Page 46 of Heartbeat

“Actually, I’m on my way down the mountain. I took Amalie on a little sightseeing trip, and I was wondering if it would be okay if we stopped by before I took her home.”

“Of course, it’s okay. I can’t wait to see her again. All I remember is a little girl with blue eyes and a lot of dark hair. Oh…and talk her into staying for supper. I’m frying chicken.”

Sean laughed. “Yes, ma’am. See you soon.”

Amalie was already beaming.

“How much of that could you hear?” he asked.

“All of it, and I never turn down fried chicken. This is the best day ever!”

“It’s not over yet. The best is yet to come!”

Shirley went into supermom mode, and by the time they arrived, she’d run a dust mop over the living room and kitchen floors. Peeled an extra potato for the pot, and had the chicken she’d been breading already frying in the cast-iron skillet. The house was warm, and she’d turned on all the lights. It was the mountain way of making guests feel welcome.

When she heard them drive up, she was ready. There was nothing in the world she wanted more for her sonsthan to find their own paths to the life and the people who made them happy, and she was hoping Amalie Lincoln was that for Sean.

Then the front door opened, and Shirley called out. “I’m in the kitchen!”

They came in moments later, with Sean walking beside Amalie, with his hand at her back. The looks on their faces said it all. Shirley smiled.What a beautiful sight. They are falling in love.

Shirley went to meet them, gave Sean a quick kiss on the cheek, and then turned to Amalie.

“Welcome, Amalie, and what a beautiful woman you grew up to be! Do you remember me?”

Amalie smiled. “Yes, ma’am. Sean was the only boy who was nice to me, and you were Sean’s mama. You brought the best cookies to the school parties, and you always gave me a hug.”

Shirley’s heart broke. She’d given all of the kids a hug, but in Amalie’s mind, the hug had been just for her.

“I did! I can’t wait to hear all about the years in between then and now, but I better get back to the stove. I don’t want the chicken to burn. Sean, honey, would you get yourselves something to drink? It’s going to be another twenty minutes or so before supper is finished. Show Amalie where the powder room is, and if you want, warm up by the fire.”

“I’m willing to help,” Amalie said.

Shirley winked. “This time you’re a guest. Next time I’ll put you to work.”

Amalie’s heart skipped.There was already going to be a next time!

Sean clasped Amalie’s hand. “I don’t have etchings to show you. How about a tour of the house and my office instead? You have to see this house. It’s housed generations of Mom’s family.”

“This room and the living room were the original part, right?” Amalie said.

Shirley was a little taken aback. She’d never mentioned that to her boys, so how did…?

Sean saw the look on his mom’s face and shook his head slightly. Shirley regained her composure. “Yes, you’re right, and every generation has added on something since. I’m the fourth. My sons are the fifth generation to sleep beneath this roof.”

Amalie was smiling as Sean led her away.

Shirley sighed, then went back to frying chicken, convinced there was more to Amalie Lincoln than met the eye.

Sean gave her the whole tour, and then went to his office to invoice Sam Carson, as she went to wash up.

When Amalie came out into the hall, Sean was nowhere to be seen, so she paused a moment, lost in thought.The voices at the church. I’ve heard them before. They were the same voices in my head after they pulled me out of the fire. What’s happening to me?

Then she heard footsteps and opened her eyes. Sean was standing in the hall, watching her.

She shivered. “I said something earlier that made no sense to me. I’m still trying to figure out why I said it.”

Sean waited.

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