Early Sunday morning, Sage settled into her seat in The Cape Bistro’s outdoor seating cafe with her sketch pad, her pencils, and her newly broken heart. The outdoor patio area was shaded by two arbors, that currently sported hanging heaters, a few tables, and potted rose bushes as well as the newspaper box shared with the Van Buren hotel. Well, that wouldn’t be around much longer—the box, not the hotel.

Parker had seen to that.

A removable wrought iron gate edged around the perimeter gave a distinct impression of an eating space without blocking any views of the lush North Cove Gardens with its artistic plant-scapes, brick pathways, and pond. But she only stared at the blank page in front of her, frozen in the numbness of her loss, the kind that made three days feel like three years and breathing an effort.

With all the buzz around her, she’d considered eating inside, but couldn’t stand the idea of being closed in. Holing up in her apartment hadn’t been working, either. If Parker wasn’t knocking on her door, asking to talk to her as she hid tucked in the corner of her couch clutching her heart pillows, then she was lying in her bed, holding the sheets to her nose, breathing in his cologne. Sleep plagued her with dreams of him, but the day wasn’t much better. That’s what happened when you fell in love with someone who couldn’t love you back.

He’d wanted to apologize, but she couldn’t bear to see him again and then have to watch him walk away. Because he would walk away. He’d already proven that he didn’t really see her. All this time, he’d looked at her comics as a hobby instead of who she was when even to a blind person, it would have been so clear. Cape Van Buren and her views on the people were way too romantic for his jaded New York City heart.

It was what it was.

But that also meant she had to pull up her boot straps and walk ahead. She couldn’t save her grandfather’s paper, or their legacy of the comic he helped her start, but she now had a new and exciting opportunity to make him proud. So, she ignored Parker’s calls, both on the phone and in person, and tried to put one foot in front of the other.

The last Sunday paper would run today, announcing the new big, bright change for the The Van Buren Tribune, so all she had to do was get through the day, and then, maybe tomorrow, she could figure out what exactly she was going to do with the rest of her life.

“Wow, you’re really talented.” Alora tapped the blank page, then pulled out a chair and dropped into it. She had that secret little grin on her face that told everyone that her current man of the hour, Adam, had launched her day off right—and possibly more than once.

A small twinge of jealousy melted with the yearning tiptoeing through Sage’s chest. Maybe Cape Van Buren and its beautiful rocky shores weren’t her answer to finding love. Either way, seeing Alora so happy made Sage really glad that it was for so many others.

She grunted. “I’m waiting for inspiration.”

“That’s not like you. You normally just take it. I’ve seen you burst into a drawing frenzy from a weed breaking through a crack in the sidewalk.”

Suddenly, her blank sheet of paper was swiped from the table by a fuzzy muzzle.

“Hey!” She lunged to grab it back but thought better as Moby munched it into a ball then hawked it out onto the sidewalk like a spit ball.

Alora finished tying off his rope to the wooden post of the gate. “If you can’t beat ‘em…” She pulled out a chair, laughing at Sage. “That’s what he thinks of your blank page,” she said, sitting down.

Sage ran her gaze over Alora’s buttery complexion. “What are you doing here? And why did you bring Moby? He’s a menace.”

Alora quickly reached to cover the young moose’s ears. “Don’t talk about him like that. He’s sensitive. I’m looking after him for Grandie Evette.” Turning to Moby, she rubbed his nose and offered him an apple. “Forget what the mean old lady said, boy. She’s just grumpy because she’s about to go through another dry spell.”

Throwing her hands up, she made a face, then grabbed another sheet of paper from her bag. “You know what? You two can go suck it somewhere else.”

“Ooooh!” Alora crooned. “Maxine and Grandie would be wicked proud of you for that one.”

Sage looked around the patio with a shake of her head. “Speak of the devil and his possie.”

Maxine and Judge Carter were walking up with Evette and Banon Edwards. Now there was a love match she’d never expected, but the smile on the old man’s face proved the magic of it all—his smile even resembled one of joy versus strain this morning. Grandie winked at her as they took a seat at another table. She wiggled her fingers in return, then turned back to her cousin.

“What in the heck is going on here? The Cape Bistro patio is never this busy on a Sunday morning. Everyone’s usually nursing one of ShellyAnne’s magic brews from the Flat Iron Coffeehouse and walking in the park.

The newspapers disappeared one by one from the box, and she nudged Alora, who was whispering to Moby. “They’re all in for a big surprise. That’s the last print newspaper for Cape Van Buren. We’ll see just how much everyone loves it a month from now when the family’s noses are in their phones at the breakfast table instead of scouring through the paper together, making plans for the weekend.” She crossed her arms and sat back, feeling a little raw by the buzz of excitement.

Apparently, she’d been way off.

The people of Cape Van Buren not only didn’t seem to mind the announcement of the change, but by the sound of their laughter, they loved it.

Memory bubbles of her grandfather popped about her head as a heavy weight settled in her belly. All this time, she really believed her comics had made a difference, that the paper had really brought the town together.

A fool didn’t even come close to how she felt.

Pressing her lips together, she tried to ignore the jovial chatter and focus on the drawing paper in front of her, but all she saw before her was nothingness.

And to think, she’d moved here with the idea that little seaside town of Cape Van Buren held her answers to everything.

Evette’s laughter caught her attention, and she threw a glare four tables over.

“Wow, someone sure is grouchy this morning,” Alora noted.

Sage cringed. “I’m sorry. I just…”

Her friend took a big bite of a double-dipped chocolate eclair while trying to dodge Moby’s muzzle. “Just what?”

Sage looked back and forth between her cousin and the moose. Things may not have ended up as her perfect happy ending, but she was surrounded by family, and she was getting published in the same house as The Far Side. The reality of it all hit her hard.

“I was going to say, I thought the paper meant more to the community, that Grandpa Horace meant more, but you’re here. Without even being asked, you’re all here with me.”

The two women grinned. “Of course, we are.”

This time, Maxine’s satisfied chuckle met Sage’s ears.

“What in the heck? That’s it…” She shoved up from the table. “I want to know what they think is so darned funny.”

Alora pressed her lips together, but delight shone from her eyes. The kind of delight fueled by possibility and promises.

Marching over to the paper box, she inserted her money, then yanked down the door. Grabbing the paper, she shook it open and scanned through the pages. A sudden hush fell over the crowd as she turned to the last page.

The comics.

“I don’t understand.” She shook her head. There, in the place where her comic was usually displayed…was a comic.

But she hadn’t submitted one.

The colors were the same, and Edward the gorilla was almost the same, but something was different. The title read, Even Big Dumb Animals Need a Second Chance. Edward was on his knees with a pleading grin, begging at the feet of a young woman with familiar chocolate brown eyes and matching hair.

The woman was reading the Tribunel, which boasted the headline, Tribnue to Keep Sunday Print. And in one of the gorilla’s hands was a group of red heart balloons that floated above their heads.

Tears stung her lids as hope flared in her chest. With a shake of her head, she turned back toward Alora and the two couples. “What does this mean?”

And there before her, on his knees, was Parker, holding a bunch of red heart balloons. Balloons printed with I love you.

“I made a mistake,” he said with nerves in his voice that she’d never heard before. “I came here ready to hightail it back to New York as soon as I arrived, but I’d never counted on falling for a romantic cartoonist who would challenge my very livelihood.”

His bright blue eyes pleaded with her to understand. “I said the wrong thing. A stupid thing. More than once, actually.”

She grabbed his hands. “Get up.”

The crowd sucked in a breath, and Evette mewed in delight.

“You love New York. You aren’t looking for forever in Tiny Town.”

Parker cupped her face. “I am a big, dumb animal, remember? I was so focused on proving myself to my grandfather…”

They both looked at Banon who winced and gave a small nod of his head.

“Focused on saving the paper and proving that I was the best that missed what you kept trying to tell me all along. This paper brings the town together. Just look around us.”

For the first time, she really studied everyone sitting around the The Cape Bistro. Alora, Evette and Banon, Maxine and Judge Carter, Ryker and Larkin with Blayne and Jay, and even Moby were all there. And so many, many more.

They were all there because of the paper.

“But this is the last one.” She held the newsprint to her chest and sniffed.

Brushing a tear from her cheek with his thumb, he grinned. “The The Van Buren Tribune is going digital.”

Her shoulders sagged.

He continued, “Monday through Saturday. But the Sunday paper will be beefed up and remain in print so it can continue to unite this community just the way your grandpa Horace had intended. Besides, you can clearly tell from the comic, I’ve fallen for you, too. There are hearts literally floating above my head.”

Sage glanced up and grinned. She was afraid to speak, afraid to move, afraid it was all a dream. Love for Parker and her coastal paradise in Cape Van Buren washed over her, and she had to grab onto him to steady herself.

“I’ve been so miserable. You tried to call, and you stopped by, but Cape Van Buren…I…”

She closed her eyes to compose herself. “I wasn’t what you wanted. You wanted New York and probably someone with more designer on her sleeve than emotion.”

He shook his head, then pressed his lips to hers. A warm sensation of acceptance filled her heart and chest. “I want you, Sage. I want the way you see the world, the way you hope, the way you believe in the good and the happily ever afters. I was just too afraid to admit it, to disappoint you as I thought I had my grandfather.”

“And my art?”

“I’m sorry for what I said. I was a complete ass and clearly had no idea what I was talking about. Your art is brilliant.” He looked a bit sheepish. “I saw your studio.”

Her jaw dropped open as she tried to imagine him in her space, filling it up with his broad shoulders and chiseled jaw.

“I know. I’m sorry, but I’d gone back to talk to you, and you weren’t home, but the door wasn’t locked. It’s amazing, Sage. You…are amazing. The Van Buren Tribune needs the smiles you put on their faces every Sunday.”

Her heart turned over in her chest. “Even if the headliner is a gorilla named Edward?”

Parker kissed her again, and she sunk into it, ignoring the tittering “oohs” and “ahhs” all around her. “Especially with the gorilla, Edward. If things are going the way I hope they are, then he’s turned out to be the best wingman I’ve ever had.”

She wrapped her arms and heart around the man who had found his way inside and made her dreams about Cape Van Buren come true. She winked. “We need to talk about a raise. The paper’s cartoonist has her own book coming out.”

“Sage, that’s amazing!” He picked her off her feet and squeezed. “What’s it called?”

With her feet once again on solid ground—though, truth be told, she still felt like she was floating—she gave him a saucy grin. “Drawing You In. It’s about this gorilla…”

She didn’t get to finish her story because Parker silenced her with a kiss that would surely make it into next Sunday’s paper.

And with her friends and family all around her, celebrating the special blend of love that could only be found on the Cape, Sage’s own happily ever after had begun.

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Cape Van Buren

On the Cape Novels:

(Ryker and Larkin) bk 1

(Blayne and Jamie) bk 2

(Claire and Mitch) bk 3

Novellas:

Draw You In (formerly Falling for You)

International Temptation Series

A strong dose of decadence along with a side of tall, dark,

and sexy in your favorite travel destinations.

(Drago and Chase) bk 1

(Meteu and London) bk 2

Malibu Sights Series

There's no place like paradise and the happy ever afters

found in the film industry of Malibu, CA.

(Sam and Gage) bk 1

(Addi and Roque) bk 2

What Happens in Vegas Series

multi author series)

What happens when a romance convention descends upon Vegas?

A whole lot of love!

(Seven and Blake) bk 9

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