Page 16 of Somewhere You Belong

The woman laughs. “You wouldn’t be the first to say that. And a lot of folks say the same thing about the fish and chips at Catch & Release.”

And then it clicks as I snap my fingers in recognition. “You work there too, don’t you?”

“Yeah, a couple days a week.”

“I was thinking you looked familiar. I was in there Friday night.”

She wipes her hand on her apron before extending it toward me. “Well, nice to meet you. I’m Astrid.”

“Willow,” I reply as I shake her hand.

“That’s a lovely name. Fits someone who’d travel six hours for our muffins.” She laughs through her reply.

I smile. “Thanks. They’re worth it.”

I know I shouldn’t be conversing with this woman right now, but something about her is so genuine and honest, you can’t help but want to talk to her. And friends of the female variety are few and far between in my line of workandmy life.

But you’re not looking for friends, Willow. You’re not staying, remember?

“Well, I hope we see you around again. The muffins won’t be going anywhere, but we do run out fast,” Astrid says as I adjust the box in my arms.

“Yeah, tell Dolly to order more from now on, will you?”

Astrid laughs. “I’ll pass along the message.” She waves as I walk out the door and get hit with a gust of salty air.

Once I deposit my muffins in the car and shove one in my mouth as fast as I can, I head for the hardware store, my mood significantly improved after satisfying my craving.

Walking into this place is like stepping into another world. I have no idea what I’m looking for or where anything is, so I grab a shopping cart and just start pushing it up and down the aisles. Luckily, I find the cleaning supplies rather quickly, so I grab a broom, mop, rags, and about every cleaning liquid I can think of.

I may be able to afford to pay someone to clean my penthouse for me now, but I was raised to know how to clean a toilet and mop a floor. Hard work builds character, something my godmother, Mandy, always made sure I never forgot.

I’m completely entranced by the cleaning supplies, deliberating my choice as a sudden voice behind me makes me jump out of my skin.

“Are you finding everything you need?”

Spinning around, I lock eyes with a man that towers over me by at least eight inches. I’m five-foot seven, but this guy makes me feel tiny.

“Jesus. You scared me.” My hand falls to my chest where my heart is pounding erratically.

He chuckles and then brushes a hand through his short, dark-brown hair. “I’m sorry. That wasn’t my intention.”

“I think I just lost five years of my life.”

“Let’s hope not.” He grins down at me again. “So did you need any help, or are you okay?” His eyes drop to my basket full of household cleaning supplies.

“Well, yes and no. I found what I needed here, but I actually need to know where I could find someone to come take a look at a house for me.”

That has his eyebrows lifting. “Well, I could help you with that, actually.” He reaches his hand out. “The name’s Penn, and I’m kind of the resident handyman around here.”

This guy looks familiar too, but at this point, I’m thinking maybe this town is so small that it only takes five people to run the whole thing.How can I have already seen all of these people?

“Willow.” I shake his hand quickly.

“New to town, Willow?”

“Not exactly… I won’t be here long.”

Something along the lines of recognition passes through his eyes, but he shakes it off. “So where is this house?”

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