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building. I’m Cathy. I run the Sunshine Grill there.” With a jerk of her head, she indicated the restaurant located on the first floor of the B&B.
    “I’m Izzie, and we’ve had breakfast there,” Izzie told her. “I ordered the pancakes with strawberry topping. They were good.”
    Aaron didn’t think the woman’s smile could get any bigger, but his daughter’s compliment made Cathy’s face beam. “Well, thank you, Miss Izzie. I appreciate the kind words. Hey, you look like you’re half frozen. Why don’t you bring your mom and dad inside? I’m sure there’s a fire in the hearth and hot apple cider too. And cookies!”
    Izzie jumped off the sea wall, grabbed her daddy’s hand in one of hers and Christy’s hand in the other, and then she looked up at them with pleading eyes. “Please, can we go in? Just for a little while?”
    Aaron looked at Christy. “Do you mind?”
    “It’ll be fun,” she told him. “And I’d love some hot cider.”
    “Great,” Cathy said. “Follow me.”
    As they traipsed up the steps that led to the front porch, Izzie whispered to him, “She thinks we’re a family.”
    The sheer joy in her tone warmed Aaron’s heart, and in his mind’s eye, he could easily imagine Izzie checking off another wish fulfilled on the list in her journal.
    The scent of cinnamon and apples wafted in the air as Cathy ushered them into the foyer. An old-fashioned ceramic Christmas tree sat on a round table next to a guestbook and a dish filled with red, white, and green candy ribbon.
    “There are plenty of hooks for your coats and scarves there on the wall,” she instructed. “I’m going to go put these presents under the tree before I drop them all over the floor.” She took the box from Christy and smiled her thanks. “Head on into the great room when you’re ready.”
    Christy helped Izzie out of her coat and mittens, and then pulled off her own.
    “It’s so quaint, isn’t it?” she said.
    Izzie was trying to take in everything at once. “Just like a big, ol’ dollhouse.”
    Aaron followed his daughter and Christy into the next room. He knew Izzie would go ga-ga over the vintage silver tinseled Christmas tree. And she didn’t disappoint him, practically ignoring everyone in her rush to get closer. Lit from beneath with slowly twirling lights, the tree reflected red, green, blue in a dazzling display.
    “It’s beautiful,” she said.
    Aaron swept the room with his gaze and cringed at the tragic expressions of the adults as they looked at his daughter. Their knee-jerk reactions were something he was familiar with, of course. Most people responded to her bald head and delicate appearance with the same startled and sympathetic look. Too bad practice didn’t make it any easier for him to witness.
    Christy crossed the room and squatted next to Izzie. “I’ve never seen anything quite as pretty.”
    Cathy offered him a silent apology and then said, “Everyone, this is my new friend, Izzie. This is her mom and dad, and I invited them in for some apple cider by the fire so they could warm up a bit.”
    Introductions were made; there was Heather, who owned the Lonely Loon, and Sara, who ran the sweet shop downstairs, and Sara’s friend, Greg. And then there was a quiet man who sat in the corner whose name Aaron wasn’t able to decipher above all the chatter.
    Cups of cider were served from the crock pot that kept it steamy. Aaron sipped, relishing the warm taste of cinnamon and the sweet tang of apples. He looked over at Izzie who was happily munching a wreath-shaped cookie.
    They sang carols and told funny tales on each other. Apparently, the three women had been life-long friends who had grown up here in Ocean City. About twenty minutes into the visit, Christy signaled Aaron and pointed at Izzie who had fallen asleep on the sofa.
    “Thank you so much for inviting us in,” Aaron told Cathy and the others. “But we’d better get Izzie home.”
    As gently as possible, he and