Clutching her cup of tea, Penny stared wide-eyed as Colt strode across the lawn straight toward her. His intense, purposeful gaze sent a shiver down her spine, weakening her knees.
“Penny Heart…” He stood mere inches away, and she could see the nervous glint in his eyes as he asked, “Will you go out with me? On a proper date?”
Her lips parted, but no words escaped.
This was it—the defining moment. Whatever she said next would change everything.
She must have hesitated longer than she thought, because Eliza cleared her throat, drawing her awareness back to Colt’s questioning gaze.
At the tender hopefulness in his turquoise-blue eyes, warmth radiated throughout her entire body.
The man standing before her was so different from the boy she remembered. His strength of character over the last several days had surprised her in the best possible way. And despite her fears, he’d more than earned her trust… hadn’t he?
“Yes,” she finally croaked, although it sounded more like a question than an answer.
Joyful relief flickered across his face. “Great! How about this Saturday at noon, if you can get Bree to cover for you?”
“Okay.” She attempted a smile, hoping he couldn’t detect the slight waver in her voice.
He grinned, revealing the dimple in his left cheek—the one she’d grazed with her fingertips less than twenty-four hours earlier. At the sight of it, she nearly lost her breath.
Colt opened his mouth, but before he could speak, Sylvia mounted the stage. She commanded everyone’s attention in her full chef’s attire, complete with a puffy white toque askew on top of her head. In her booming theater voice, she asked everyone to take a seat.
With the same endearing glimmer in his eyes as before, Colt gestured toward the folding chairs. “Would you like to…?”
Penny’s throat went dry. Was he proposing they sit together? Right now? In front of everyone?
Glancing over her shoulder, she silently pleaded with Eliza and Cassie for assistance.
They merely grinned like giddy schoolgirls.
Beaming broadly, Eliza flapped her hand in an enthusiastic wave. “See you after the show.”
Well, they were no help. Gathering a lungful of courage, she turned to face Colt.
“Shall we?” He offered his arm.
Digging her nails into the paper cup, she hooked her free hand through the crook in his elbow, gulping as he led her toward the back row.
Her friend, and sweet shop owner, Sadie Hamilton, raised both eyebrows in surprise as they squeezed past her. Penny could feel her curious gaze follow them as they settled onto the squeaking plastic cushions.
Is this what it would be like if she and Colt officially dated? Everyone in town watching their every movement with blatant interest, waiting until he disappeared on his next grand adventure, leaving her behind?
The morose thought left a sour taste in her mouth that even the sweetened iced tea couldn’t squelch.
Smoothing the soft cotton folds of her dress over her knees, she tried to concentrate on the stage. Not on the way Colt’s bare arm gently brushed against hers as he flipped through the program.
Apparently oblivious to the spark of electricity setting her skin ablaze, he chuckled under his breath. “Looks like Eliza’s mom is playing Juliet and Friar Lawrence. Considering they’re in the same scene, this should be interesting.”
“It always is,” she said with a shaky laugh. “But I love seeing the way she reimagines everything.”
Growing up, when other kids bemoaned studying Shakespeare in school, Penny relished digging into the text, analyzing every lyrical turn of phrase. Unsurprisingly, Romeo and Juliet ranked highly among her favorite works of the Bard. The love story spoke to her conviction that all romances were really tragedies in a feeble disguise.
After her breakup with Lance—her first and only boyfriend—she’d watched every film version Hollywood ever made, reminding herself she’d been lucky her love story ended before the third act. In her case, she’d been on the verge of falling madly in love, but hadn’t lowered all her walls quite yet. Which meant her heart wasn’t completely shattered when he took the chief curator job at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, ending their blossoming relationship. But the heartbreak had been just potent enough to fortify the walls around her heart, reinforcing her long-held belief in the futility of falling in love.
Now, as she sat beside Colt, preparing to raise the curtain on their own fragile romance, she couldn’t help wondering if it was doomed before it ever began.
But deep in her heart of hearts, she desperately wanted to believe he would stay.
Penny Heart had agreed to a date! And Colt knew exactly where he wanted to take her.
Whistling to himself, he skipped up the porch steps, almost bumping into Beverly as she emerged through the front door.
“My goodness, someone’s in a good mood,” she said with a twinkling laugh.
Colt’s jubilant grin broadened.
“Either the play was exceptionally good this year or it was the company,” Beverly mused.
“Let’s just say, I don’t remember much about the play,” he chuckled. Truthfully, he’d kept stealing glances at Penny, preferring to watch her reactions than the actual performance.
“Oh, to be young and in love again,” she murmured wistfully.
Noting the faint sadness in her voice, Colt asked, “How’s Frank doing tonight?”
“It’s tough to say,” she admitted, her delicate features strained. “Physically, I’d say there’s slight improvement. But…” She trailed off, as though hesitant to explain further.
“But?” he pressed gently.
“I… I can sense him pulling away. And I don’t know why.” Her voice cracked, and Colt placed a hand on her slender shoulder.
“Hey, I’m sure it’s nothing. Men get grumpy when they aren’t feeling well. It’s scientifically proven that women handle physical ailments much better than we do.” Okay, so he wasn’t sure if that was entirely true, but it seemed to make her feel better.
“He does get awfully cranky when he has a cold. One little sniffle and you’d think he contracted the black plague.”
“See, I wouldn’t worry about it.”
She smiled softly. “I’m sure you’re right.” Making her way toward the steps, she paused, one hand on the railing. “Oh, I almost forgot… I found Timothy Heart’s obituary.”
Colt’s pulse spiked. “You did?”
“Yes, and it’s the strangest thing.” Her frown lines deepened. “It said he died in a hang glider accident. But apparently, they never found his body or the glider.”
His heartbeat stuttered to a stop. What? He must’ve misheard. “Are you sure that’s what it said?”
“Yes. Although, even as a head reporter turned editor-in-chief, Percy Flannigan never does his research. Once, he printed an entire article on killer butterflies that evolved to live off human flesh. It ruined the Butterfly Festival that year. And it all started when he overheard Bill and Mac discussing a B-rated horror film they saw at the drive-in.” She shook her head in bemusement before adding, “When it comes to obituaries, I wouldn’t be surprised if he simply asked the next of kin what happened.”
As Colt mulled over her conjecture, his mind wandered to his conversation with Penny the day they went zip-lining, recalling the similarities to the childhood story told by her father. Could it simply be a strange coincidence? It seemed unlikely.
“Is something wrong?” Beverly asked. She must have noticed his uneasy expression.
“No,” he said quickly. Until he knew more, he didn’t want to raise any alarms. “Thanks for looking into that for me.”
“Of course, dear.” Her features softened. “That girl is like a daughter to me, you know. I was married once, but we never had any children of our own.”
Colt blinked in surprise. He’d known Beverly his entire life, but didn’t remember her ever being married.
As if reading his mind, she told him, “Harold passed away before you were born. One of the many brave men who never came home from the war.”
“I’m so sorry to hear that.” He studied her in the dim porch light, imagining what she must have looked like all those years ago. Her hair, though long and coiled on top of her head, shone a delicate silver now. But her eyes—a pale, periwinkle blue—still sparkled with a youthful glow. No doubt, she was a beautiful woman at any age. A wonder she never remarried in all that time.
“Harold and I were only married six months before he deployed. But in those six months, I loved deeply enough for two lifetimes. I… I never thought that would happen again.” Her admission escaped on a breath so faint, Colt had to lean forward to catch it all.
“I can’t imagine losing the love of your life after such a short amount of time.” His chest constricted as his thoughts flew to Penny.
“It’s an agony I wouldn’t wish on anyone. And yet…” An unexpected smile tipped the corners of her mouth. “Every laugh we shared, every tender kiss, every moment that turned into a cherished memory, they’re worth so much more than the tears I cried.”
Moved by her declaration, Colt smiled past the tightness in his throat.
With a long, delicate finger, Beverly wiped an errant tear from her cheek. “Love is a gift in this life, not a guarantee. And if you’re blessed to find it, you do whatever it takes to keep it. Even when it’s hard.”
Something about the way she looked at him led Colt to believe her words of wisdom were for his benefit. “Yes, ma’am,” he said wholeheartedly.
“Good.” She dipped her head in an approving nod, like a teacher who’d finally gotten through to her pupil. “Sweet dreams, dear one.”
With a final goodbye, she turned and descended the porch steps, disappearing into the moonlit shadows.
As Colt watched her go, his mind churned with everything that had transpired.
And everything he needed to do next.
Including asking someone for a personal favor.