“Then tell him.”
“I did. He didn’t believe me.” Megan rubbed her forehead. “I have to figure out a way to show him that I believe him. But I don’t know what to do.”
“It’s going to have to be something pretty big. I mean, the man did just buy the town center for you.”
Megan blinked. “He didn’t buy it for me. He bought it for the town.”
Ramona chuckled. “I’m pretty sure your involvement went a long way toward swaying his decision.”
Megan dropped her head into her hands. “If that’s true, now I feel worse.”
“You’d better find a way to make it up to him soon. There’s nothing worse than living with regret.”
“Trust me. I don’t want to live with this feeling any longer than I have to.”
Megan slowed to an easy jog along the sidewalk three blocks from her home. She’d pushed herself during her New Year’s Eve jog this Tuesday morning, adding an extra mile to her workout. The air was cool against her heated cheeks. Sweat dripped incongruously from her brow. She’d hoped the exercise would clear her thoughts and help her come up with a plan to win back Ean. But her mind had remained painfully blank.
Her gaze slid toward Doreen’s house. Was Ean inside? Maybe she should cross the street and check. Doreen was probably awake. She wouldn’t have to ring the bell. She could just knock....
“Megan McCloud, get out of the cold!” Ms. Helen’s admonishment shot like a bullet from her porch.
Megan jumped a foot above the sidewalk. She pressed her hand to her chest and stumbled to a stop in front of the older woman’s home. “Ms. Helen, you scared ten years off my life.”
“Good.” The older woman stood shivering in her doorway. “I hope I scared some sense into you, too. Now come inside before you freeze to death.”
Her muscles were still recovering from the surprise attack. Nevertheless, Megan hurried to obey Ms. Helen’s order. She wasn’t far from home, nor was she cold—thanks to her run. But the older woman was in maximum-fuss mode. Experience had taught Megan that Ms. Helen would continue to target her until Megan surrendered. She toed off her shoes before entering her neighbor’s home.
“Good Lord, child. What would your grandparents think to see you out running in the cold?” Ms. Helen continued the chastisement as she let Megan into her foyer.
The room was warm and cheerful with the holiday spirit. Christmas greeting cards were suspended from a cord Ms. Helen had tied across the top of her windows. The air was fragrant with
the scents of pine from the thick, natural Christmas tree and apples from a nearby candle.
“Ms. Helen, you worry like this every time you see me jogging in the winter.” She would have taken an alternate route home, but Megan had secretly hoped to run into Ean.
Ms. Helen grunted. “And you never listen. Come on back. I’ll fix you some tea to warm you up.”
Megan pulled off her ear warmers and tugged off her gloves. She followed her neighbor through her living and dining rooms, and into her kitchen. The older woman looked comfortable in a red velour lounge suit that picked up the healthy blush of her cheeks. Her oversized, fuzzy purple slippers were silent on her hardwood flooring.
Ms. Helen had enhanced the kitchen’s white-and-yellow color scheme with hand towels, pot holders and Christmas curtains that added the season’s green-and-red accents.
Megan settled into a chair at the table and watched her hostess prepare their tea. “Happy New Year, Ms. Helen.”
“Happy New Year to you, too, baby.” Ms. Helen spoke with her back to Megan as she pulled mugs, tea bags and sugar from her cupboards.
With a smile, Megan shook her head at the familiar exchange. “Did you have a good Christmas?”
“Oh yes. This year, all of the cousins returned to Trinity Falls with their children. They left yesterday. It was a good visit.”
Megan nodded. Ms. Helen’s relatives were scattered across the country and took turns hosting the family’s Christmas reunions. “Will they come back for the Founders Day celebration this summer?”
“They’d better.” Ms. Helen’s tone was stern. “This one’s the sesquicentennial. It’s too important to miss.”
“I hope Jack Sansbury feels the same way.”
The kettle boiled. Ms. Helen turned off the burner and poured the hot water into two mugs. “He’s the last member of the town’s founding family. He’ll come around by then.”
Megan accepted the tea from her hostess. “Thank you.”