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believe I’ll be twenty-nine next month?”

    “That’s nothing, doll. I’ve got dust bunnies older than that.” Jewel Sadler threw back her head and laughed. “Sit down over here and have a cup of coffee with me. Or would you like something else?”

    “No, coffee’s fine.” Ivy sat at the table closest to the kitchen and waited while Jewel set two mugs on the table and filled them with coffee.

    “Cream and sugar are there on the table,” Jewel said. “So what do I have to do to get you to come to work for me?”

    Ivy suppressed a smile, tickled all over again at how funny Jewel looked wearing a hairnet. “Which of my parents bribed you?”

    “They just gave me a heads-up that you might come in looking for a job. And with tourist season just around the corner, I just happen to have a position for someone reliable.”

    “I’m reliable,” Ivy said. “I have a seven-year-old son to support.”

    “Right. Montana. Carolyn told me. Says he’s the spitting image of your brother.”

    Ivy nodded. “Right down to the auburn hair.”

    “Have you ever waited tables?”

    “Lots of times,” Ivy said. “I’m good at it, too.”

    Jewel looked at her hands and lowered her voice. “Carolyn also mentioned you got into some trouble. What was that all about?”

    Ivy felt the color heat her face. “I was messed up on drugs along time ago, but I’m clean now. I work hard and I’m honest. I’ve got references if you need them.” Please don’t make me tell you I was arrested for soliciting and ended up in drug rehab .

    “I can pay six dollars an hour and let you keep your own tips. Doesn’t seem like enough for a single mom.”

    “I’m surprisingly frugal.”

    Jewel’s eyes narrowed. “Tell you what, doll. I can give you thirty-two hours to start: Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday. Then when tourist season hits, I’ll give you as many hours as you want. How’s that sound?”

    Ivy nodded and forced back the emotion. “When can I start?”

    “Be here at six tomorrow morning and plan to work till two.”

    “Will my hours vary?”

    “Not that I can see. I need someone to cover breakfast and lunch.”

    “This is so great. With those hours, I’ll even be able to pick up Montana from school.”

    Jewel reached over and patted Ivy’s hand. “Good. Let me go get the papers you’ll need to fill out tonight and bring back in the morning.”

    Jewel left the dining area through the swinging doors.

    Ivy took a sip of lukewarm coffee, aware of the front door opening and closing. She turned and looked up into a pair of clear blue eyes she would have recognized anywhere.

    “Hello, Pete.”

    Pete Barton stared at her blankly for a few seconds, and then a look of recognition lit his face. “Ivy!” He came over and stood next to the table, decidedly older but handsome as ever. “I wasn’t expecting to see you. I saw your mother’s Jeep parked outside and came in to ask her if you’d arrived okay. So are you moving back?”

    “I already have.” Ivy was thinking Pete did a lousy job of masking his shock at how much she’d changed. “I start working for Jewel tomorrow.”

    “You’re going to be a waitress? ”

    “You know of anything in this town that pays better?”

    “I guess not. Well, how are you?”

    “Fine. I have a son now. Montana. He’s seven.”

    “I hadn’t heard that. So you’re divorced?”

    “More or less.” Ivy glanced around the room and lowered her voice. “Listen, something came up this morning. We need to talk…but not here.”

    Pete’s gaze was probing. “Okay. When you’re done here, walk over to the deli. We can talk in my office. Is something wrong?”

    “I’ll see you in a few minutes.”

    Pete left the café, and Ivy watched him through the window, thinking he still looked great and she was more likely to pass for his mother than his former girlfriend.

    “Here you go.” Jewel handed Ivy some papers. “Be sure to bring them back