Page 79 of Harvest Moon (Riverbend 3)

“She’s dating some guy back home. And a woman doesn’t throw out a word likeclosurewhen she’s interested in rekindling a romance. Anyway, any confusion I’m feeling about her at this point is probably just an old habit, right?” He needed to change the scenery. Get back on the dating app and turn his thoughts somewhere else.

Gavin slid a bolt into the hole, shaking his head. “I just need to forget Laurel. Get my head on straight.”

“Well... it’ll be over soon, one way or another, right?”

Gavin’s stomach went leaden at the thought. “Right.”

Chapter29

On Thursday evening they were still waiting to hear from Patty, and Laurel was getting impatient. She dished out a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream and set the bowl on Emma’s high chair. “Here you go, angel.”

“Ice cream!” Emma fisted her small spoon and went to work.

Gavin joined Laurel at the island, shoving a bowl the size of the moon her way.

“Really?” she asked even as she began scooping.

“It’s my favorite.”

She already knew that—it’s why she’d picked it up at the grocery store today. “Vanilla isn’t even a flavor, you know.”

“Not all of us need cookie chunks in our ice cream. Some of us prefer the simpler things in life.”

She laughed. “Simpler? I seem to recall—”

The doorbell rang.

Sunny shot toward the foyer, tail swiping a wide path.

“Who could that be?” Laurel asked.

“I’ll get it.”

Probably one of the Robinsons, come to make sure Laurel hadn’t gotten her claws back into him. Although, to be fair, Cooper had been perfectly nice the other day—he’d even tracked her down in the backyard to say good-bye. She wasn’t sure what to make of that.

She grabbed a cereal bowl, added a couple of scoops, then put the ice cream container back in the freezer.

“Laurel,” Gavin called from the living room. “Can you come here a minute?”

Emma was content with her ice cream, so Laurel headed into the next room.

She knew Darius Walker from the meeting they’d had regarding the will. Tonight he wore a crisp white shirt, unbuttoned at the collar, with a pair of carefully creased khakis.

Sunny sniffed his brown, lace-up oxfords.

“Hi, Darius.” Laurel put out her hand to shake his even while her stomach twisted. She couldn’t imagine that anything good would bring an attorney to her doorstep at eight in the evening.

“Sorry to bother you all so late.”

“No problem,” Gavin said. “Have a seat. Can I get you something to drink? Tea? Water?”

“Or ice cream?” Laurel asked. “We were just dishing out dessert.”

“Oh, no thank you, ma’am. I’m eager to get home to my wife, but I wanted to stop by and deliver the news in person.”

At his tentative tone Gavin and Laurel exchanged glances.

“I got word today that Mallory’s mother and her husband are pursuing general guardianship.”

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