more was needed before downtown Serenity could be described as thriving.

This morning—his first official day on the job—he studied Mitch over his mug of coffee. “You really think turning this town around is possible?”

“I’m counting on it,” Mitch said. “Our town manager, Tom McDonald, believes it’s possible and is doing everything he can to lure new business to town. I want to be sure there are up-to-date properties available to rent when the prospective business owners come to look things over. I want downtown to be irresistible. I want them to see it immediately as a better bet than one of those strip malls that have started popping up along the highway outside of town.”

Gabe smiled. “Were you always this idealistic and ambitious?”

“I don’t see it as ambition. I see it as a chance to do something for a town I love, the town where I’ve built my life. I don’t want to see downtown die the way it has in so many towns.” Mitch shrugged. “Maybe that is idealistic.”

“I hate to tell you, pal, but that ship has sailed. Right now, this downtown is on life support at best.”

“I know a few people, my wife among them, who’d tell you otherwise,” Mitch retorted. “And Dana Sue Sullivan, whose restaurant lures people from all over the state, would pick a major fight with you if she heard you say that. Sullivan’s may not be right on Main Street, but her success speaks for itself.”

Gabe laughed. “Well, I’m not about to take on Dana Sue. I’ve heard too many stories about her temper. But Lynn is what they call a pie-eyed optimist. She married you, didn’t she? What does that say about her judgment?”

Mitch didn’t take offense at his teasing. He laughed with him.

“She took a chance on me, all right,” Mitch said. “I thank my lucky stars for it. After Amy died and the boys were away at college, I was a lost soul for a while.” His expression sobered. “I wish you’d come over for dinner one night, instead of existing on pizza. You know you’re welcome anytime.”

“I know that,” Gabe said. “But you’re still a newlywed. I don’t want to intrude.”

“We’re past the honeymoon stage,” Mitch said, though the appreciative glance he cast in his wife’s direction as she came out of the back to wait on a customer said otherwise. So did the touches he couldn’t resist making every time she was in close proximity. “We’ve been together almost a year now. And with Lynn’s two kids underfoot, it’s not as if we have a lot of privacy, anyway.”

“In my book a year still makes you a newlywed.”

Mitch gave him a knowing look. “And in my book, you’re just making excuses. You’re family, Gabe. You’re not an outsider. I know you didn’t feel that way as a kid and I’m as sorry as I can be about the way the rest of the family treated your mother.”

Gabe waved off the apology. “You were just a kid yourself. You had no control over what the adults did and thought. Besides, I get where they were coming from. My mom had her share of problems. Drinking was the least of it.”

Mitch winced. “I came way too close to relying on alcohol myself after I lost Amy,” he revealed quietly, startling Gabe. “I’d like to think I wouldn’t have judged your mother for that weakness.”

Gabe wondered if there was some hereditary inclination that seemed to steer Franklins toward booze. “I took a brush with it myself after Mom died,” he said. “Even though I knew firsthand where that path could lead. Now that I’ve got my feet back under me and can see what dangerous decisions I was making, I feel a lot more sympathy for her myself than I did when I was living with it. I can also see a lot more clearly that she sure as heck had an addiction to the wrong sort of men. It was a bad combination.”

“But those shouldn’t have become your problems, too,” Mitch said. “You took them on when the family should have been there to support both of you, instead of passing judgment. It wasn’t right that you got labeled a troublemaker for trying to protect your mom.”

“Water under the bridge,” Gabe insisted. “Can we stop talking about this, please? You’ve more than made up for the past by giving me this job.”

Mitch dismissed the sentiment. “I have to admit that I’m still a little surprised that you wanted to come back to Serenity. You were awfully eager to put the town and your family behind you when you took off after your mom died.”

Gabe shrugged. “Seemed to me like the best place to get a second chance would be in the same place where you blew the first one. I guess I was finally ready to face the past, instead of running from it. Maybe I can shake those ghosts that seem to go with me wherever I am.”

“A very mature outlook.”

Gabe laughed. “Yeah, well, I imagine that’s a surprise for you, too. It sure is to me. Maybe hitting forty somehow turned me into a grown-up.” He set out determinedly to change the subject once and for all. “Now, what’s on the agenda for today? You’ve given me enough time to get settled in. I’m anxious to get started and prove you didn’t make the wrong decision by taking me on. I filled you in on my experience, but you haven’t seen my work firsthand. I meant what I told you—if it doesn’t measure up, you can tell me that straight-out, okay?”

“That’s not likely,” Mitch said. “Your job history speaks for itself. I know some of those men you worked for around the state.”

“Did you speak to them? That’s why I gave you their names.”

“No need. I trust you,” Mitch claimed, giving Gabe’s sometimes shaky self-esteem a needed boost.

Just then, the door opened and Adelia Hernandez stepped into the bakery. If anything, Gabe thought she was even prettier with her long hair tousled by the wind and wearing a dress that showed off her shapely legs. That crazy pulse of his skipped a couple of beats.

Apparently the reaction wasn’t entirely one-sided. When she spotted him, her cheeks flushed and her step faltered.

Naturally Mitch noticed Adelia’s discomfort and Gabe’s fascination. His eyes narrowed.

“You two know each other?” he asked Gabe. Adelia hesitated as if she was torn between whatever she’d come in to get and getting away from Gabe as quickly as possible.

“She was at Rosalina’s when I was there last night,” Gabe replied carefully.

“And?”

“That’s it. She was there with her family. I was there by myself. Nothing more to it.”

Mitch regarded him doubtfully. “Looked like a little more than nothing just now,” he said as Adelia hurried to the counter and placed her order with Lynn.

“I’ve never even spoken to the woman,” Gabe assured him. “And if that gleam in your eyes has anything to do with matchmaking, you can forget about it. I’m here to work. Period.”

Despite his very firm disclaimer, he couldn’t seem to keep his gaze from straying to Adelia, whose hand appeared to be shaking as she accepted a container of coffee from Lynn. As soon as she’d paid, she whirled around and practically ran out the door.

“Adelia!” Lynn called after her, then glanced toward Mitch. “I don’t know what in the world is wrong with her this morning. She’s jumpy as a june bug and she ran off without her pastry.”

Gabe was instantly on his feet. He held out his hand. “I’ll take it to her.”

He saw the startled expression on Lynn’s face and heard his cousin’s chuckle as he took off. So much for any pretense that he wasn’t interested, he thought ruefully. Oh, well. He figured that had pretty much been doomed from the instant he’d laid eyes on her, anyway. It was a darn good thing he’d had a ton of practice at controlling most of his craziest impulses.

* * *

This is ridiculous, Adelia thought as she struggled to get her key to work in the lock at Chic, the boutique next door to the bakery. How could a man to whom she’d never even spoken rattle her so badly? She’d been squeezing the Styrofoam cup so tightly since leaving Lynn’s, it was a wonder there was a drop of coffee left in there. It was all her brother’s fault for planting that crazy idea in her head, for suggesting that the stranger was a potential admirer.

She’d barely set the coffee down by the cash register when the bell over the front door tinkled merrily and she realized she hadn’t locked the door behind her. More startling was the sight of the man entering.

“You!” she exclaimed.

She must have sounded alarmed, because he stopped in his tracks and held out a small pastry bag. “I come in peace,” he teased, seemingly fighting a smile. “You left this behind at the bakery. Lynn was worried, so I said I’d deliver it.”

She sucked in a deep breath and closed her eyes for an instant. “Sorry. You just caught me off guard. I usually lock the door behind me since we don’t open for another half hour. I come in early. Well, I guess that’s obvious, isn’t it? I like to get started before any customers walk in. I want to make sure the displays are neat and the cash register is set to go, that sort of thing. I’m a little obsessive about it.”

She realized she was rambling. She clamped her mouth shut. He held out the pastry bag, and when she didn’t immediately reach for it, he set it on the counter, amusement written all over his face.

“I’m Gabe Franklin,” he told her. “Mitch’s cousin.”

Adelia felt herself relaxing ever so slightly at that. Mitch was a good guy. One of the best, in fact. Any cousin of his would surely be okay, even if this man seemed to have the power to rattle her in ways no man had for years. Any rattling Ernesto had done had been to her temper.

“Mitch is great,” she said.

“That seems to be the consensus,” he responded.

She frowned at the edge she thought she heard in his voice. “You don’t agree?”

He winced. “Sorry. It’s an old habit. In the interest of full disclosure, I was the black sheep Franklin growing up. Old resentments die hard. He is a good man. I can appreciate that now.”

“I imagine it can be hard growing up in someone else’s shadow,” she said. “I know Mitch is a local. We knew each other in school, but what about you? Are you from Serenity?”

He nodded. “Born and bred here.”

“Then I’m surprised we haven’t crossed paths before. We must be about the same age. I imagine we were in school around the same time. I’m Adelia Hernandez, by the way. I was Adelia Cruz before I married.”

“And I spent more time suspended from school than I did in classes,” he admitted. “I left town for a lot of years after that. I just got back a week ago. Fortunately I got my act together during that time and picked up a diploma, then went on to college. I suppose I should say I took classes, since I never graduated. I was in too much of a hurry to get on with life.”

“Did you regret that later?”

He shook his head. “No point in regrets. It was the decision I made. I try not to look back, just focus on the here and now.”

“I’m trying to work on that,” she told him. “And I’ve recently had to face the fact that human beings are an imperfect lot. What matters is how we deal with our mistakes. Sounds as if you’ve made up for yours.”

“Not entirely, but I’m working on it.”

She watched as he glanced around the very feminine shop, which was currently displaying summer dresses and a new line of lacy lingerie. His gaze landed on the lingerie. Color bloomed in his cheeks. His nerves definitely showing, he shoved his hands in his pockets and backed toward the door.

“I’d better get back to the bakery. Mitch has a long list of projects he wants to go over with me. It’s officially my first day on the job.”

Adelia nodded and held up the pastry bag. “Thanks for bringing this.”

“Not a problem.”

She watched him leave, admired the way his jeans fit snugly over a very excellent backside and felt heat climb up her neck. She thought of Elliott’s advice just the night before to keep her heart open and her own very adamant declaration that she was a long, long way from being interested in another relationship. She suddenly couldn’t help wondering if Gabe Franklin with the wicked gleam in his eyes and his flirtatious ways was about to make a liar out of her.

* * *

It was midmorning before Adelia was able to push all thoughts of Gabe Franklin aside and concentrate on work. Just as she was about to reorganize a display to show off a new shipment of colorful scarves, her cell phone rang. To her dismay it was the principal of Selena’s middle school.

“Adelia, I’m so sorry to bother you at work, but we have a problem. Selena’s not in her physical education class. The teacher didn’t notice it until they were choosing sides for soccer. She’d taken attendance earlier and Selena was there, but she disappeared sometime between that and when they went outside.”

“Are you sure she didn’t just stay in the locker room?” Adelia asked, trying to tamp down the panic that was already rising. “She hates soccer. Skipping it to sit in the locker room and read a book is something she might do.”

“She’s not on the school grounds,” Margaret Towson told her. “I’ve had several people checking for the past twenty minutes or so. Do you want me to call Carter Rollins?”

“The police chief? Do you really think that’s necessary?”

“It’s standard procedure if a child disappears during the school day and the parents don’t know where they are, either. Do you have any idea where we might find Selena?”

Adelia felt tears gathering in her eyes. “No.”

“Perhaps I should check with her father then,” Margaret ventured, her tone tentative.

“No,” Adelia said quickly. “I’ll handle this. I’ll call Carter and start looking myself,” she said. “Thank you for letting me know so quickly, Margaret.”

“Adelia, I know Selena has been going through a difficult time. Her teachers are aware of it, as well. If there’s anything we can do to help, just ask.”

“Thanks.”

She disconnected the call and immediately called her boss. Raylene Rollins, rather than Raylene’s husband, Carter. The minute she explained the situation, Raylene said, “Lock up the store and go. I’ll be there in a few minutes to take over, but don’t wait for me. I’ll call Carter and tell him what’s going on. Try not to worry. Selena can’t have gone far. She might even be at home. Have you tried her cell phone or the phone at the house?”

“No. I wasn’t thinking,” Adelia admitted, completely shaken by the oversight. “I’ll do that now. Thanks for understanding, Raylene.”

“Don’t thank me. Just go. And call me the minute you find her.”

Adelia grabbed her purse from the office, put a closed sign on the door, then locked up the boutique. She opened the door to Sweet Things, drawing a startled look from Lynn.

“Is everything okay?” Lynn asked. “You’re white as a ghost.”

“The school just called. Selena’s missing.”

Lynn had her own cell phone out before Adelia could finish the sentence. “Mitch will start looking, too,” she reported. “What can I do?”

“Just call me if she shows up here or if your daughter has any idea where she might have gone. I know Lexie’s older, but kids hear things. I’m hoping this was just an impulsive decision, but with everything that’s happened lately, I can’t help worrying that she might have been planning to run away.”

“I’ll check with Lexie right now,” Lynn promised just as Mitch and Gabe came rushing into the bakery.

Mitch put steadying hands on her shoulders. “Stay calm,” he said quietly. “We’re going to find her. Gabe, why don’t you go with Adelia. I’ll start driving around town. Any place you think I ought to check first?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” she said, fresh tears gathering in her eyes.

She’d been so sure that Selena was handling the divorce okay. She was angry at her father, of course, but beyond that she seemed to be taking the move and all the rest in stride. The rebellion of a few months ago had seemingly vanished, replaced by resignation. Adelia should have seen through that. Apparently her mom-radar wasn’t as sharp as she’d thought.

“I’ve got this,” Gabe told Mitch. “You start looking.”

Mitch nodded. “I’ll start by the school and fan out from there. I’ll check with Carter, too, so we’re not duplicating our efforts.”

Gabe turned to Lynn. “How about a cup of tea? Something herbal, maybe?”

Adelia regarded him as if he were nuts. “I don’t have time to sit here and sip tea,” she said, starting toward the door.

Gabe blocked her path. “We’ll get it to go. It’ll help to calm your nerves so you can tell me where you want to start looking.”

“He’s right,” Lynn said, already handing her the to-go container. “I’ve put plenty of sugar in there for you. That’ll help, too.”

Adelia told herself she only accepted the cup so she could get out of the bakery, but in some part of her brain, she knew they were both right. The tea might help to settle her nerves so she could think straight.

With Gabe watching her closely, she took several sips, then met his gaze. “Satisfied?”

“It’s a start,” he said lightly. “Now let’s go find your daughter.”

Something in the way he said it, with full confidence that they’d be successful, reassured her, even though nothing had really changed in the past few minutes.

“I want to go by the house first. I’ve called and there was no answer, but that doesn’t mean she’s not there.”

“Where’s the house?”

“Swan Point.”

He nodded and turned in that direction. “Just tell me where to turn once we’re there,” he said.

The drive through the neighborhood of fewer than a dozen homes took only minutes, as did the search of the house. There was no sign of Selena, no bookbag tossed on the sofa or remnants of a snack in the kitchen.

“What about her father? Would she go to him?” Gabe asked.

“Not likely,” Adelia said, unable to keep a note of bitterness from her voice. “She’s very angry at him these days.”

“Anybody she’s especially close to?”

Adelia immediately brightened. “Her uncle. Elliott runs that new men’s gym just off Palmetto. You know the place?”

Gabe nodded. “I just joined.”

As they made the drive to Fit for Anything, Adelia’s mind started racing. “What if—?”

The words were no sooner out of her mouth than Gabe cut her off. “No what-ifs,” he declared firmly. “She hasn’t been missing long. If she’s upset, she’ll go someplace where she feels safe.”

“But she might not be thinking clearly,” Adelia protested, her panic returning. “She’s only thirteen, Gabe. I’m afraid I’ve been forgetting that myself. I should have been paying more attention. Instead, I was so worried about my younger kids, I missed all the signs that Selena was in real trouble. I was just grateful that she was no longer rebelling against the world.”

In front of the gym, she bolted from the car practically before it could come to a stop. Inside, she scanned the room until her gaze landed on her brother. He regarded her with alarm, which grew visibly when Gabe came in right on her heels.

Misreading the situation, Elliott stepped between them. “Is this guy bothering you, Adelia?”

She held up a hand. “No, it’s nothing like that. Selena’s missing. Gabe is helping me look for her. I thought maybe she’d come here to see you.”

Elliott shook his head. “I haven’t seen her. Let me check with Karen. She’s not working today. She’s at the house with the baby.”

Adelia felt herself starting to shake as her brother made the call to his wife. Then she felt Gabe’s steadying hand on her shoulder. He didn’t say a word, just kept his hand there until the moment passed.

Elliott listened intently to whatever Karen was saying, his expression brightening. “Thanks, querida. Adelia will be there in a few minutes.” Smiling, he turned to her. “Selena’s at my house playing with the baby. Karen didn’t think to call anyone because Selena told her she only had a half day at school and swore you knew where she was.”

Adelia finally let out the breath she felt like she’d been holding for hours. “Of course Karen believed her,” she said wryly. “Selena’s very convincing when she wants to be.”

“Want me to drive you over there?” Elliott offered. “I can get one of the other trainers to take my next client.”

“I can take her,” Gabe said. He looked at her. “Unless you’d prefer to have your brother go with you.”

Adelia hesitated, then shook her head. “If you don’t mind making the drive, that would be great,” she told him. “Elliott, there’s no reason for you to miss an appointment. I can handle this.”

Elliott looked worried but eventually nodded. “You’ll be there when I get home? I want to have a talk with my niece about skipping school and worrying you.”

She smiled. “Believe me, she’ll get more than enough talking from me tonight. You can save your lecture for another day.”

Elliott nodded with unmistakable reluctance. “Whatever you think, but I will have a word with her. You can be sure of that.”

“Not a doubt in my mind,” she said, then turned to Gabe. “Let’s go. That is, if you’re really sure you have the time.”

“I have the time,” he said without hesitation.

On the way to her brother’s, Gabe called Mitch and told him they’d located Selena and were on the way to get her. After the call ended, he told her, “Mitch will speak to Carter and let him know to call off the search.”

Adelia sighed. “I should have thought to do that.”

“You have plenty of other things on your mind,” he said, excusing her. “I imagine you’re pondering a dozen different things you can say to drive home the point that what your daughter did was wrong.”

Surprised by his understanding, she nodded. “How’d you know?”

“Not because I got my share of lectures, that’s for sure,” he said. “My mom was pretty oblivious to the trouble I was getting into.” He glanced her way. “Word of advice?”

“Sure.”

“Whatever punishment you decide to dole out, and there should be one, be sure you hug the daylights out of her first.”

Adelia felt her heart tumble just a little. “You didn’t get the hugs, either?”

“Nope, which is why I know exactly how important they are,” he said as he pulled to a stop in front of Elliott’s house in a new subdivision outside town.

Adelia turned to him then. “Thank you.”

“For chauffeuring you around town for an hour? Don’t mention it. I’m just glad there’s a happy ending.”

“Not just for that,” she corrected him. “For reminding me that discipline always needs to come with a hug.”

He winked at her. “I saw you with your kids at Rosalina’s, remember? Something tells me you already knew that.”

Adelia stood in the driveway and watched him leave. She’d seen a different side of Gabe Franklin just now, one that was even more appealing than the flirtatious man she’d encountered before. Something told her this thoughtful, more vulnerable side made him even more dangerous.

CHAPTER THREE

“Thanks for helping out just now,” Lynn said when Gabe stopped by the bakery for a large cup of coffee before heading back to the construction site. “Adelia would never admit it, but she had to be scared out of her wits. I know I would have been if it had been one of my kids missing. I’m sure having you around kept her calm.”

“I don’t know how much help I was,” Gabe said. “All I did was drive the car in whatever direction she asked me to.”

Lynn smiled at the self-deprecating comment. “And you didn’t say one single word in all that time? Didn’t offer any support? Maybe insist she drink some tea?”

“The tea made sense,” he grumbled.

Lynn’s smile spread. He was obviously self-conscious about accepting praise for what he apparently considered to be nothing more than a neighborly gesture. She considered that very telling. Mitch had told her about Gabe’s past and how determined he was to fight his old reputation as a troublemaker. This humility was definite evidence that he was well on his way.

“Don’t make a big deal about that, or about anything I did, for that matter,” he said. “It was nothing anyone else wouldn’t have done.”

“Whatever you say,” she said, laughing. “Something tells me things are about to get real interesting here on Main Street.”

Gabe frowned at her. “Just because you and my cousin still have stars in your eyes doesn’t mean the whole world is just waiting for romance.”

“Adelia would probably say the same thing,” Lynn said agreeably. “She just got a divorce. She’s not interested in meeting anyone right now. Yada yada yada. I’ve heard it all before. Said it myself, in fact, when Mitch came along. Doesn’t mean I believe a word she says.” She regarded him pointedly, then added, “You, either. My theory is that neither of you has a clue what you really need in your lives.”

“Well, whether you buy it or not, could you stay out of it?” Gabe pleaded. “I’ve got problems enough up and down this block without adding your meddling into the mix.”

“What problems?” she asked at once, her mood sobering. “Does Mitch know?”

“Of course he knows. I haven’t been on the job long enough to make decisions without running them by him. Now, if you’ll get that cup of coffee I asked for when I first walked through the door, and maybe a few of those chocolate chip cookies, I’ll get back to work, so he doesn’t fire me for hanging out too long with his wife.”

She quickly poured the coffee and bagged his cookies, choosing a few from a tray still warm from the oven, but she waved off payment. “Just a reward for helping Adelia,” she said. “Where will you be if Mitch stops by here looking for you?”

“In the old supermarket space on the corner trying to figure out how we’re going to replace those old beams without the roof tumbling down on our heads. The termites have been living it up in there for ten years at least.”

Lynn looked alarmed. “That can’t be good. What about Chic? It’s right next door to that space. Is their ceiling okay?”

“I’ll check with Mitch, but I imagine he did a thorough job fixing up that place and this one. If there was damage, I doubt he missed it.”

Relieved, she nodded. “You’re right, of course. Mitch pays attention to details. It’s one of his best traits.”

Gabe grinned at her. “I imagine that comes in handy in more ways than one,” he said with a wink, then took off, brushing past Maddie Maddox, Helen Decatur-Whitney and Dana Sue Sullivan in his hurry.

Their arrival wasn’t particularly unexpected. Once word of a crisis spread through town, the original Sweet Magnolias were always among the first to respond. The loosely formed group of friends had grown to include many other women now, including Lynn, but these three were still its heart and soul.

“What’s his hurry?” Helen asked, her eyes narrowed. The town’s—maybe even the state’s—most prominent divorce attorney was by nature cynical and suspicious, even after several years now of being deliriously happy in her own marriage.

Lynn chuckled. “I made him nervous.”

Maddie regarded her with surprise. “How?”

“By suggesting that his willingness to jump in to help Adelia was something more than a neighborly gesture,” Lynn said.

“I knew it!” Dana Sue said, her expression smug. “All day long I was hearing gossip that Adelia and Gabe had crossed paths at Rosalina’s the other night and fireworks went off. It was Grace spreading the story, and you know how she is. She can spin a romance out of a passing glance.”

Helen held up her hands. “Hold on a minute! The latest Serenity romance alert is fascinating, but shouldn’t we be focusing on what we can do to help in the search for Adelia’s daughter? That’s why we rushed over here.”

Maddie and Dana Sue immediately looked guilt-stricken.

“Of course we should,” Maddie said.

“It’s okay,” Lynn soothed. “Selena’s safe and sound. Adelia and Gabe found her at Elliott and Karen’s house. He stopped in just now to fill me in.” She glanced at the three women, who’d been best friends since childhood. “Now who needs coffee and maybe a slice of pie while you fill me in on what you’ve heard about Gabe and Adelia?”

“I wouldn’t turn down a slice of lemon meringue,” Maddie said at once.

“Coconut cream for me,” Helen said as Lynn poured the coffee.

Dana Sue stared at the display case longingly. As she did, Lynn remembered hearing that she was at high risk for diabetes. That would be a tough diagnosis for anyone, but Dana Sue owned a restaurant and was around food constantly. She sighed now.

“I’ll pass on the pie,” Dana Sue said with unmistakable disappointment, “but I will take the coffee.”

“How about a couple of sugar-free oatmeal cookies?” Lynn suggested. “They have cranberries and walnuts. I promise they don’t taste like sawdust.”

Helen’s eyes lit up. “Ooh, those sound fabulous. Maybe I’ll have those, too.”

“Instead of pie?” Lynn asked.

“Absolutely not,” Helen replied, then hesitated. “But maybe you’d better put them in a bag. I’ll pretend I’m taking them home for my daughter.”

Maddie and Dana Sue exchanged a look.

“Want to bet they’re gone before she gets to the corner?” Maddie asked.

Dana Sue shook her head. “Why would I want to bet against a sure thing?” She grinned at Lynn. “Bring on the cookies and don’t waste a bag, okay?”

Helen patted the chair next to her. “And sit right here next to me. I want to know everything you can tell me about Gabe and Adelia.”

Lynn chuckled as she imagined how Gabe would react to being linked with Adelia all over town. He’d been grumpy enough when she’d merely hinted at a potential romantic pairing. Now that the Sweet Magnolias and Grace Wharton were alert and watching for every sighting, it was going to make him crazy. In Lynn’s opinion, a little craziness was just what he needed.

* * *

Gabe found Mitch standing on scaffolding in the middle of the construction site on the corner. Mitch was regarding the damage-riddled support beam with disgust. When he caught sight of Gabe, he climbed down.

“What’s your plan?” he asked at once, surprising Gabe.

“You don’t have one?” Gabe asked.

Mitch chuckled. “Of course I do, but I put you in charge. I want to hear yours.”

Startled by the confidence his cousin was placing in him, Gabe pulled a rough sketch from his back pocket and spread it out on a rickety old table that comprised his office space for now.

“Here’s what I was thinking,” he said, going over the drawing. “I had Ronnie Sullivan in here earlier for some cost estimates on the lumber. He says if we want a couple of steel beams, he can get prices for those, too, but we’re talking big money.”

Mitch’s expression was thoughtful as Gabe talked. He glanced up at the existing beams, then at the figures Gabe had jotted down, then nodded. “Let’s do it right,” he said eventually. “If we’re going to fix this building up, we need it to be built to last.”

“I’ll have the prices for you tomorrow,” Gabe said, relieved. He’d been cautious, but he, too, believed in getting it right, not cheap. “By the way, your wife’s expecting you. I stopped in to grab a cup of coffee just now. She might need a little reassuring about the state of the ceiling over the bakery.”

Mitch frowned. “Why?”

“It’s possible I planted a few seeds of doubt talking about all the termites,” Gabe admitted, then shrugged at Mitch’s incredulous expression. “Hey, I had to say something to get her off the topic of me and Adelia Hernandez.”

“And all you could come up with was termite damage?” Mitch said with mock exasperation. “She’s going to want to go up there and check out those beams herself.”

Gabe laughed. “I suspected as much. Where’s the trust? That’s what I want to know. You did renovate that space for her.”

Mitch shook his head. “Which just means we probably should add contractors to the list of people who need to avoid doing business with family.” He sighed heavily. “Thanks for that, by the way.”

“Anytime,” Gabe said.

Let his cousin deal with Lynn’s inquisitive nature. That was a whole lot easier on Gabe than having her pecking away at his personal life.

* * *

Adelia stood outside the nursery at Elliott and Karen’s house trying to calm her temper before she confronted her daughter about scaring her and everyone else. She needed to remember what Gabe had said about doling out hugs before discipline. She thought she’d always been pretty good at that, but today had been a real test. What she wanted more than anything was to give her daughter a good shake and ground her for at least the remainder of her school years. Fortunately, she was wise enough to know none of that was the answer to what had happened today.

When she opened the door, she found Selena sitting in a rocker with the baby in her arms and sunlight spilling over them. Even at only thirteen, she had the serenity of the Madonna about her. It was a terrifying reminder of how quickly she was growing up.

When Selena glanced up and caught sight of Adelia, though, wariness filled her eyes and she was a nervous teenager who knew she was in trouble. “What are you doing here?” she asked, her voice unsteady.

“I think the better question is what are you doing here in the middle of a school day?” Adelia responded, careful to keep the fear and temper out of her voice. “You’ve had half the town running around trying to find you, including the police chief.”

Selena had the grace to look shocked by that. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think anyone would miss me. I just skipped out on soccer. I’m no good at that, anyway.”

“And what about the classes you have after physical education? Were you planning to go back for those? If so, you’re already late.”

Selena winced. “I lost track of time,” she whispered, clearly aware that Adelia wasn’t likely to buy it.

“Seriously? You expect me to believe that?”

“I was hoping,” Selena said, her expression guilty.

“Afraid not. Put the baby down and come outside so we can talk,” Adelia said, pausing to brush gentle fingers over the baby’s soft-as-silk curls. With black hair and big brown eyes, she was all Cruz, that’s for sure.

Maybe because she knew it was inevitable, Selena did as she’d been told to do, then followed Adelia from the room. As they passed Karen in the living room, Adelia asked, “Mind if we sit on your deck for a little while? We need to talk.”

“It’s fine,” Karen said. “Would you like something cool to drink? I’ve just made fresh lemonade.”

“I’d like some, please,” Selena said at once, clearly relieved by any delay she could seize. “I can get it.”

She scampered off to the kitchen before Adelia could protest. Karen smiled. “She’s awfully eager to make amends, isn’t she?”

“Seems so,” Adelia said, then released a sigh. “I’ve never been so terrified in my life.”

Karen, who’d been reserved with her for a long time, stepped forward and pulled her into an awkward embrace. “But she’s okay. That’s what counts, Adelia. She came here, to a safe place. She didn’t run away.”

“I know and I’m more grateful than I can express for that. Did she talk at all?”

“No. I think she just wanted some space on neutral turf. She asked if she could hold the baby. She’s been in the nursery ever since.” She gave Adelia an apologetic look. “If I’d had any idea you didn’t know where she was, I would have called you immediately.”

“I know that,” Adelia assured her. “Thanks for being so kind to her.”

“She’s my niece,” Karen said simply.

Selena returned from the kitchen with three glasses of lemonade and looked at Karen hopefully. “Are you coming outside to talk, too?”

“No, sweetheart. This is between you and your mom.” She looked at Adelia. “If you need anything, let me know. I can give you all a lift home whenever you’re ready, unless you’d like to stay for dinner.”

“We’ll see,” Adelia said. It depended on how this conversation went and whether she thought she needed some backup from her brother to drive her points home with Selena. Her mom would keep the younger kids for the night, if need be.

Adelia led the way outside. She sat on a cushioned bench on the shady side of the deck, then patted the seat next to her. With unmistakable reluctance, Selena sat beside her. Adelia reached for her hand.

“Do you have any idea how precious you are to me?” she asked softly. “You’re my firstborn, Selena.”

Rather than looked reassured, Selena looked sad. “But if it weren’t for me, you might never have married Dad.”

Adelia frowned at what seemed to be an entirely out-of-the-blue comment. “What do you mean?”

“Come on, Mom. I can count. You and Dad got married because you were already pregnant with me. If that hadn’t happened, then you wouldn’t have been trapped with a man who cheated on you every chance he got.”

Adelia closed her eyes, trying to gather her composure. She’d hoped this conversation would never be necessary, but Selena had clearly overheard way too many arguments with Ernesto and the accusations that had been flung about.

“It’s true that I was pregnant when your Dad and I got married,” she confessed, then forced Selena to meet her gaze. “But you need to believe me, sweetheart. I don’t regret that decision, not for a single minute.”

“How can you not regret it?” Selena asked angrily. “Dad did.”

“No, he didn’t. Not really.”

“I heard him, Mom.”

“People say things in the heat of the moment that they don’t really mean, even your dad. But let’s focus on how I feel for now. How can I regret marrying your dad when I have you and your sisters and your brother because of that decision? The four of you mean everything to me. I may hate what’s been happening, I may be really angry at him right now, but I can’t regret being married to him, sweetheart. One of these days you’ll discover that things are never as black-and-white as we might like them to be. There’s a lot of gray in the middle. Good just happens to come with bad sometimes.”

Tears streamed down Selena’s cheeks. “I’m never getting married,” she declared.

Her determined words were as painful for Adelia to hear as her own had probably been for Elliott on Sunday night. She didn’t want her daughter’s future to be shaped by the divorce. She pulled Selena close and Selena actually allowed it, resting her head on Adelia’s shoulder as she had when she was younger.

“That’s not a decision you need to be making now,” she told her daughter. “And it certainly isn’t one you should base on what happened between your father and me. Look at your uncle Elliott and Karen and how happy they are.”

“But Karen’s first husband was a real jerk,” Selena reminded her. “So was Raylene’s. I heard all about how he abused her and then came here and tried to kill her.”

“But Raylene has Carter now and they’re expecting a baby,” Adelia reminded her. “She found real happiness this time, the kind that will last.”

“But there’s no way to know for sure,” Selena protested. “I’ll bet you thought Dad was great at first or you wouldn’t have fallen in love with him. The same with Karen and Raylene. They’re smart, too, and look what happened to them.”

“Okay, here’s what I know,” Adelia said, brushing a lock of hair back from Selena’s damp cheek. “People make mistakes. And sometimes people change. Human beings are flawed, but that doesn’t mean you should never take a risk. The important thing is that it be an informed risk, one you only take after very careful thought. And even then, if you get it wrong, you pick up the pieces and move on.”

Even as she said the words meant to reassure her daughter, Adelia realized they were very similar to the sentiment that Elliott had expressed to her. She wondered if she was any more capable of hearing them right now than Selena was.

“How do you do that, though?” Selena asked. “Move on, I mean? You make it sound easy, but it’s not.”

“No, it’s not,” Adelia said. “But you do it because you must and you do it one day at a time. Some days will be easier than others.”

“I made today harder, didn’t I?” Selena asked, real regret in her voice.

“You did,” Adelia said, unwilling to gloss over the effect her behavior had. “But I understand why you came here. Sometimes I forget that you’re not a grown-up and that all these decisions your dad and I have made affect you in ways I might not even realize. But, baby, you need to talk to me about it, not take off.” She tucked a finger under Selena’s chin and forced her to look into her eyes. “Deal?”

Selena nodded slowly. “Deal.” Her expression turned worried. “How much trouble am I in? Grounded is a given, huh?”

“Grounded is a given,” Adelia agreed. “But I imagine we can smooth things over at school, even though they have a very low tolerance for skipping classes. You’ll need to apologize to your teacher and to the principal for worrying them.”

Selena didn’t look happy, but she nodded. “Anybody else?”

“Raylene and Carter for inconveniencing them,” Adelia said. “Mitch Franklin, who dropped everything to help look for you, and his cousin Gabe, who drove me around to all the places I thought you might be, then brought me here.”

“I don’t even know him,” Selena protested. “Why did he help?”

“Because that’s what people do in Serenity,” Adelia told her. “I know you think this town is way too small and old-fashioned and that you can’t wait to get away, but the positive side of living here is that we look out for each other. We pitch in when anyone’s in trouble.”

It was something she was just coming to realize for herself, and in the past few months, when her world had been turned upside down, she’d been grateful for all the support, sometimes from the most unexpected people. Gabe Franklin, she was forced to concede, fell into that category.

* * *

Gabe stayed on the job until after eight, running the numbers Ronnie Sullivan had given him for new steel support beams until he had a proposal ready to pass along to Mitch first thing in the morning. While he’d told himself it was the responsible thing to do, he knew the real reason he was still at the construction site was to keep himself from heading over to Swan Point to check on Adelia and her daughter.

“She’s not your responsibility,” he muttered to himself on more than one occasion when he found his thoughts straying to her panicked expression when she’d first found out her daughter was missing.

For the entire hour he’d been with her, though, she’d lost control only once when what-if calamities had crept into her head. He thought he’d done an okay job of diverting her attention before she could sink into real despair. Other than that moment, she’d shown admirable strength. After his own childhood, it had been eye-opening to see how a good mother handled things.

He was about to turn out the lights, lock up and head for Rosalina’s, when the door opened and Elliott Cruz walked in. Gabe stilled at the sight of him. He’d seen the protectiveness in the other man’s eyes earlier and couldn’t help wondering what had brought him here now. A warning to stay away, perhaps? Gabe was ready to reassure him on that point. He intended to steer clear of Adelia as much as possible for his own peace of mind.

“Elliott, right?” he asked, seizing the initiative and holding out his hand. “We didn’t really meet earlier.”

Adelia’s brother looked startled, but he shook his hand.

“What brings you by?” Gabe asked.

“I came to apologize,” Elliott told him.

The statement took Gabe by surprise. “Why?”

“Because you pitched in to help this afternoon and I came on too strong and all but attacked you when you came into the gym with my sister.”

Gabe shrugged. “You didn’t have all the facts.”

“No, I certainly didn’t,” Elliott said. “Adelia would be the first to tell you, jumping to conclusions is a bad habit of mine. In my family I was the only son with three sisters. They were all older, but I took on the role of protecting them when our father died. Sometimes I’ve been known to get carried away.”

“Seems to me they’re lucky to have someone looking out for them,” Gabe said.

“Tell them that,” Elliott replied, his expression rueful. “I don’t get half the gratitude you might expect, especially from Adelia. She’s the oldest and always thought she should be protecting me.”

“That whole dynamic is a mystery to me,” Gabe admitted. “I was an only child.”

“But you had cousins, right? I thought I heard you and Mitch are related. And there are other Franklins around town.”

“Mitch and I are cousins, but we weren’t that close growing up. I might as well tell you straight-out that I was the black sheep of the family and my mom was a pariah in the family and around town. You won’t hear a lot good said about either of us.”

Elliott frowned at that. “Black sheep?” he repeated, worry back in his expression.

“Reformed,” Gabe assured him. “I haven’t gotten into a brawl in years. Haven’t really needed to since my mom died and I stopped needing to stand up for her.”

Unhappy with himself for revealing far more about his past than he was in the habit of doing, he held Elliott’s gaze. “You’ve apologized. I’ve accepted. Anything else?”

Though Elliott looked faintly taken aback by his direct words, he didn’t look away. “Just one more thing,” he said. “I saw you at Rosalina’s the other night. I saw the way you were looking at Adelia. Saw it again earlier today, in fact.”

“Look, I don’t know what you think you saw—”

Elliott smiled. “I know what I saw,” he corrected. “I saw a man who’s hungry for a woman. It’s a look I recognize, so a word of warning. Don’t start something with my sister that you have no intention of finishing. She’s feeling overwhelmed and vulnerable these days. I don’t want her hurt again.”

“Not my intention, believe me,” Gabe said, respecting the directness, even if it made him uncomfortable to be having this conversation with a man he’d barely met. “I have plenty on my plate these days. I’m not looking for a fling and I’m certainly not in the market for anything more serious.”

“If that’s the case, then steer clear of Adelia,” Elliott said. “That’s the best way I know to avoid any misunderstandings.”

Even though it was advice he’d already been telling himself to heed, Gabe took exception to being warned off. “Look, I respect the fact that you’re only looking out for your sister, but she strikes me as a woman who’s smart enough to know her own mind. I doubt she’d appreciate you running interference for her.”

To his surprise, Elliott laughed at that. “No question about it,” he conceded. “She’d be furious, so maybe it would be best if we kept this conversation just between us.”

Gabe relaxed. Despite Elliott’s tendency to come on too strong, he had to respect his intentions. “I can do that. No reason at all for us to be crossing paths except casually. I can’t imagine the topic coming up.”

Elliott looked relieved. He hesitated, then said, “I missed dinner at home to come by here. Since you’ve obviously been working late, I’m guessing you haven’t eaten, either. Feel like grabbing a pizza at Rosalina’s?”

Since he’d been planning to head over there anyway, Gabe saw no reason to refuse the overture. He figured the cross-examination and warnings were out of the way. It might be nice to have some guy talk instead of eating all alone. Eating with Elliott would sure as heck keep his thoughts from straying to Adelia, and that had to be a good thing.

“Sure,” he said.

He finished locking up, then followed Elliott to the Italian restaurant. To ensure that the conversation stayed on less disquieting topics, he asked about Fit for Anything and Elliott’s role there.

“I’m just one of the partners,” Adelia’s brother explained, describing the agreement he’d made with several of the men in town to run the place in exchange for a share. “I’m a personal trainer there and at The Corner Spa, too.”

“Sounds like a demanding schedule,” Gabe said.

Elliott nodded. “You have no idea, especially with two stepchildren and a new baby at home. Fortunately, I’m blessed with an understanding wife who has her own career. Karen’s just been promoted to sous-chef at Sullivan’s. Between her cooking and my mother’s, believe me, I need to work out even harder than most of my clients do.”

Gabe laughed. “If I keep existing on pizza, I’ll need to add a few extra workouts into my routine, too. I tell myself I’d eat healthier if I were in my own place, but the Serenity Inn will have to do for now.”

“That’s where you’re living?” Elliott asked, sounding shocked.

“I know its reputation as a place the locals go for trysts,” Gabe said. He’d known all about that when he’d been a kid, thanks to his mom, who’d been a frequent visitor. “But it’s clean and not too expensive.”

“Are you planning to look for your own place?”

“Sooner or later,” Gabe hedged. It all depended on how long it took for him to get antsy. The instant he sensed he might be starting to put down roots, it would be time to go. That was the pattern he’d established in a half-dozen other towns across the state. His motives for coming back to Serenity might be different, but there was no reason for that particular pattern to change.

“Well, if you decide you want to look at some houses or apartments, I know a couple of good Realtors. Mary Vaughn Lewis or her daughter can probably hook you up.”

“Mary Vaughn’s still around?” Gabe asked, not sure why he was so surprised. She’d been just a little ahead of him in school. It had always seemed to him that she was ambitious enough to take off at the first opportunity. She’d had her own family demons to battle back then, though she’d handled them better than he had.

“Wait a second,” he said. “Did you say Lewis? As in Sonny Lewis, the mayor’s son? That’s who she married?”

Elliott nodded. “They divorced, but they’re back together now and have a new baby, a boy.”

Gabe shook his head. The longer he stuck around, it seemed the more surprises awaited him. It was a little worrisome that he found that intriguing.

CHAPTER FOUR

Even though she desperately wanted a morning caffeine fix, Adelia found herself avoiding Sweet Things for the next few mornings, determined to steer clear of Gabe. Involving him in her drama with Selena was one thing. She’d had little choice about that. But the attraction that was starting to simmer, for her, anyway, was a little too disconcerting for a woman who’d declared herself to be single-mindedly independent for now. She wasn’t ready to cede that stance. She might never be.

Her determination lasted quite nicely through the weekend. After a busy Saturday at the boutique, she devoted herself to spending time with the children on Sunday, finally caving in to Tomas’s pleas to go to the usual family dinner at her mother’s.

Just as she’d anticipated, it was awkward and tense from the moment they arrived. Her sisters scowled at her and looked relieved when she finally abandoned the kitchen in favor of going outside to watch the kids. Her brothers-in-law regarded her as if she were deliberately trying to shake up their orderly worlds. Only the determined cheerfulness of her mother, Elliott and Karen made the afternoon tolerable. None of the others would have dared to voice their opinions aloud in front of her mother especially. The risk of alienating the family matriarch was too great.

The children, thankfully, were unaware of most of the undercurrents as they ran boisterously through the house and played in the yard with their cousins. Watching them, she was almost able to believe life would eventually return to normal, or whatever the new normal might be.

By three, though, Adelia had had more than enough. She excused herself to go home and work on the list of repairs needed at her new house. Surrounded by welcome silence, she’d made good progress on her list by the time Elliott and Karen dropped the children off on their way home.

“I’m sorry about today. It won’t always be like that,” her brother reassured her, regarding her with worry. “Everyone will eventually get past this.”

“And stop judging me?” she asked wryly. Her annoyance kicked up a notch. “What right do they have? They know what Ernesto was doing. In fact, I suspect our sisters knew all along and never said a word.”

Elliott frowned at that. “You can’t really believe that. Why would they do such a thing? What about family loyalty?”

Adelia voiced her theory. “I’m very much afraid because they’ve been brainwashed to believe that sort of behavior is expected, just the price a woman has to pay for a certain lifestyle.”

When her brother’s expression immediately darkened, Adelia realized she’d revealed too much about her possibly unfounded suspicions. “Wipe that look right off your face,” she ordered. “And don’t go roaring over to their houses tossing around accusations. I don’t know anything. I just have a feeling in my gut.”

“Your gut feelings are usually right on the money,” he said.

“Really? I never had a single one about Ernesto, not until the end when he grew careless.”

“Only because you didn’t want to believe he’d ever treat you that way,” Elliott said. “Love sometimes makes people blind. Do you think that’s the case with—”

Adelia cut him off and tried to stare him down. “Promise me you’re not going to get in the middle of this, not between me and them nor in their marriages,” she commanded. “I mean it, Elliott. Our sisters are living their lives as they see fit. I just wish they’d show me the same courtesy.”

He sighed deeply. “I hope you’re wrong,” he said.

“I hope so, too.”

But she didn’t think she was. Of all people, she knew only too well what it was like to live with delusions just to keep the peace and hold on to a familiar lifestyle.

* * *

Adelia was well aware of Mitch’s habit of starting his day in his wife’s bakery. She also knew she couldn’t avoid the place forever, even if steering clear was the best way to give Gabe a wide berth. From the moment the bakery had opened, she’d gotten into the habit of pausing to share a cup of coffee with Mitch and Lynn before heading next door to the boutique. They’d probably make way too much of it if she stayed away too long, especially after Gabe and Mitch had pitched in to help with the search for Selena. The last thing she wanted was for any of them to think she was ungrateful.

But even as she’d reminded herself of that, she let another week pass before she mustered up the courage to return to her old routine. She had work to discuss with Mitch, she reminded herself. That alone was the perfect excuse, if she needed one, to stop by the bakery.

She’d stayed up late the night before fine-tuning the list of projects needed to fix up the house. She needed to get cost estimates and then prioritize those that were essential and those that could wait. The list was a whole lot longer than she’d anticipated. It seemed that history and architectural character came with a host of problems.

Thankfully, when Raylene had promoted her to manager of the boutique she’d given her a nice raise to go along with it. That extra money would allow her to do at least some of these improvements without dipping into her nest egg from the divorce. Adelia was still a little shocked by her promotion. Sure, she’d gotten a business degree in college, but for years the only “jobs” she’d held outside her home had been on the numerous school committees she’d chaired. Raylene had taken a chance on her, and she claimed she’d more than proved herself. Adelia seemed to have an innate sense of fashion and an ability to help customers make choices that flattered them. Sales had skyrocketed in the months after she was first hired.

“To be honest, I’m a little nervous about how I’ll handle the whole parenthood thing,” Raylene had claimed after the first trimester of her pregnancy when she’d offered Adelia the promotion.

“But you’ve been raising Carter’s sisters with him, practically since their parents died in the car crash,” Adelia had protested. “You’ve been great with them and they adore you.”

“They’re teenagers,” Raylene had replied, as if that had made her role easier. “I have no idea what to expect with a baby. You’re practically running this place for me already, so you deserve the title and the raise that goes with it. You’ll still get your commission, too, since you’re the best saleswoman I’ve ever seen. All those lookers who used to leave without buying now can’t get out the door without being loaded down with bags.”

Adelia had hardly been in a position to turn her down, even though the responsibility had been a little terrifying. Now she was more than grateful for yet another chance to prove to Raylene, but even more importantly to herself, just how capable she was.

It was ironic, really, she thought on her walk into downtown bright and early on Saturday morning. She was a mature woman with an increasingly responsible job. She had a head full of ideas to prove that Raylene’s faith in her hadn’t been misplaced. She was a good mother, at least according to most assessments. If those things were true, how ridiculous was it that she was scared of a man she’d just met simply because she found him attractive?

Mitch was attractive, for heaven’s sake, and he didn’t scare her. Neither did any of the other men she knew in Serenity.

Because they were all safely married, she concluded with a sigh. Gabe, it appeared, was not.

Outside Sweet Things, she sucked in a deep breath and wiped her sweaty palms on a tissue. Today was as good a day as any to get back into her preferred routine. That it was a Saturday, a day she was less likely to encounter Gabe, was not the reason for her sudden bravery, she assured herself.

As she entered the bakery, she reminded herself that she was here to have a business discussion with a man she’d known for years. Mitch wasn’t the terrifying Franklin, after all. That was Gabe, and he frightened her only because of how easily he disconcerted her.

After the pep talk she’d been giving herself, she was actually stunned and a little disappointed to find Mitch all alone at his usual table, sipping a cup of coffee and studying a blueprint. He glanced up and smiled.

“There you are. Lynn and I have been wondering where you’ve been. You’ve been MIA for a while now.”

“Just getting settled in the new house,” she claimed. “I’m glad you’re here, though.” She reached in her purse and withdrew several yellow sheets torn from a legal pad. “I have a list of renovation projects I wanted to discuss with you, that is, if you’re not too swamped with your Main Street redevelopment these days.”

“I’m never too swamped to tackle a job for a friend,” he said. “Have a seat. I’ll get you some coffee. Lynn’s in the back cussing away at some pie dough or something. The woman may make the best pastry in two states on a bad day, but she’s a perfectionist.”

“Ah, but that’s why she has such an incredible reputation,” Adelia said, joining him at the table, which had been covered with a blue-checked cloth. He’d pushed aside a Mason jar filled with fresh daisies that added a cheerful, homey touch. “This place has been a success since the day she opened. Thank goodness, Raylene and all those Sweet Magnolias ganged up on her and convinced her this was something she could do.”

Mitch laughed as he poured her a cup of coffee. “They’re a sneaky bunch, all right.”

Adelia regarded him with amusement. “You did your own share of fast-talking, the way I understand it. Isn’t that how you wound up buying up all these vacant storefronts with Raylene? Wasn’t this downtown revitalization actually part of your plot to lure Lynn into opening a bakery and becoming a tenant?” She laughed at his guilty expression. “Just as I thought.”

“It was a sound business decision,” Mitch declared, setting the coffee in front of her. “That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.”

Just then the door opened and Gabe walked in. He was halfway through apologizing to Mitch for his tardiness when he noticed Adelia. A smile broke across his face, one that revealed dimples. They only added to his allure as a bit of a scoundrel.

“Hey, darlin’. Where have you been hiding?” he asked her.

Adelia blushed, flustered not only by his teasing, but because he’d taken note of her absence. “I’ve been right next door,” she told him. “Every day, same as usual.”

Mitch apparently noticed her reaction because he stepped in. “Adelia just bought one of those old houses in Swan Point,” he told Gabe.

“I saw it,” Gabe reminded him. “When we were looking for her daughter.”

“Of course,” Mitch said. “I doubt you had much of a chance to take a look around that day. She’s brought me a list of a few things she wants to have done.”

Gabe caught sight of the pages of notes and sketches and chuckled. “From the looks of that list, you sure you wouldn’t be better off tearing it down and starting over? It might be cheaper.”

“But then it wouldn’t have any character,” she protested defensively. “I love the house. It just has a few age-related flaws, the same as most people.” She studied him with narrowed eyes. “Or are you one of those who thinks anything past a certain age should be tossed away?”

Gabe held up both hands. “Hey, that was a comment based on financial considerations, not age.”

His glance skimmed over her, deliberately lingering until she flushed. “Some things improve with age,” he commented appreciatively.

Adelia wished she could grab her coffee and run, but she knew that would be far too revealing. She concluded the really courageous thing to do would be to stay put. She took a sip of coffee, instead, to steady her nerves.

“Let me see,” Gabe said, taking her list from his cousin. He got to page two and frowned. “Didn’t you have the roof inspected?”

“Of course I did,” she said impatiently.

“And you knew it was leaking?”

“Yes, and I got a very nice credit for that, thank you very much. Now, though, I need to get it repaired. I’ve run out of pots and pans to put under the leaks.” She turned to Mitch. “That probably should be at the top of the list.”

“No doubt about it,” Mitch agreed, then unexpectedly stood up. “Gabe, you can handle this, right? I want to check on those reinforcing beams going in down the block.”

Adelia stared at him. “But I thought you’d be doing this,” she said, then winced. “Sorry, Gabe. No offense.”

He grinned, clearly aware of exactly why she looked so rattled. “None taken.”

Mitch gave her shoulder a squeeze. “You’re in good hands. Gabe has plenty of experience, some of it in historic renovations, as a matter of fact. He knows what he’s doing, probably even better than I do. If you have any questions after he gives you an estimate, we’ll talk about them. How’s that?”

“Fine,” she said, though she couldn’t seem to hide her reluctance.

After Mitch had gone, she glanced warily toward Gabe. He was leaning back in his seat, the chair on two legs. His own denim-clad legs were stretched out in front of him. While the posture was relaxed, she sensed a coiled tension just beneath the surface.

“If you’re not okay with this, just say the word,” he said quietly.

“Of course I’m okay with it,” she said irritably. “Mitch says you’re more than qualified and I trust his judgment.”

A wicked gleam sparked in his eyes. “Then it’s me personally you’re not so sure about. I promise you I’m harmless.”

Adelia didn’t believe that for a single second, not with her heart pounding like a jackhammer. But maybe that was her problem, not his. It wasn’t as if he’d made a blatant pass at her. And despite her impression that he was single, maybe she’d been wrong about that. Maybe he was happily married. Married would be good.

“Are you married, Gabe?”

As if he’d followed her train of thought, he laughed. “Nope. Free as a bird. You?”

“Divorced,” she admitted. “Recently divorced.”

“As in not interested in taking another chance on love anytime soon,” he concluded. “Duly warned.”

Though his tone was solemn, the wicked spark in his eyes was anything but reassuring. He was going to be trouble, she concluded with a sigh. No question about it.

* * *

“How’d things go with Adelia this morning?” Mitch asked Gabe at the end of the day.

“I make her nervous,” Gabe admitted.

Mitch frowned at that. “How so?”

“She’s a beautiful woman. I can’t seem to stop myself from a little harmless flirting. I get the impression she’s not used to that.”

“She’s just getting out of a bad marriage,” Mitch told him.

“So I’ve heard. The guy was a cheater. I imagine that left her with some issues.”

“The cheating was certainly bad enough,” Mitch confirmed. “But he paraded his mistresses openly around town. The last one lived right in his neighborhood. Even his daughter knew about her. I think that’s what nobody in town will ever be able to excuse, the way he disrespected Adelia so openly in front of one of his kids.”

Gabe frowned at that. “You’ve got to be kidding me. What kind of lowlife does something like that?”

“Ernesto apparently thought his marriage vows only extended to providing well for his family, not to fidelity. The way I hear it, he thought he was entitled to play around, that it was part of the deal in exchange for the nice house and lots of spending money.”

“That explains why she’s now living in a house with a leaking roof,” Gabe guessed.

“More than likely. She’s a smart woman. She’s just discovering that she can make it on her own. Independence is real important to her right now.” His expression turned thoughtful. “She reminds me of Lynn in that way. I wanted to rush in about a million times to make things easier for her while she was divorcing Ed Morrow, but she needed to figure things out for herself, to prove that she was strong enough to do right by her kids. Much as it killed me to sit idly by while she struggled, letting her get back on her feet on her own was the right thing to do. She didn’t need a knight in shining armor. She needed a partner, someone who’d treat her like a woman with a lot to offer.”

“I suppose you think that’s the strategy for winning Adelia, too,” Gabe said.

Mitch leveled a long look at him. “Do you need a strategy?”

Gabe thought about the question. It was fraught with all sorts of implications. “No way,” he said candidly. “I only came here with the intention of getting back on my feet, maybe making amends.”

Mitch frowned. “You did nothing wrong, Gabe. You don’t owe anybody in this town a thing.”

“But my mother was a piece of work. In my zeal to defend her, I made my share of mistakes.”

“Okay, let’s say you make amends. Then what?”

Gabe hesitated, pondering the question, then shrugged. “I’ll probably move on. I can’t see myself putting down roots, here or any place else.”

“Then a word of advice. Be careful with Adelia, my friend. We all recognize how strong she is, but she doesn’t see it just yet. Give her time to get there and don’t do anything that might lead her to believe you’re staying. And if you think that word of warning is coming just from me, think again. You ever heard of the Sweet Magnolias?”

Gabe shook his head. “Who are they?”

“It’s not an official organization or anything, but a lot of the women in town have formed this deep bond. They look out for each other, and heaven help anyone who messes with them. You probably remember Maddie Maddox?”

“Doesn’t sound familiar.”

“She would have been Maddie Vreeland in school. Then she married and became a Townsend. When that ended in divorce, she married the high school baseball coach. Anyway, she, Dana Sue Sullivan and Helen Decatur-Whitney started calling themselves Sweet Magnolias way back in high school.”

Gabe held up a hand. “Slow down.” He described the three women who’d been entering the bakery as he’d fled to get away from Lynn’s teasing on the afternoon Selena had gone missing.

“They’re the women who started it,” Mitch confirmed. “Over the years, they’ve included a bunch of other women, Lynn among them. I’m not sure what they do beyond the occasional margarita night get-together, but they sure do stick up for one another. I wouldn’t want to tangle with them or get their backs up, that’s for sure. I’m not sure I’d be married to Lynn right now if they’d objected to it.”

Mitch grinned. “Fortunately, Maddie, Helen and Dana Sue and I go way back. They jumped on my side. In addition to any wooing I did, Lynn got the full-court press from the Sweet Magnolias, too.” His expression sobered. “I’m just saying, if you do anything to hurt Adelia, they’ll be all over you. I have a hunch her recovery’s going to be their next project.”

The advice was perfectly reasonable, but Gabe took offense just the same. “Whatever my flaws might be, Mitch, they don’t include a trail of brokenhearted women. Listening to my mom cry her eyes out at night taught me to be honest and never offer something I don’t intend to deliver.”

His cousin nodded. “Good to know.” A grin spread across his face. “Something tells me, though, that battling wits with you could be just what Adelia needs to get her confidence back.”

Gabe waved those yellow pages in his cousin’s face. “So, I was right. Despite all those warnings you just uttered, you do have some crazy idea about pushing the two of us together for more than fixing up that house of hers.”

Mitch shrugged, his expression innocent. “The work needs to be done. You’re good at what you do. If a few sparks fly in the process, all the better.” He gave Gabe an amused look. “For both of you. Just keep in mind those boundaries I warned you about.”

Gabe scowled at his cousin, suddenly wondering if coming back to Serenity had been as smart a move as he’d once thought it was. “I’m not likely to forget.”

* * *

Chic closed promptly at six on Saturday, though it was usually closer to seven by the time Adelia wrapped up all the chores she felt were necessary before locking up for the night. When she stepped outside, she was stunned to find Gabe leaning casually against the building. He straightened at the sight of her.

Adelia regarded him with confusion. “Were you waiting for me?”

He grinned. “What was your first clue? You know any other pretty women in the neighborhood?”

“Gabe!” she protested. “You have to stop doing that.”

“Doing what?”

What was he doing exactly, other than rattling her, that is? Was he flirting? It had been so long since any man had teased and flattered her, she couldn’t be entirely sure.

“Saying things like that,” she told him finally, then started striding down the block with the crazy idea that she might be able to shake him if she walked away quickly enough.

He easily fell into step beside her. “Hasn’t anybody ever told you how beautiful you are?” he inquired curiously.

“Not in a long time,” she admitted wistfully before she could stop herself.

He stared at her incredulously. “Then the men of Serenity are idiots,” he declared.

She smiled at his vehemence. “Or maybe they just had good instincts for self-preservation,” she suggested. “Until recently I was married, remember?”

“So compliments were reserved for your husband?”

“Something like that.”

“And did he lavish you with a lot of them?”

She frowned. She had a hunch he already knew the answer to that. “We’re divorced. What do you think?”

“Then I get to lump him in with all the other idiots,” he said.

Adelia stopped in her tracks and turned to face him. “Gabe, why were you waiting for me? And why are you walking home with me? If we were sixteen, I’d say you were angling to carry my schoolbooks.”

He laughed at that. “If I’d known you back then, I probably would have been.” He pulled the now-rumpled yellow pages from his back pocket. “I thought I could look over these projects of yours and try to get a handle on what needs doing first.”

For a few minutes, Adelia had forgotten all about the renovations and his assignment to take them on.

Gabe was studying her with unmistakable amusement. “Did you forget about these?”

“Temporary lapse,” she assured him.

“Is this a bad time? If you have a date or something...” His voice trailed off as he studied her speculatively.

“No date,” she responded tersely. “And this is as good a time as any. I should warn you, though, that my mother’s at the house with the kids. That might ensure that you’ll get an invitation to a good meal, but it will also come with a lengthy interrogation.”

“I made it through your brother’s. I imagine I can handle whatever your mother asks.”

Adelia regarded him with alarm. “Elliott interrogated you? When?”

“On the day we were looking for Selena. He came by the construction site that evening. He told me he was there to apologize for the way he’d reacted when we stopped by the gym, but it was evident he wanted to clarify a few things for me.”

“Such as?”

“My intentions. His concerns. That sort of protective guy stuff.”

Adelia groaned. “He didn’t! I may have to kill him. He had no business getting in your face like that.”

“Oh, he thought he was being subtle about it, but men are rarely as subtle as they’d like to think when they’re warning people off. I got the message.” He shrugged. “Then we went out for pizza.”

“Men!” she said, shaking her head.

“He just wanted me to know you have someone looking out for you. I don’t imagine he realizes he’s not the only one.”

“Who else?” she asked before she could stop herself.

“Mitch chimed in just a couple of hours ago. He also said there’s some group of women in town, the Sweet Magnolias I think he called them. He said they’d have my hide if I hurt you.”

Adelia actually laughed at that. Though she wasn’t an actual member of that unofficial group of women, she certainly knew them all. She also knew their reputation for protecting their own with a ferocity that was a little terrifying to any rational man in town.

“And yet here you are,” she said. “Risking life and limb by walking through town with me.”

“Darlin’, there are some things worth taking an occasional risk for,” he said.

Then he very deliberately added a wink that rocked her nice, safe world. Adelia actually thought her heart might have come to a complete standstill for a few seconds.

And that, she concluded, should be sufficient warning to send her right back to where her day had started, knowing that she needed to avoid this man at all costs.

CHAPTER FIVE

Gabe got one whiff of the aromas coming from Adelia’s kitchen and decided that any interrogation that might lie ahead would be well worth it, as long as he was invited to stick around for dinner. Adelia must have noticed that he was practically drooling, because she chuckled.

“Let me put you out of your misery,” she said. “Would you like to join us for dinner?”

“Yes,” he said so quickly that it immediately brought a deepening smile to her lips.

“You haven’t even met my mother yet,” she reminded him. “Are you sure?”

“Not a doubt in my mind.”

“Either you’re sick of pizza or you’re a very brave man.”

Gabe laughed. “Probably a little of both with some curiosity thrown in.”

“Curiosity?”

He nodded. “I find myself wanting to meet the woman who can fill this house with such incredible aromas and yet make grown men cower. That’s an impressive combination. It’ll be interesting to discover if you two are anything alike.”

Just then the very woman in question, diminutive in size but with the regal bearing of a matriarch used to respect, came out of the kitchen.

“I thought I heard voices,” she said, regarding Gabe speculatively. “I don’t believe we’ve met.”

“Mother, I’d like you to meet Gabe Franklin,” Adelia said.

Mrs. Cruz’s eyes narrowed. “I believe my son has mentioned you.”

“Uh-oh,” Adelia murmured under her breath.

“He probably has,” Gabe said easily. “Elliott and I had dinner just the other night.”

Mrs. Cruz’s eyes lit with amusement at his interpretation of the encounter. “I hardly think my son’s choice of a dinner companion would have stuck in my mind. I believe it was his comment that we needed to keep an eye on you around Adelia. Do we?”

“Mother!” Adelia said, blushing furiously. She turned to him. “I warned you. There’s still time to make a run for it.”

“Not a chance,” he replied. Since Mrs. Cruz didn’t seem to harbor any particular biases toward him, Gabe figured he’d passed some sort of test with Elliott, if not yet with her. He was eager to see how the evening might play out. He couldn’t help it. Challenges always caught his interest.

“Gabe is here to check out the work I want to have done on the house,” Adelia explained quickly. “I’ve invited him to join us for dinner.”

“If it’s not an imposition,” Gabe told the older woman, drawing on manners he’d picked up from watching the way civilized people behaved, rather than any examples that had been set in his home.

“It’s not an imposition at all,” Mrs. Cruz said. “I have a large family. I cook accordingly. There’s always more than enough for company. Dinner will be ready in a half hour, if that will give you time to look around at the renovations my daughter has in mind.”

“Absolutely,” Gabe said, relieved to have passed the initial screening at least.

Somehow, though, he wouldn’t be one bit surprised to find Elliott and heaven knew how many other members of the Cruz family joining them at the table.

* * *

Adelia took one look at her mother’s face and decided that giving Gabe a personal tour to go over her notes would be preferable to the cross-examination she was likely to receive if she joined her mother in the kitchen, even long enough to apologize for bringing home a last-minute guest. She realized there was a certain irony in the fact that she was more intimidated by the thought of answering her mother’s penetrating questions than Gabe was. Of course, she’d had experience that he didn’t share.

“Let’s start outside,” she suggested to Gabe. “I think I saw a ladder in the shed, if you want to check out the roof. Mother, you don’t need my help, do you?”

Her mother gave her a knowing look. “Of course not. The girls are helping. It’s time they learned their way around a kitchen. I left Selena stirring the sauce for the enchiladas. Knowing how distracted she gets by those text messages she receives every couple of minutes, I’d better check on it before it burns.”

Adelia frowned. “She’s not supposed to be using her cell phone these days.”

Her mother looked startled. “I see. She didn’t mention that.”

“I’d better go in there and deal with this,” Adelia said.

Her mother waved her off. “I can handle it.”

“Thanks,” Adelia said, relieved not to have to force yet another confrontation with her daughter or get caught in her mother’s crosshairs.

Adelia avoided Gabe’s gaze as she led the way to the backyard. When she finally risked a glance, she found his eyes sparkling with barely concealed mirth.

“When did I become the lesser of two evils?” he asked.

“In the past five minutes,” she said, not even trying to pretend he hadn’t hit the target with his observation. “If I’d had any idea she and Elliott had been chatting about you and me, you wouldn’t have gotten within a hundred yards of this place while she was here. I don’t need the aggravation.”

A smile spread across his face. “You’re scared of your mother,” he taunted.

“Terrified,” Adelia admitted, seeing little reason to deny it. “Why do you find that so amusing?”

“Because you’re a pretty formidable presence in your own right.”

“Formidable? Me?” she said, laughing. “Hardly. As you just heard, not even my own daughter takes my rules seriously.”

“Maybe you need to see yourself from where I’m standing,” Gabe said, his expression turning serious. “Seems to me you could hold your own with anybody, even Selena. She’s just testing the limits.”

Adelia wished she could see herself that way. After years of Ernesto’s criticism and neglect, she had a very low opinion of her own worth. She was determined to get past that, but she wasn’t there yet.

“So, what is it about your mother that intimidates you?” Gabe asked.

Adelia gave the question a moment’s thought before responding. “She has some very rigid and old-fashioned ideas about the role of women, the sanctity of marriage and in general about the relationships between men and women. I’ve been a disappointment.”

He looked skeptical. “I didn’t hear even a hint of judgment in her voice, just concern.”

“You haven’t had the practice I’ve had at reading between the lines,” Adelia told him. “It’s ironic really, because on many levels, I don’t even disagree with her.”

“So you’re an old-fashioned woman at heart?”

She considered the label. It actually fit better than she’d realized. She might chafe at it, but she’d done nothing in her life that would indicate she’d broken that particular mold. Until very recently she hadn’t even been sure she wanted to. It was only lately that she’d come to appreciate the value of independence and self-sufficiency.

“In some ways, I suppose I am old-fashioned,” she said. “I liked being a stay-at-home mom and wife. I thought marriage vows meant forever.” She shrugged. “I’ve just come to accept that some marriages can’t be saved.”

She shuddered at the memory of the day she’d broken the news of her intention to divorce Ernesto. “You have no idea how much courage it took for me to tell my devoutly Catholic mother that I was leaving my husband. That brought on a huge family intervention that entailed quite a bit of yelling and a host of recriminations about how I’d failed the test as a dutiful wife.”

Gabe regarded her with surprise. “She disapproved, even under the circumstances?”

“At first I was too humiliated to admit the reason, so she vehemently disapproved. When I was finally persuaded to tell her everything, it took some adjustment on her part, but she actually turned out to be surprisingly supportive.”

“And the rest of the family?”

“Elliott and his wife have been incredible,” she said. “The others, not so much.” She held up a hand. “Could we drop this? It’s more than you ever really wanted or needed to know about my personal life, I’m sure.”

Gabe looked as if he wanted to argue about that, but he nodded and gestured toward the shed. “The ladder’s in there? Is it locked?”

“No, it’s open.”

She took a deep breath and fought for composure while he got the extension ladder and put it against the side of the house. No sooner had he started up to the roof, than Tomas spotted him and came running across the yard.

“Who’s that?” he asked, staring after Gabe. “Can I go up on the roof with him?”

He already had one foot on the bottom rung when Adelia clamped a hand on his shoulder. “Not now,” she said firmly. “Let Gabe do his job.”

Tomas stared up at the roof, his disappointment plain. “But what’s he doing?”

“Looking to see what kind of shape the roof is in and what it will take to fix it,” she said.

Tomas frowned. “Do we know him?”

“I do,” she said. “You remember Mitch Franklin?”

“The man who’s fixing all those stores on Main Street,” Tomas said. “He’s married to the cupcake lady.”

Adelia smiled at the characterization. Clearly baking cupcakes was more memorable to Tomas than Lynn’s name. “Exactly. Gabe is his cousin. He works for Mitch.”

“Is he gonna do anything else here?” he asked, his curious gaze still fixed on Gabe, who was scrambling over the steep roof with the agility of a mountain goat.

“Lots of things,” Adelia said. “He or the people who work for him are going to do all those things on that list we made.”

“Like paint my room?”

She smiled at his sudden eagerness. “That’s definitely on the list,” she agreed.

“Will he let me help? Mitch let Jeremy help when he was working at Raylene’s.”

“I’m sure he’ll try to find some things you can do,” Adelia said, hoping that would be the case. She was sure Tomas would start to feel better about this new home if he had even a tiny role to play in making the necessary improvements. “You have to promise, though, to do exactly what Gabe or any of the other professionals tell you to do and never to do anything involving tools without supervision.”

“Promise,” Tomas said, his attention already wandering as he saw Gabe descending the ladder. He scampered over to wait for him.

“Hi,” he said, startling Gabe so badly he almost missed his footing. “I’m Tomas.”

Gabe steadied himself, then held out a hand. “I’m Gabe,” he said. “Are you the man of the house?”

Tomas looked surprised by the question, but Adelia saw his chest swell just a little as he realized that was exactly what he was. “Since my dad’s not here, I am.”

“Then I’ll be sure to talk things over with you when I start working around here,” Gabe promised him, winking at Adelia over his head.

“I don’t imagine he’ll give you much choice,” she told Gabe. “Tomas wants to be part of your crew, that is, if you can find anything for him to do that isn’t too dangerous.”

“Mom! I’m not a baby,” her son protested.

“Of course not,” Gabe was quick to say. “But you are inexperienced, or am I wrong about that? Have you built a house before?”

Tomas giggled. “No.”

Gabe nodded solemnly. “Then in that case, you’ll learn on the job.”

“I can do that,” her son said with enthusiasm. “I’m a quick learner. I get really good grades in school and I hardly have to study at all.” He made a face. “Except spelling. I’m bad at spelling.”

“We’ve all struggled with that on occasion,” Gabe said.

Tomas looked surprised. “Even you?”

“Even me,” Gabe said. “Why don’t you show me these things that are on your mom’s list? This is man’s work, after all.”

Adelia might have taken offense at that if Tomas hadn’t looked so excited at being included among the men on this particular job.

Smiling, she said, “I’ll leave you to it, then. Make sure you’re in the dining room for dinner in fifteen minutes,” she told them both. “Abuela doesn’t like dinner getting cold.”

Tomas nodded at once, then confided to Gabe. “Abuela makes the best food ever!”

“I’ll bet she does,” Gabe said. “I’m looking forward to it.” He glanced at the list, found the next item—painting the bedrooms—and suggested that Tomas lead the way.

As they went into the house, she heard her son chattering away, sounding happier than she’d heard him in weeks.

Left with no other alternative, she went into the kitchen and found all three of her girls dealing with various assignments while her mother watched over them. Natalia was putting rice into a bowl almost as big as she was. Juanita, her tongue caught between her teeth and a frown of concentration on her forehead, was carefully pouring steaming, fragrant black beans into another bowl.

“Sounds to me as if you just made Tomas’s day,” her mother said, regarding her approvingly. “What do you know about this man? Is he a good role model?”

“I can’t really say,” Adelia admitted. “But he was very kind to Tomas just now. If he hadn’t been, if he’d shown any hint of impatience, I wouldn’t have left them alone.”

“And is he equally kind to you?” her mother asked quietly, the question spoken low enough that she wouldn’t be heard over the girls’ squabbling.

“He doesn’t need to be kind to me. He just needs to get the work done,” Adelia replied.

“I spoke to your brother just now and mentioned that Gabe was here.”

“Thanks for that,” Adelia said dryly. She should probably expect a visit or call from her protective brother no later than tomorrow.

Her mother ignored the hint of sarcasm in her voice and told her, “Elliott still seems to think there might be more to his interest than any work he might do around here.”

“My brother has stars in his eyes these days,” Adelia said in a tone that made light of Elliott’s opinion. “Karen has made him very happy with their life as a family.”

“One thing has nothing to do with the other,” her mother insisted. “He’s concerned for your happiness. We all are.”

“I’m happier than I have been in years,” Adelia said. Even as the words tumbled out just to divert unwanted attention, she realized they were actually true. Her life might not be perfect, but it was a whole lot better than the lie she’d been forced to live with Ernesto. Better yet, her happiness was within herself and not tied to any man.

* * *

Gabe couldn’t ever recall having a meal that came with quite as much commotion as the one he was sharing with Adelia and her family. The good news was that it was impossible for them to share a single private word. That was the bad news, as well.

Still, he liked seeing her up close like this with her family. Her daughters, well, the younger two, anyway, had plenty to say, talking over each other in an attempt to get not only their mother’s attention, but his. To do that, though, they had to compete with Tomas, who’d managed to sit beside Gabe and asked more questions than Alex Trebek in a year’s worth of Jeopardy episodes. Gabe noted that Adelia seemed amused and showed not the slightest inclination to rescue him.

Mrs. Cruz, however, did chime in from time to time to remind her grandson to give Mr. Franklin time to breathe.

Tomas regarded her blankly. “He is breathing,” he said, looking puzzled. “Wouldn’t he die if he wasn’t?”

Adelia laughed, and the light sound echoed in the room in a way that drew the attention of even Selena, who looked as if she hadn’t heard that laugh in a while. The teen stared at her mother with evident surprise, then turned a scowl on Gabe, as if she didn’t like him being even indirectly responsible for her mom’s brighter mood.

Selena started to push back from the table, but at a pointed glance from her grandmother, she hesitated. “May I be excused?” she asked.

Adelia frowned at the request. “You haven’t finished your meal.”

“I’m not hungry. Please.”

“Let her go,” Mrs. Cruz said.

After Selena had run upstairs, Adelia turned to her mother. “Any idea what that was about?”

Mrs. Cruz looked in his direction. “I have some idea.”

As her implication registered, shock settled on Adelia’s face. “But there’s nothing...” She regarded him with dismay. “Gabe, I’m sorry.”

“Maybe I should go,” he said, not wanting to be the cause of dissension between Adelia and her daughter, even inadvertently. Maybe it was time for him to go, anyway. He’d been enjoying the whole meal—and the company—a little too much. It would be easy to get comfortable here, a little too alluring to experience how real families interacted. With his cousin’s recent warning still echoing in his head, he knew what a bad idea that would be.

“Not before you’ve had dessert,” Mrs. Cruz said adamantly.

“Abuela made flan,” Natalia said excitedly. “She hardly ever makes it anymore. It’s the best. And she let us help.”

Gabe could see how proud she was of herself. “Do you think it’ll be as good as if she made it herself?” he teased.

“It’ll be even better,” Juanita said firmly. “We made it with love.”

Gabe had to hide his desire to chuckle at her repetition of something she’d obviously heard often.

“And do you think I haven’t always made it with love?” Mrs. Cruz inquired with feigned indignation.

“Uh-oh,” Adelia said. “Do you think you might have hurt your grandmother’s feelings?”

Juanita studied her grandmother closely, then shook her head. “No, she’s just teasing,” she declared.

“I think so, too,” Natalia chimed in.

Gabe laughed at their solemn expressions. “Then I think I definitely have to try this flan you’ve made with such love,” he said. He turned to Adelia with what he hoped was a believably quizzical expression, then whispered, “What is flan?”

Mrs. Cruz and Adelia both chuckled at the question. Even the girls giggled.

“Girls, clear the table and let Abuela bring in the flan, so Mr. Franklin can find out for himself why it’s your favorite dessert,” Adelia said. “The best way to learn about flan is to experience it.”

Tomas pulled on Gabe’s sleeve until he leaned down.

“It’s like custard with caramel,” Tomas confided. “You’re gonna love it.”

“I’ll bet you’re right,” Gabe said, glancing across the table at Adelia. “There’s been nothing about this meal so far that I haven’t loved.”

And that just about scared him to death.

* * *

It was late on Monday afternoon before Gabe had time to sit down with Mitch and go over his estimates for the work Adelia wanted done. There’d been one crisis after another all day long on the Main Street job. Add in his cousin’s distraction thanks to some other job he was handling across town and they hadn’t exchanged more than a couple of words all day.

He was sitting at his makeshift desk on the construction site when Mitch wandered in after six.

“You look beat,” Gabe said, frowning. “Why don’t you go on home? This can wait.”

“I need to unwind a little before I head home,” Mitch said. “Going over those figures with you should do the trick.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want your wife on my case for making you late for dinner.”

“It’ll be at least another hour before we eat. Lynn’s gotten in the habit of taking a nap once she closes the bakery and gets home. Being up at the crack of dawn is wearing on her more than she wants to admit.” He managed a weary grin. “She doesn’t think I know about the naps, but I’ve caught her a time or two.”

“She doesn’t know that?”

Mitch shook his head. “I slip right back out the door. She wants to believe it’s her little secret. If I say something, then we’ll wind up fighting over whether the bakery’s too much for her or when she needs to think about hiring some help. It’s her business and her decision. Anything I say is bound to come off as interference.”

Gabe regarded his cousin with surprise. “How’d you learn so much about women? It’s not as if you dated a ton of them. You went from that secret crush you had on Lynn in high school—”

“It can’t have been much of a secret if you knew about it,” Mitch grumbled.

“Please, you started wearing your heart on your sleeve in junior high,” Gabe said. “Then you married Amy. Where did all this profound knowledge of yours come from?”

Mitch laughed. “Observation and self-preservation. Any man intent on staying married has to figure out all the clues to keeping his wife happy. Unfortunately, a whole lot of them are left unsaid. It complicates things.”

Gabe could believe that. He’d failed to understand a whole lot of women over the years. He’d never had the will to work on getting it right with a single one of them. He had a feeling Adelia could be an exception.

Mitch beckoned for Gabe’s notes on Adelia’s renovations. “Looks as if you’ve got everything covered,” he said.

“Except labor,” Gabe pointed out. “I didn’t know if you were figuring on bringing in one of your crews, assigning a single guy for most of it or what?”

“It’ll be cheaper if it’s done by one person,” Mitch said.

“But it’ll take longer,” Gabe replied.

“Has she said anything about being in a hurry?”

“No, but people usually are,” Gabe said.

“Maybe that’s something you should discuss with her before we finalize this,” Mitch said, then gave him an innocent look. “Of course, with the exception of the roof, a lot of this could be handled in your spare time. Not that you wouldn’t get paid,” he added hurriedly. “I’m just saying, it might be a project you wouldn’t mind tackling.”

Gabe knew exactly what Mitch was up to. “Don’t you think I have my hands full keeping up with this Main Street project?”

“Sure you do,” Mitch said at once. “Especially since I’ve seen the way you throw yourself into your work. I’m just saying that this primary job doesn’t have the same perks.”

“Perks?”

“Adelia,” Mitch said, unsuccessfully fighting a smile. “Meals with the family.”

Gabe stared at him incredulously. “How did you know about my staying for dinner the other night?”

“Tomas told Jeremy all about it,” Mitch said, laughing.

“Who knew little boys could spread gossip that fast,” Gabe complained. “I thought that particular trait was reserved for the adults in town.”

“Tomas already has a bad case of hero worship,” Mitch said. “I remember what that was like. Jeremy followed me around more than once when I was working at Raylene’s. Boys their age need role models, Gabe. Even ignoring the way he treated Adelia, I doubt Ernesto Hernandez was much of one.”

Gabe had the same impression. Tomas was a little too hungry for someone to teach him guy stuff.

“I’m not sure I’m cut out for the role,” Gabe said.

“Sure, you are. If you weren’t, Tomas wouldn’t have been telling Jeremy all about you. Obviously you handled the situation just right.”

“Sure, I answered his questions. I taught him a couple of basic things, but that’s not the same as being a role model for an impressionable kid,” Gabe argued. “Heck, even some of the jerks my mom dated were nice to me when they thought they had something to gain from it. That doesn’t mean I should have aspired to be like a single one of them.”

“Definitely not,” Mitch agreed readily. “But you learned from that, Gabe. You’ll try real hard to be a good influence on Tomas.”

“Why do I have the feeling that you think the kid’s going to be as much of an influence on me as I am on him? Do you think I’ll stay on the straight and narrow because of him?”

Mitch frowned at that. “To my way of thinking, you’ve never been that far off the straight and narrow in anyone’s mind but your own, but, yes, I think you’ll be good for each other. I think you need to start to see yourself as more than a rolling stone. You seem to have this crazy idea that you don’t deserve to find real happiness, the kind that can last.”

Gabe couldn’t deny that Mitch had nailed it. He’d never seen himself as a good bet for happily-ever-after. The only examples he’d had—Mitch’s side of the family—had certainly never given him much reason to believe in himself.

“And Adelia? How do you see her fitting in?” he asked his cousin.

Mitch gave him a considering look before saying, “Any way you want her to, I imagine.”

Unfortunately, the way Gabe envisioned her fitting into his life had a little too much to do with toppling into his bed than it did with the straight and narrow.

CHAPTER SIX

For some reason it seemed as if every woman in Serenity had chosen today to shop at the boutique. Many of the women were contacts Adelia had made through her school committees. They’d come to rely on her fashion sense, more than doubling the boutique’s business since she’d started working there.

Adelia closed the register after the last sale just past lunchtime and drew in a satisfied breath. She was exhausted, but it had been an excellent morning. Raylene was going to be over the moon when she saw the receipts.

Of course, today all those sales had come with a surprising number of questions about Gabe Franklin. Apparently word had already spread that Adelia had the inside scoop on the sexy construction guy who’d just returned to town. Since most of the women asking questions were married, she was a little surprised by the level of curiosity.

She’d managed to skirt the most intrusive questions by diverting attention to a new line of accessories and liberally tossing around compliments about the way the outfits being tried on fit perfectly or suited the customer’s coloring. Because she’d developed a knack for sincere flattery and a reputation for her own personal style, which she’d always achieved on a budget, her tactics mostly worked.

“Nice job,” Raylene said, startling her by emerging from the office in back.

“How long have you been here?” Adelia asked.

Raylene grinned. “Long enough to realize you could qualify for work at the State Department with those diplomatic skills you possess.”

Adelia laughed. “I was dancing as fast as I knew how. Who knew that even the married women in this town were so interested in the latest gossip?”

Raylene gave her an incredulous look. “Oh, please, it’s the town hobby,” she said. “Fed by Grace Wharton and, though I’d never say it to her face, by Sarah over at the radio station. She and Travis do their part to stir the pot by announcing some of the juiciest tidbits on the air. Heck, they even invite Grace to drop by just to make sure their listeners always know the latest.”

“Doesn’t anybody ever consider going to the source?” Adelia asked in frustration. Of course, she’d been relieved at one time that no one had come directly to her when her marriage was crumbling.

Raylene looked amused. “Are you suggesting that people just ask Gabe whatever they want to know about him?”

“Well, he is the one with all the answers,” Adelia replied. “I’m an innocent, uninformed bystander.”

“But it’s so much more fascinating to see how many of those answers you’re already privy to,” Raylene explained. “Were you really bothered by it? You know most of these women adore you. They’re not just being nosy. They’d really like you to be happy after all you’ve been through.”

“And they think Gabe is the answer?” Adelia asked. “Even though they profess to know nothing about him? One or two even seem to recall something about him being a troublemaker back in the day.”

Raylene chuckled. “Who doesn’t love a bad boy?” she asked. “Who cares what happened back then, anyway? The man is a serious hunk. He has a smile that makes women weak in the knees. I’d say that makes him a good candidate.”

“For what? A fling?”

Her boss winked at her. “No woman I know deserves to have fun more than you do. Why not?”

Adelia gave her a horrified look. “I have children. I have responsibilities. Flings were Ernesto’s thing, not mine.”

“Do not tell me the thought of letting a sexy man show you just how desirable you are has never crossed your mind,” Raylene said. “You’ll disappoint me.”

“Never,” Adelia said staunchly, then thought of the way that smile of Gabe’s made her toes curl. “Well, hardly ever.”

Raylene laughed. “Thank goodness. I was getting a little worried there.”

“But it’s a fantasy,” Adelia insisted. “I’d never act on it. My children need one parent with a sense of decorum. And if I did happen to lose my head and my self-control, I’d certainly never spread the news all over Serenity.”

“Not even to rub it in Ernesto’s sorry face?”

The thought of retribution did hold a certain appeal, Adelia thought, then immediately dismissed the idea. The momentary satisfaction wouldn’t be worth the potential humiliation of having her children hear about it.

“Not even then,” she said, though she couldn’t keep a tiny hint of regret out of her voice. Determined to change the subject, she studied Raylene. “You’re actually glowing. Pregnancy obviously agrees with you. How are you feeling?”

“The morning sickness seems to be over with, knock on wood. I feel pretty darn amazing.” Her expression brightened. “We’re going to find out the sex of the baby next week. At least I am. Carter’s on the fence. He claims he wants to be surprised.”

“You don’t believe him?”

“Maybe I would if he hadn’t bought four gallons of paint in various colors for the nursery this past weekend. If ever a man needed to have an idea whether he’s having a son or daughter, it’s my husband,” she said, then confided, “I think he’s secretly hoping for a boy.”

“What makes you think so?”

“Three of those four gallons of paint were in different shades of blue,” Raylene said with a smile. “It makes sense, too. He’s been guardian to his two younger sisters for several years now. It would be natural for him to want to raise a son.”

“How about you? Do you care?”

Raylene shook her head. “I’m just so thrilled to have a man like Carter in my life after the disaster of my first marriage and to be having a child I’d never expected to have, I honestly don’t care. The girls were already in their early teens when Carter and I met, so it’s not as if I’ve had baby girls in my life. But Carter’s so amazing with all the kids in town. He spends a lot of his spare time helping Cal Maddox and Ronnie Sullivan coach all the sports teams. I’d love to watch him teaching his own son how to do all those little boy things.”

Adelia smiled at Raylene’s wistful expression. Then her friend sighed.

“The girls are rooting for a niece,” Raylene admitted. “They came home the other day with a tiny pink outfit that they’d bought with their babysitting money. When I suggested perhaps they should have waited till we know for sure, they looked as if I were betraying them by even considering the possibility it could be a boy. They love that women are the dominant force in our household. They don’t want to see the odds evened, not even a little bit by a kid who won’t even be able to talk for a year or so.”

Adelia could hardly relate to the excitement in Raylene’s voice. She wished she’d shared that sort of excitement with Ernesto during her pregnancies. His daughters had been a disappointment to him. By the time Tomas had been born, he’d lost all interest.

“I am so happy for you,” she told Raylene. “You deserve this.”

Raylene laughed. “I really do, don’t I? It took a long time to get past my ex’s abuse and the agoraphobia that kept me a prisoner in my own home.” She shook her head. “My gosh, I sound like I lived through my own personal soap opera.”

“You did,” Adelia said. And every time she thought of what she’d been through with her cheating husband, considering Raylene’s past helped her to put it into perspective. No matter a person’s own difficulties, there was always someone who’d been through something just a little worse and survived. It was good to remember that.

“You know what?” she said. “I think we deserve a little celebration. Why don’t I run next door and get some decaf or tea, if you’d prefer, and a couple of cupcakes?”

“I’m all in favor of cupcakes, but what are we celebrating?” Raylene asked.

“Survival,” Adelia replied at once.

Sometimes, she thought, she didn’t give herself half enough credit for that.

* * *

At Sweet Things, Adelia was studying the cupcake display case, trying to make a decision, when Sarah McDonald came in.

“I need caffeine,” she announced with an edge of desperation in her voice. “I just finished a double on-air shift at the radio station.” She sighed heavily, then retracted her order. “Make it decaf.”

“You need more than coffee, with or without caffeine,” Lynn told her. “I’ll bet you haven’t eaten all day. Pick out a couple of cupcakes on the house.” She glanced at Adelia. “You, too.”

“You can’t be giving away your inventory,” Adelia protested, her business instincts kicking in.

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