Page 30 of The Wish List
“Good.”
Was it possible that one word—one syllable—could convey an entire world of meaning? Beth felt tingly all the way to her toes.
“It’s colder tonight than I expected,” she said to explain the shiver that passed through her.
“Are you joking?” Trinity placed her hands on her belly. “It’s practically balmy compared to Montana, and anyway, this little girl is like my own personal space heater. I’m always roasting with...” She paused. “Does it bother you to hear me talk about being pregnant?” She flashed an apologetic smile. “I can—”
“It’s fine, Trin.” Beth gave her a small hug. She wasn’t much of a hugger but was trying to become more comfortable with physical affection. “I can’t wait to be an auntie.”
“You’re going to be the best,” Trinity answered.
“I’ll spoil her more,” Freya offered. “Speaking of spoiling...” She patted both Timmy and Zach on the head. “The parade’s almost over. How about we head over to the hot cocoa station after this?”
The offer elicited cheers from both boys.
“Okay with you if I steal these two little elves for a few minutes?” she asked Declan, who gave an almost audible sigh of relief.
“Works for me. Be good, boys. You know your mom will ask later.”
Zach and Timmy promised, clearly not wanting to disappoint their mother.
“I’ll walk with you,” Trinity offered as Freya took each of the boys’ hands in hers. “I’m meeting some people at the funnel cake booth.”
“Meet up in front of the hardware store in an hour.” Freya winked and slid a not-so-subtle glance between Beth and Declan.
“Your sisters are fun,” Declan said when they were alone. Alone as they could be with half the town surrounding them. “I like them.”
Beth laughed softly. “Me, too, although I could do with a bit more nuance. What’s the point of leaving the two of us together?”
“Maybe we could come up with something,” he said, raising one thick brow as he swayed closer.
Was he flirting with her? Impossible. He barely even liked her. He’d seen her at pretty much her worst at the hospital, and she wasn’t certain Thanksgiving or their interaction on the street before that had been much better. Maybe they’d shared a moment the other night, but it didn’t mean anything. Did it?
“How’s Shauna feeling?” she asked, needing a neutral topic as her body continued to tingle. She rubbed her hands against her arms then smiled at a collection of dogs in festive sweaters that matched their handlers walking by in the parade. Two of the women held a sign for a local animal rescue. It was an adorable display.
“Bored and healing,” he said as he shrugged out of the oversize flannel jacket he wore. “She didn’t want to navigate tonight on crutches so stayed home to do some early gift wrapping. Thank God for online shopping, otherwise, she’d be sending me to the toy aisle. She appreciated the magazines and brownies you dropped off. You didn’t have to.”
“I wanted to thank her for decorating Mom’s room. I owe you something, too. She loves the lights and the tree.”
Beth sucked in a breath as Declan moved to drape his jacket over her shoulders. “I’m fine,” she protested automatically.
“You’re freezing, and I don’t know a lot of people in town. Nor am I much of an extrovert. You can hang out with me while your sister entertains the twins. That’s all the thanks I need.”
“Easy enough.”
Easy but not uncomplicated. If Beth were going to pick a man to have lustful feelings toward, the object of her affection would not be Declan Murphy. Yet here she was wrapped in his jacket, the scent of him tickling her senses until she felt almost woozy from it.
“Do you want hot chocolate or a funnel cake? Have any shopping to do?”
She smiled because it was cute that he looked unsure of what to do next. Maybe she wasn’t the only one overwhelmed by this unexpected connection.
“Let’s just walk. You said you’re doing work for Bill Williams at Champions? Is that part of the bar fixing business?”
“Sort of. It’s a smaller project, and in theory, I’m there because he hired Shauna to do some painting in the office and the bar’s underused kitchen.”
“That place needs way more than a fresh coat of paint.” Beth scrunched her nose. “I think it was old and run-down back in the nineties, and there have been no improvements made that I can see.”
“Right. Bill’s getting ready to retire, and he wants to sell the bar. To get the right price, there need to be some updates. The place has a lot of potential, especially with how the town is growing. I’m here so figured I could lend a hand.”
