“That’s exactly what I’m telling you.”

“Now, that’s a case for the textbooks. Holy moly. You should have said so earlier.”

Beth didn’t know why it would make a difference who it was her boss had once loved.

“Did I hear you right when you said Sunshine never married?”

“Yes.”

Again there was a pause, but this time it had an entirely different feel to it. Beth could sense the other woman’s excitement buzz through the phone.

“Are you telling me you think your aunt is carrying a torch for Mr. Hamlin?”

Beth felt like she was walking on shaky ground. “I can’t say for sure, but I’m thinking so.” She debated on adding what she’d read in the letter and then decided to go for it. “I saw part of a letter she’d written him years ago. In one of the first lines, she claimed that she would always love him.”

“Well, this is a conundrum.”

Beth smiled at the older woman’s choice of words. “Yes, I’d say it is.”

“What would you like to see happen?” Sondra Reacher asked.

That was a good question. “I suppose in my heart of hearts I’d like for the two of them to find a way to be together. I believe that if they were to see each other it might be possible for them to clear the air.”

“Not gonna be easy. Mr. Hamlin isn’t the tenderhearted young man he once was.”

“I got that message when I spoke to him,” Beth reminded her.

“Did you know that afterward he asked me to make certain none of your calls came through to him again?”

Beth’s hand tightened around her phone. “He did not say that!”

“He did.”

Beth could see reuniting the two of them was going to be more of a challenge than she’d anticipated.

“So, girl, how are you going to make this happen?” Sondra Reacher asked as if Beth had all the answers.

“I don’t know. Do you have any suggestions?”

“Give me a minute to think on it,” the woman suggested.

Beth had the feeling it was going to take more than a minute.

“Your aunt doing any art shows in the Chicago area in the near future?”

Beth didn’t keep tabs of her aunt’s travel schedule. “I don’t know, but I can find out.”

“You do that.”

“What are you thinking?” Beth asked. “Sunshine’s paintings have been featured in Chicago art shows a dozen times, if not more.”

“Maybe we could convince Peter to attend one of her shows.”

“We?” she repeated, stunned. “And exactly how do you intend to make that happen? Mr. Hamlin left instructions that he no longer wishes to speak to you.”

“Listen, the two of us are in this together. I’ve spent the better part of forty years seeing that man live in misery. He had a selfish, self-centered wife who divorced him after having multiple affairs. His only joy has been his two daughters who, despite Mr. Hamlin’s best efforts, were influenced by their mother. I admire him for all he did to keep in touch with his daughters. If I have the opportunity to bring a little sunshine into his life—” she paused and laughed. “I didn’t intend that pun, but it’s fitting, isn’t it?”

“It is.”

“If we have the chance to help him to be happy, then I think we should do it.”

“I agree.” Beth’s excitement grew with each word the other woman spoke.

“Now, tell me, does your aunt know you’re meddling in her life?”

Beth was afraid to admit it. “I … I haven’t said anything to her about this.”

“Thought so. Don’t know much about her, but my guess is she’s not a woman who lets someone do her talking for her.”

“She isn’t.”

“What made you decide to get involved? Was it that letter you mentioned?”

“No, I stumbled upon that just recently. My aunt said his name once when we were out to eat. It was the look that came over her, and I knew that whomever this Peter was who shared fish tacos with her had been someone special in her life.”

“Fish tacos. You asked me about that on your first phone call, didn’t you?”

“I did. My aunt explained that she and Peter went to this hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant every Friday night and shared an order of fish tacos.” Then she had a thought. “Any chance Mr. Hamlin will be in the Portland area?”

“Portland, Oregon, you mean, because if you do, I’m thinking I saw something recently about a conference being held out your way that he was planning on attending.”

This was almost too good to be true. “Really?” She couldn’t contain her enthusiasm.

“Pretty sure.”

“If that’s the case, then all we need to do is figure a way to get the two of them together.”

Silence followed as they both mulled over the problem.

“Got it,” the receptionist cried out, startling Beth.

“You do?”

“Yup. We’re gonna do it with fish tacos.”

Chapter 29

Sam

“Sam?” Beth answered on the second ring and sounded shocked to hear from him. They hadn’t talked on the phone for nearly three weeks mainly because he wanted to give Beth the chance to date.

Sam wiped a hand down his face. Knowing she was seeing other men was killing him. He’d stayed away, unable to listen to her talk about the men she was currently dating. It was hard enough to listen when they played together at the rehab center. It seemed she had a date every other night. She’d been friendly and chatty and he’d been forced to smile and listen. Rocco had been right when he’d laughed when Sam had suggested he and Beth be friends. It’d taken these weeks for him to realize they were so much more than that.

This wasn’t working, and it was time for him to own up to it. Now it was up to him to set things right. He felt awkward and tongue-tied. “How’s it going?” he asked, and then rolled his eyes, thinking he couldn’t have asked a less intelligent question.

“Okay. Everything all right?”

“Not really.” He swallowed hard and leaned his shoulder against the driver’s-side door of his pickup. He’d already put this off longer than he should have.

“Oh.”

He cleared his throat. “I was hoping, wondering, actually … you know with your busy schedule and all.”

“Wondering what, Sam?”

He went for it, rushing the words. “Wondering if you had time to go out with me?”

Silence. Then, “On a date?” Beth asked skeptically.

“Yes, on a date.”

She hesitated. “I thought you don’t date.”

“I don’t … usually.”

“In other words, you’re making an exception in my case?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Why?” he repeated. This was so much harder than he ever expected it would be. “I’ve missed you?” The word was stiff, tentative.

“You see me twice a week. Not really much chance to miss me, Sam.”

Sam pressed his hand over his eyes. Beth wasn’t going to make this easy. “I miss you, babe, more than I thought possible. I was a fool. And afraid of losing my man card.”

“Your what?”

“Never mind. Just that I’ve been an idiot.”

“Yes.”

He hesitated. “Are you saying you agree with me and that I was an idiot or did that mean you’d be willing to go out with me?”

Beth laughed and it sounded like warm honey to him. “Yes, to both.”

Sam grinned. She certainly wasn’t holding back. “Have you, you know, missed seeing me?”

She hesitated. “Yeah.”

“You have?” He was convinced he heard music in the background, like something out of a Hallmark movie.

“More than I thought I would,” she said, echoing his own words.

“What about all those other guys you’ve been seeing?”

She laughed softly. “The truth is none of them hold a candle to you.”