Jake retreated into his room, the small space closing in on him. He opened the back window for some air and sat on the queen-sized bed, staring at the blank television screen on the wall.

What had just happened? Things had been going well with Maggie, and even after she’d freaked out on Christmas Day he’d expected they’d be able to patch things up. Now, there didn’t seem to be much hope of that ever happening. He loved his brother, but there wasn’t any way he could compete with a dead man.

How was he going to stay in Candle Beach now? Memories of Maggie were everywhere in town. And it wasn’t like he had anywhere else to go. He leaned down with his elbows on his knees and hung his head low. The town had started to grow on him. He’d just gotten settled here and didn’t want to leave. But did he have a choice?

As if on cue, his cell phone rang, with the readout showing an unknown caller. He tapped the answer icon. “Hello?”

“Jake Price?”

“Yes, this is Jake.”

“This is Adler Saymet from the United States Border Patrol. I’m calling about your application for a Border Patrol agent job in our Blaine, Washington office.”

He sat up straight. “Yes, sir.”

“The Senior Agent you interviewed with was very impressed with your skills and qualifications. We’d like to offer you the position. We need you up there immediately as we have a training class starting Wednesday of next week.”

His thoughts tumbled over each other. His feelings were mixed. This could be the way out of Candle Beach that he needed, but was it what he wanted?

“Can I think about it?”

The man on the other end of the line laughed. “We have thousands of people applying for every opening we get. As I said before, the position starts immediately. Are you interested in the position or should we move on to the next person on the list?”

There wasn’t much choice. He knew if he didn’t take the job offer, he’d never get another chance.

“Yes. I’ll be there.” He took down the details and hung up. Then he flopped backwards on the bed. Well, it was done. He was leaving Candle Beach—and Maggie—behind. Before he could make a permanent move to Northern Washington, he needed to get some things in Portland straightened out, including clearing out his storage unit.

Most importantly, he needed to say goodbye to Alex. He knew Maggie planned to drive down the next day to visit his parents in Portland, so he’d do it then. It wouldn’t be a forever goodbye, he’d only be five hours away when he started his new job, but it would be a major change in the relationship he’d cultivated with the boy over the last month. His stomach twinged. He didn’t want to leave Alex, but as much as Maggie said she didn’t want things to be awkward, he knew things would never be the same between Alex and him again.

He walked the mile distance to the police station and tendered his resignation to the police chief.

“I’m sorry to see you go. We don’t often get candidates with as much experience as you have.” Chief Lee looked at him with a keen eye. “Are you sure there isn’t anything I can do to convince you to stay?”

Jake drew his lips into a thin line. “I’m sorry sir, but there isn’t. Due to personal reasons, I don’t feel I can stay in Candle Beach any longer.”

“Does this have anything to do with a certain young lady?” The chief stared at him.

“It may,” Jake admitted. “But things aren’t working out with her the way I’d like.”

“I understand.” The chief clapped him on the back. “If you ever need anything, let me know. I’d be happy to provide a recommendation for you if you ever need one. In the short time you’ve been here, you’ve done excellent work.”

“Thanks, I appreciate it. I’ll miss everyone here too.”

Jake left the police station and walked out to Main Street. If he was going to leave early the next morning, he needed to make his goodbyes now.

He pushed open the door to To Be Read. Dahlia was with a customer at the counter, but she waved at him to let him know she’d seen him. He ordered a drip black coffee from the espresso bar and perused the titles in the mystery section while he waited for her to be free.

“Hey.” She tapped him on the arm. “How are things going with Maggie? Did you get everything worked out?” She stared at him expectantly.

“No.” He breathed deeply. “Actually, she broke up with me. That’s the reason I came by. I’m leaving town to take a job with the Border Patrol. I wanted to thank you and Garrett for being so welcoming. I’ve truly enjoyed being here in Candle Beach.”

Dahlia’s smile faded and her expression became puzzled. “Oh. I’m sorry to hear that. She hasn’t said anything to Gretchen or me about there being any issues. Are you sure you didn’t misunderstand her? I’d hate for you to leave here. I know she cares deeply about you.”

He laughed harshly. “Oh yeah. She was quite clear.” He pursed his lips. “The truth is, she’s not over my brother.” He sighed. “I understand her position, I just wish I’d known before I fell in love with her.”

Dahlia’s eyebrows rose and her mouth dropped open. Jake immediately realized what he’d said.

“I shouldn’t have said that. I should have known she wasn’t ready for anything serious. But she’s so darn wonderful, I couldn’t keep myself from falling for her.”

She laughed. “I know the feeling. The same thing happened to me with Garrett. I didn’t think I was ready for a relationship until it practically bit me on the rear.”

“Well, in your case, Garrett wasn’t attached to someone else.” He put his hand on her arm for a moment. “Anyways. Thanks. I’ve appreciated your friendship.”

His next stop was the property management company.

Gretchen looked up from her desk with surprise. “Jake. I didn’t expect to see you.”

“I’m only here for a minute. I wanted to tell you I was leaving town.”

She cocked her head to the side. “Does Maggie know?”

“No. But I think she’ll be relieved I’m going. She broke up with me about two hours ago.”

Gretchen stood to hug him and then sat down on the edge of her desk. “I can’t believe it. She seemed so happy.”

“That’s what I thought.” He shrugged. “But I guess appearances are deceiving.”

“She turned down the opportunity to buy the Sorensen farm too. She just called me about an hour ago.”

He narrowed his eyes at her. “What do you mean? Did the prior offer fall through?”

She nodded. “It did. But Maggie said she couldn’t risk everything to buy it. I was surprised. She seemed to really want it. Usually when Maggie wants something, she hangs onto it like a dog with a bone.”

He smiled sadly. “I know. Her tenacity is one of the things that attracted me to her.”

“Something’s going on with her, but I don’t know what. She’s not talking—at least to me. Are you sure you have to leave?”

“The job I’d applied for before coming to Candle Beach came through. If I don’t take it now, it won’t be there waiting for me.” He looked ruefully at her. “I can’t stay in Candle Beach, not without Maggie.”

“I understand. I’ll let Maggie know, okay?” She glanced at him with concern. “Did you tell Alex yet? He’s going to miss you.”

“I’m heading down to Portland tomorrow morning to see my parents and collect some of my belongings. Maggie said she was bringing Alex down there too, so I’ll see him then. Probably good to see him on neutral territory.”

She hugged him again. “We’ll miss you. Good luck with your new job.”

“Thanks.” He left the office and walked aimlessly down Main Street. Across the street, children were playing on the swings in the grassy park next to the town square. He’d planned to put down roots and spend the rest of his life in this idyllic town. When he first arrived, he’d doubted the town’s charms would affect him, but he’d grown to love the place in the short time he’d lived there. Now it would be just another place he’d lived temporarily.

* * *

Maggie threw herself into her work to forget about Jake. She planned to take Alex down to Portland to visit his grandparents for a few days and she needed to get everything sorted out at the café before she left. Hiring Angel had made things easier, but she didn’t yet have Bernadette’s experience as Maggie’s right-hand woman, so she’d had to string together a team to manage the place in her absence. Luckily, she’d gotten the schedule finalized and everything seemed to have fallen into place.

That was, until Velma cornered her next to the schedule hanging on the café’s kitchen wall.

“I just saw the schedule for Sunday.” She stabbed at the paper with a gnarled finger tipped with red fingernail polish. “I told you I can’t work Sunday mornings. I have church.”

Maggie took a deep breath. “I know. That’s why I didn’t schedule you for Sunday morning.”

“But you did.” The old lady put her hands on hips and glared at her.

Maggie ran her finger along the schedule for the next week. Shoot. Velma was right. Somehow, she’d switched Velma and Denise on the chart and now Velma was slotted in for the Sunday morning shift. Normally, she’d never have made that type of mistake. It reinforced her decision to break things off with Jake and forget about the catering center for now. With so many balls in the air at all times, she couldn’t afford to let any of them drop.

“I’ll work with Denise to figure it out. I’m sure she won’t mind. She likes to have evenings off.”

“I never should have been on the schedule for that day.” Velma glared at her. “I’ve been working here for twenty years and it never happened when Gus owned the place.”

“I’m sorry. It was an accident and I’ll fix it.” Maggie smiled at the older woman through gritted teeth. Their conversation had been overheard by half the kitchen staff, who now watched the exchange with curiosity.

“Too many problems around here nowadays if you ask me,” Velma said under her breath.

Maggie’d had enough. “Nobody asked you.”

Velma recoiled as though she’d been shot. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me correctly the first time. Please don’t pretend like you didn’t. If you don’t like how I run the café, you’re welcome to leave. I’d hate to see you go because we appreciate your experience, but if you aren’t happy here, don’t feel obligated to stay.” She held her breath.

Velma stared at her with eyes as big as silver dollars. “Well, I never.” She stormed out of the kitchen.

The kitchen staff clapped and cheered.

“Good job, Maggie.”

“I’ve been waiting for you to tell her off.”

Maggie blushed and nodded at them before retreating to her office and firmly closing the door. What had she just done? She’d never lost her cool with an employee before, but Velma got under her skin. Thank goodness she was going away to visit her in-laws for a few days. She needed the time away from the café and everyone else in Candle Beach. An adult trip to the Bahamas would have been preferable, but she was happy for the chance to spend some time with Alex too. It had been a while since they’d spent quality time with just the two of them, something she planned to rectify while they were on vacation.

* * *

Jake woke the next morning feeling slightly queasy but eager to move on with his life. He packed his meager belongings into his car and checked out of the room that had been his home for the last month. Driving along Main Street, he saw Lu’s Chinese Restaurant, with its brightly colored red curtains and a gold cat in the window. Had it really only been a week since he’d been there with Maggie? That evening had started out so well, but had turned rocky. But she’d come back to him after that and their relationship had been stronger.

He passed by Candle Beach Kids and remembered his first full day in town, when he’d purchased the magnetic set for Alex—and how he’d felt an even stronger magnetic pull toward Maggie when they’d experimented with the toy. That had been the day he realized he had feelings for her that extended past physical attraction.

He had to get out of this town. Every store he saw, every person he saw, held some memory of Maggie. He’d made the right decision to take the Border Patrol job, even if it had its own downfalls.

When he stopped in Centralia to eat and make a pit stop, he checked his phone. Someone had called six times and left five voicemails. Maggie. Why did she need to talk to him so badly? He thought she’d have been happy to see him go. He pressed the buttons to listen to her messages and immediately turned his car around.