A week later, Dahlia sat with her friends drinking wine in their usual booth at Off the Vine, being bombarded with questions.

“I can’t believe we haven’t seen you in a week,” Gretchen said.

“I’ve been busy.”

“Busy canoodling with Garrett?” she teased. Maggie slapped Gretchen’s hand playfully, but then they both turned up their faces to hear Dahlia’s response.

“No, not with Garrett.” Dahlia stuck her face in her glass of wine, hoping to conceal the blush she felt heating her cheeks. “Okay, maybe some of that time has been spent with Garrett, but I’ve been working with the insurance company all week.”

“A-ha, I knew it!” Gretchen looked smug. “Maggie saw you two snuggled up on a park bench together on Wednesday. She told one of the Ladies and now the whole town is talking.”

Maggie had the decency to redden.

“The whole town?” Dahlia shook her head. Small towns.

“Sorry, I didn’t think about it before I told her,” Maggie apologized. “So how is everything going with the insurance company? We had a small fire at the café last year and it was a nightmare getting them to sign off on repairs.”

“It’s not as bad as I would have thought,” Dahlia said. “Since this was a clear-cut case of arson, they’ve eliminated the waiting period for investigation, so I should be able to start interviewing contractors next week.”

“We feel so bad for you,” Maggie said. “All that work you did and then to have this happen.”

“There’s not much I can do about it. I could not rebuild To Be Read, and leave Candle Beach, but where would that leave me?”

“And there’s Garrett to consider…” Gretchen said, for which she received a swift elbow to the mid-section from Maggie. “What?” A sly smile crept across her face.

“And you guys, and the town in general, and even Agnes,” Dahlia said.

“Agnes?” Gretchen looked perplexed. “I would think you’d happily move as far away as possible from her.”

“Well, I had the strangest conversation ever with her this week,” Dahlia said. She ate a stuffed mushroom and sipped her wine, prolonging the suspense. Gretchen’s eyes almost popped out of their sockets and even ever-calm Maggie fidgeted in her seat.

“Tell us!” Gretchen ordered. “What did Agnes say?”

Dahlia put down her drink. “She said that she never wanted to make me leave town. Before Ruth’s death, she’d promised her she’d challenge me so I wouldn’t get bored with the bookstore. Ruth suspected I’d want to sell it, and not want to be tied down, but she knew it would be good for me.”

“You’re kidding me.” Maggie downed half of her glass of wine in two long gulps. “All that was to challenge you? To make you emotionally invested in the bookstore and want to stay in town?”

“She may have taken it a bit too far.” Dahlia laughed. “But she was successful. If it hadn’t been for her meddling in everything related to the bookstore, I probably wouldn’t have given Candle Beach a chance, and wouldn’t be here today.”

“Well then,” Gretchen said, raising her drink for a toast. “To Agnes.” They clinked their glasses together.

“And to Aunt Ruth,” Dahlia said. They raised their glasses again. As the three glasses made contact, Dahlia could feel Aunt Ruth smiling down upon them.

* * *

“How’s this?” Garrett anchored the arbor in place over the entrance to the path through Aunt Ruth’s garden. He’d replaced some of the woodwork in the trellis and repainted it. The white paint shone in the sunlight, the perfect foil to the brightly colored flowers surrounding it.

“I love it.” Dahlia pressed her hands together in front of her with the tips of her fingers against her lips. “It’s perfect. Aunt Ruth would be proud of you.”

He smiled. “I’m pretty proud of myself too. I always knew those woodworking classes I took back in Seattle would come in handy.”

They’d whipped the gardens into shape together, with the refinished arbor as the last piece to complete it. She eyed the flaking exterior of the house. “Now I just have to repaint the house. Not looking forward to that.”

“Well, at least you’ll be here to enjoy it.” He came up behind her, wrapped his arms around her, and rested his chin on her head. “You don’t have any plans to leave, right?” he teased.

She elbowed him and turned around, planting a kiss on his lips. “You know very well that I have no intention of ever moving away from Candle Beach. This is my home now. And there’s a certain guy I just might miss if I left.”

“Oh really? A certain guy?” He kissed her and picked her up, depositing her on the porch swing. She laughed and pulled him down beside her on the flowered cushions.

“Yes, a very handsome guy who I happen to love very much and intend to spend a lot of time with in the future. That is, if he can tear himself away from his romance novels long enough.”

“Oh, I think that can be arranged. And who knows, the story of how we met and fell in love might work its way into a romance novel of its own.”

She stared into his eyes, allowing herself to get lost in them. “You know, I think I’d like that. As long as it has a happily ever after.”

“Of course it will. How could it not?”

She leaned against him and closed her eyes to enjoy the moment. With the warmth of the sun, the beauty of the gardens, and the man she loved beside her, she’d never felt such happiness.