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stuck out a hand once he accepted the key and flashed him a smile. “Welcome to Jamison.”
    His grip was strong and firm. She refused to acknowledge the sweet spark of awareness that traveled up her arm and through her chest, nestling somewhere cozy in her belly. He held her hand a little longer than could ever be considered necessary and dipped his chin in acknowledgement when he let it go. “Thank you. It’s nice to be here.”

Chapter Five
    â€œY owza.”
    Meg shot Hannah a warning look the next afternoon. “Stop.”
    â€œHe’s moving in?”
    â€œHow’s that nut chopping coming, Hannah? You done yet?”
    â€œToday?”
    â€œHannah Moore…”
    â€œGot it.” Hannah ducked beneath the counter, withdrew a tub of toasted almonds and filled the food processor halfway. She hit On, and the ensuing noise stopped conversation until the nuts were evenly chopped to her satisfaction. She dumped the cylinder into a bowl and then repeated the process twice more. Stepping back, she eyed the bowl and the chocolate vat, then nodded. “We’re good.”
    â€œThanks. Measure out three cups of those for the toffee, and we’ll be just about there.”
    â€œWonderful.”
    The half wall and Dutch door made it easy to keep an eye on the store. The old-fashioned bell over the door helped, too, an old-school way of announcing a customer when Megan’sattention was diverted. Hannah set the three cups aside in a smaller bowl and glanced out the window. “A customer.”
    â€œYou got it?”
    â€œI do.”
    Megan swept her chocolate-dotted apron a quick glance as the door chime announced what Hannah already knew, her warm voice mingling with others as the tourists exclaimed over this and that.
    It was early yet. Midweek mornings were traditionally quiet while tourists walked, climbed, went sightseeing and shopping. Since chocolate didn’t do well in cars on a warm summer day, the candy store was generally their last stop before heading home or back to the motels in nearby Wellsville. That meant Meg made good use of the mornings, both before and after the shop opened, then busied herself with customers the rest of the day. And her ice cream window business was steady from three o’clock on, especially when area kids had summer sports in the evening. Then the line could grow ridiculously long in a relatively short space of time.
    She’d hired a local college girl, Crystal Murphy, to help out part-time and had two more college girls consigned to run her weekend festival booths. Coupled with Hannah’s summer-shortened library hours, they should be all right.
    When Hannah returned to the kitchen, she met Meg’s gaze and swept the departing family a wistful look. “They had the cutest baby.”
    â€œYeah?”
    â€œYes.” Hannah checked the toffee bar molds, nodded satisfaction, then tipped her gaze Megan’s way. “What’s that look for?”
    Megan shrugged. “I hate being in my thirties.”
    â€œStupid biological clock?”
    â€œExactly. As much fun as this all is—” Megan waved a hand around the white kitchen “—it’s not exactly what I’d planned for this stage in my life.”
    â€œSomething that included a cute and loving husband, a couple of kids, a kitchen of your own and a cozy fire on long winter nights?”
    â€œBingo. I’m not even close to anything like that, and I can’t help but wonder why. Is it me? Them? Are men different from what they were before?”
    â€œUmm. Asking the wrong girl. I’d kind of decided that was beyond the realm of possibilities before I moved here. Mostly I’m okay with that.”
    â€œShould I ask why?”
    â€œProbably not. I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you.” Something in Hannah’s tone, or maybe it was her bearing, made the words more poignant and less funny, but