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I didn’t tell you what I was doing. I …”
    Rachel held up her hand. “It's done and over with. One day, if you want, we can have a long talk about it, but today is not that day.”
    She casually motioned with her head toward the front desk where Mrs. Phipps held court. It was a well-known fact that, while the woman frowned on people talking in the library, she had no qualms about eavesdropping on conversations when they were audible, as it gave her lots of new information to share during her weekly wash and set at Mabel's.
    “What I really want,” Rachel continued, “is to get the whole scoop on why you’re back now.”
    Maura laughed. “I’m surprised you haven’t already heard it through the grapevine.”
    “Just bits and pieces. I know it has something to do with Miss Hattie's will. But I need to know the facts.”
    “It's a long story,” Maura cautioned.
    “I’ve got time.” Rachel plunked herself down in the seat on the other side of the table.
    Maura sat down and in hushed, library-appropriate tones told Rachel everything. She only intended to hit the high points, but the more she talked, the more details she filled in. With each piece of information she shared, her spirit lightened a little more.
    The last few years hadn’t been easy. When Maura left Granger and returned home to California, she’d found that her father wasn’t doing nearly as well as he’d claimed. His health was failing, and it had started to affect his work at the coffee shop. Soon, not only had Maura taken over the day-to-day operations of Sullivan's, she’d also become her father's primary caregiver. There had been little time for anything other than work and Da. She’d done it without complaining, glad to be able to fill her days with something other than feelings of regret. Not until now did she realize how much she’d missed having a close friend to share with.
    “So that's it,” Maura said when she finished the saga. “And now here I am, sitting in the library, trying to make sense out of it all.”
    Rachel laughed and shook her head. “That Miss Hattie sure was a spunky old gal, right up until the end. She knew exactly what bait to dangle in front of you and Pastor Nick to get you two back together.”
    Maura bristled. “We’re not getting back together.”
    “Maybe not,” Rachel shrugged. “But you are living together again. And you’ve got to work together to pull this off. Who knows where all that close proximity might lead?”
    “It won’t lead to anything other than me getting the theatre up and running and him getting a nice donation for his precious church. As soon as the six months are up, I’m moving out of the parsonage, and we never have to see each other again.”
    “Come on, Maura. Would it be so bad if something did spark between you two? You’ve got to still have feelings for him to be so upset by this situation. I know for a fact he never stopped loving you.”
    “How can you know that?” Maura hated herself for asking, but as much as she acted like she didn’t care, she really wanted to know.
    “He was a mess when you left. He called all over looking for you.” Rachel leaned closer. “He even showed up at my doorstep, wanting to know if I could tell him anything.”
    Maura's face went cold. “What did you say?”
    She frowned. “Nothing. I wanted to tell him about, well, you know … but I didn’t. It wasn’t my place. I just said I didn’t know you were leaving, which was the truth. Maura, if you’d seen him … I’ve never seen anyone so devastated in my life.”
    Maura looked down at her left hand, where she used to wear her wedding ring. “I’ve been gone for a long time,” she said slowly. “Not once did he call my father or come looking for me. He couldn’t have missed me that much.”
    “I don’t know why he didn’t go after you, but I know he chose to stay married to you, even though you left. I’ll bet you didn’t know, but the church board met about a