Page 87 of Tempting the Heart

This was definitely Mae’s place. The sense of community she’d built in such a short time went along with everything else about her. She’d always been someone you could count on and wanted to be around.

The success of her coffee shop proved that Marigold was her home. I took a seat at one of the free tables in the corner and watched Mae in her element. She took orders, received payments, wrote on cups, pulled shots, and shook sprinkles on drinks, all without batting an eye.

If I had to do all of that, I’d probably be sprinkling things on credit cards and spilling drinks on the pastries.

I thought about what I did for a living, and I enjoyed it. Even this morning, when I approved a story board for a new supplement, I had fun. But my base wasn’t here on Marigold Island.

I’d created a home in Wisconsin and in North Carolina, far away from my parents. But Marigold was close.

Really close.

I watched Mae laughing with one of her customers and knew I couldn’t ask her to move away from this.

This was her home.

But when I looked at Mae, I knew she wasmyhome, and I just hoped I didn’t destroy what we were busy building.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Mae

The Friday Night Farmer’s Market was just getting underway, and I found Tyler wandering the streets with Dottie, looking at booths and sipping the Americano he’d gotten earlier.

“Hey, you,” I said, grinning as I approached Tyler.

“Off so early?” he teased.

It was a little after five o’clock, and the surge of customers had slowed enough to leave Stephanie and Jessie in charge.

“I thought since we’re hitting the two-week mark, I'd better soak up as much of you as I can.” I waggled my brows, and Tyler opened his arms.

I snuggled into his chest and took Dottie’s leash from him. I looked into his eyes and smiled. “It’s been nice having you here the last few weeks.”

He nodded slowly, scanning the crowd before returning his gaze to mine. “I’m glad I got to stay another two weeks.”

Tyler kissed the top of my hair, and a delight shivered through me. We hadn’t talked much about the future, but I wanted to believe our history would be enough.

“Since my parents are still out of town, I have a fun surprise waiting for you.”

His brows arched in surprise. “Yeah? Do I need anything special?”

“Nope. Just trust me.”

“Those are worrisome words,” he teased as I kissed his cheek.

We wandered through the maze of tables and booths with amazing treats like raspberry honey, rose soaps, embroidered pillows, and crocheted stuffed animals in every color imaginable.

Tyler picked up a pink elephant and held it up for me. “Couldn’t you see this in a little girl’s room?”

My eyes widened, and I nodded. “Yeah, it would be super cute. How’d you know I was into elephants?”

Tyler chuckled. “What do you mean, you're into elephants?”

“If I ever have a baby, I’ve always wanted to decorate the baby’s room in all elephants. Elephant decals, elephant curtains, elephant stuffies, elephant murals.” I motioned through the air. “All elephants.”

Tyler shook his head and glanced at the artisan. “We’ll take the elephant.” He paid for the stuffy and handed the pink elephant to me as Dottie eyed it as her own.

“You did not have to buy me the elephant,” I told him.

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