Page 19 of Moonlit Harbor Nights

“So…” Hazel waggled her eyebrows impishly. “Do you have any lucky men in mind?”

Vivian waved her hand through the air hurriedly. “No, no, nothing like that. It’s just something I’ve been thinking about lately.”

“Yeah? Are you sure you don’t have a special someone you’ve been thinking about?” Hazel was clearly teasing, but she had a look in her eyes that made Vivian think she meant the question sincerely as well.

Vivian wondered if she might be blushing a little, and she hoped she wasn’t. “I’ll let you know if anything comes of it.”

“If anything comes of what?”

“Of this whole idea! I mean, if I find someone—if I go on a date—you know what I mean.”

“Do I?” Hazel’s tone was gleeful.

“Oh, hush and eat your breakfast, please. I’m going to go glaze the rest of those scones.”

Hazel grinned as her mother stood up. Vivian laughed as she went over to the kitchen counter to start to work on the scones. As soon as her face was turned away from her daughter, she allowed herself a small, private smile of excitement.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Julia sank back against the comfortable cushions of Cooper’s couch and took a long sip of the peppermint tea that she held in her hands. She let out a sigh of contentment as she looked out the window, enjoying the sight of the vibrantly blue sky.

Her cheeks still felt flushed and rosy from the couple of hours that she and Cooper and Macey had just spent outside together. It was Julia’s day off, and after going out to breakfast together, the three of them had gone to the park and spent a lovely afternoon tramping through the snow, having a snowball fight, and playing on the playground. By the time they’d returned home, Macey was yawning like a tiny lion and clearly ready for a nap.

Cooper had offered to put her down for a nap while Julia took a break. Since Macey usually fell asleep faster if there was just one adult tucking her in instead of two—she seemed to think that both Julia and her father being there meant that it was some kind of party—Julia had agreed, and she had been sitting on the couch drinking tea for a few minutes. She felt warm and cozy, and she was looking forward to getting to spend the rest of her day with the man she loved.

Her attention was drawn to a colorful magazine resting on the coffee table. She looked down at it with interest, noting that it was a gardening magazine. It made sense that Cooper had a garden magazine subscription, because he worked for a landscaping company, she thought.

She picked up the magazine and began to flip through it, enjoying the smooth texture of the pages and the beautiful photographs. She’d always wanted to start a vegetable garden of her own, like the kind her mother had, and as she looked at the photographs of tidy, well-organized gardens, her yearning was reinspired.

“You hungry, honey?” Cooper appeared in the doorway of the living room, leaning his head in from the kitchen.

She looked up with a smile. “Yes.” She laughed. “I’m starving after all that playing around.”

“Okay, perfect, I made you a sandwich.”

Grinning, Cooper stepped into the living room, holding two plates with sandwiches on them. Julia cooed with delight and gave Cooper a big kiss when he sat down next to her.

“Sweetheart! Thank you.” She took the plate he was handing her, noticing that the sandwich was made with slices of chicken and spinach leaves. “This looks so good.”

He smiled. “I made it with that chicken we had left over from last night’s dinner. So, you kind of made this sandwich, actually.”

She laughed and took a bite out of it. The taste was fantastic—the flavors of soft, seasoned chicken blended with the crispy spinach and the crunch of whole wheat bread. There was another flavor in the sandwich as well, something creamy and nutty at the same time, and she couldn’t make it out for a moment. Then she grinned. “Is there peanut butter in here?”

“Yeah, a little bit on the bread. I had that in a sandwich from a coffee shop once, and I thought it was really good. What do you think?”

“I think it’s amazing. And I should tell Alexis about it right away.”

They both shared a gleeful chuckle, and then sat quietly together eating their sandwiches for a while.

“You’ve been reading that magazine, huh?” Cooper asked her, gesturing to the magazine that was on the couch beside her. “It’s good, isn’t it? So many helpful tips and tricks.”

“And it’s so pretty,” she said eagerly, opening it again. “Just look at that garden there. I love that they included the sketch of the plan for it. I want a garden like this someday. I’ve always wanted to start a vegetable garden, but I never could in the city. I tried to grow tomatoes in a pot one year, but my apartment never got enough light.”

“You should start one here, at my place,” he said. “We’ve got plenty of room in the backyard.”

Her heart started to beat faster when she heard his words. The fact that he’d said “we have room” was almost as exciting as the fact that he’d offered to let her start a garden in the backyard of his home. Gardens were long-lasting projects, and his offer was like a guarantee that he wanted her in his life for much longer. Maybe even?—

“What do you think?” He laughed. “You look kind of starstruck right now. I had no idea you were that excited about planting a garden.”

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