Page 31 of Once Upon a Summer Night

“Yes, that would be rather awful, giving you more reasons to tease me while we’re working together.”

Though, that she was joking about it seemed like a good sign. Even so, with as tired as he was, she’d better watch herself. Too much teasing, and his weary brain might not be able to control the desire that accident had lit inside him. A desire he’d been fighting for years.

*

Hannah couldn’t helpbut tease Chase about Saturday’s mishap—joking about it helped her rationalize the action. Because of course it was an accident; he’d never crossed the friend line before, so why start now? She hadn’t shared the story with her family, though, not wanting them to pick on him as well.

That, she planned to do all by herself.

“Would you expect any less? Especially when it was so”—she covered her mouth and pretended to cough—“bad.”

Chase’s eyes narrowed. “It. Was. An. Accident.”

“So you say, which does make me feel better for all the other women out there that you’ve kissed. I mean, if that’s all you got, buddy…” She grimaced then laughed.

“You think you’re funny, don’t you?”

At his arched brow, Hannah sensed someone’s patience was wearing thin. “Sorry, just trying to get you to smile. So, what update do you have for me?”

The frown left his face as he straightened and gave her a quick summary of an otherwise quiet night. She hoped for more of the same today.

“So, how did everything go with Noah yesterday?” Chase asked. “Did he survive all the cheek squeezing and endless hugs from Mia and Brooklyn while you were working?”

God bless Chase. Even exhausted, he made sure that all had gone well with Noah her first day away from him in Bourbon Falls. “He was still breathing when I got back to the farm last night, so I’m calling it a win.”

Chase laughed. “Breathing is a good thing.”

“Honestly, it sounds like he had a blast. He rambled all through dinner and well into the evening about his day, giving me the play-by-play of his time over at Mia’s. Apparently, she and Brooklyn arewaymore fun than our neighbor, Amy, who usually watches him for me when I’m at work. I’m guessing a lot of that had to do with Mia’s room full of art supplies. Noahlovesto color.”

She pulled a folder from her work bag, grinning at the memory of how proud he’d been of these drawings. There’d been one created for each member of the family, which warmed her heart. Hannah withdrew a brightly colored drawing of two stick figures—one tall, one small—standing beside a pond full of ducks.

“Here, he made this one for you.”

“Really?” Chase reached tentatively for the picture, a smile dawning on his lips.

“Yep. Told me to make sure you knew it was from him.” Hannah laughed softly. “I think he’s hoping you’ll come and feed the ducks with him again soon.”

He was quiet for a minute, a lopsided grin on his face as he studied the picture. “I can’t wait to get home and hang this on my fridge.”

“Please don’t feel like you have to,” Hannah said.

“Are you kidding me? I haven’t gotten a hand-drawn picture since Brooklyn was little. This will brighten the whole room.”

Her heart swelled. Chase always had the kindest soul. “I’ll let him know you liked it.”

“Liked it? I love it!” He looked up from the picture, eyes bright with far more energy than when she’d first walked into the room. “And I want to make sure he hears that from the both of us. Do you guys have anything going on tonight?”

“Actually, Dad’s having the attorney over for dinner. Hoping to learn if I have a snowball’s chance of keeping my little man or not.”

She traced a hand over the picture. Oh, how she hoped the adoption would go through. The not knowing was starting to eat at her. She still hadn’t told Noah about it, not wanting to worry him. Or about the daily texts she was getting from Stan Wiggman, asking how her father was doing and when they could reschedule their weekend with Noah. Coached by Aunt Faye, she’d kept her answers short and vague. If her adoption fell through, though—

“It’s going to happen,” Chase said softly, reading her mind.

She nodded, wishing with her whole being that he was right.

“Do you have anything going on tomorrow afternoon?” he asked.

“Just working at the bookstore until five.”

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