“We can only visit for a few minutes,” Anne Marie cautioned. “Elise is waiting and so is Baxter.”
“Okay.”
As soon as they walked in, Lydia leaped to her feet. “Anne Marie! Ellen! Welcome home. How was Paris?”
Anne Marie sighed luxuriously. “Wonderful! Everything I’ve ever imagined and more.”
Lydia clasped her hands together and smiled warmly. “I knew it would be.”
“How did the neighborhood survive without us?” Anne Marie teased.
“It was a lot quieter,” Margaret called from the back of the shop where she sat crocheting. Then she broke into a huge grin. “And a lot less interesting, too.”
“I think Whiskers missed Baxter,” Lydia said.
“We’re going to get him right now,” Ellen told her. “I missed Baxter more than anyone.”
“I’d miss Whiskers, too.” Lydia turned to Anne Marie, her eyes shining. “Listen, do you have a moment?” she asked.
“Sure,” Anne Marie said. “What’s up?”
Lydia’s joy was contagious. “Brad and I are going to adopt. We’ve requested an infant.”
Anne Marie clapped her hands excitedly. “That’s incredible news.”
“I heard this morning that Brad and I have been approved by the state.”
“Did you speak with Evelyn Boyle?” She’d been Ellen’s social worker and Anne Marie had come to treasure the other woman, who’d been so instrumental in facilitating the adoption. She’d given Lydia Evelyn’s phone number weeks ago and had been wondering if anything had come of it.
Lydia nodded. “She’s been so helpful. We really appreciate the referral.”
“Any word on how long it’ll be before you can adopt a baby?”
“Not yet. Brad and I are prepared to wait, though.”
“Well, I hope it happens soon.”
“Me, too.” Lydia smiled happily. “We’re celebrating tonight. Brad’s taking Cody and me out to dinner.”
“Can we come, too?” Ellen asked.
“Ellen! No, we can’t,” Anne Marie chastened. “It’s not polite to invite yourself along.”
“I know, but I have a gift for Cody from Paris and I want to give it to him.”
“There’ll be plenty of time for that later,” Anne Marie reminded her and then, despite her best efforts, yawned. “I don’t think anyone’s mentioned jet lag to Ellen yet. I expect it’ll hit her in a couple of hours.” As for Anne Marie, her feet were dragging. Once they’d returned with Baxter, she was planning on taking a nap. Ellen would be tired by then, too—she hoped.
“I see you’re starting a new class this week.” The sign in the window had caught her notice and she found herself intrigued by the concept. Not that there was anything she needed to quit. She was satisfied with her life at the moment—more satisfied than she’d been since the early days of her marriage.
“Are you interested?” Lydia told her about the project she’d chosen. Anne Marie liked the sound of it, but a night class would be too difficult.
Maybe she could get the pattern from Lydia. She’d bought some beautiful yarn in Paris and a scarf would be the perfect thing to knit.
“Do you want to join the class?” Lydia asked. “Even if you’re not trying to give up any bad habits. Alix already signed up because she wants to quit smoking—again.”
“I’d love to—but I can’t leave Ellen by herself. I want to make the scarf, though.”
“I’ll be happy to help with the pattern if you run into any problems.”
“Thanks, Lydia, I’ll keep that in mind.”
As Anne Marie and Ellen left the shop, the little girl pointed across the street to the French Café. “Alix!” she cried. “I want to say hello to Alix.”
“Ellen, we’ll have to do that later. Besides, Alix is probably off work by now.”
“Oh, yeah, I forgot….”
“Are you ready for Baxter?”
“Yeah!”
Ellen ran ahead of her to where Anne Marie kept her car in the alley behind the bookstore. She wondered if she’d have any problems after leaving it for over two weeks unused, but the engine fired immediately to life. Anne Marie backed carefully out of her parking space and onto Blossom Street.
As they arrived at Elise’s small condominium just north of downtown, Anne Marie called to let her know they’d be up in a minute. Elise and Baxter were waiting, and the instant Baxter caught sight of them he nearly did flips of joy. He barked and ran around, then leaped into Ellen’s arms.
Ellen hugged him close as Baxter spread happy kisses across her face and yelped excitedly all over again.
“I think he missed us,” Anne Marie laughed.
“Well, he certainly didn’t lack for attention here,” Elise said, smiling as she spoke. “I enjoyed his companionship so much I’ve decided to get a dog of my own.”
Anne Marie had hoped this would happen. Elise had gone through a painful grieving period after her husband’s death. It had been different, in some ways, from Anne Marie’s experience, since Elise’s husband—Maverick by name and maverick by nature, as he used to describe himself—had died of cancer. He’d lingered for several years, and Elise had said she was grateful for each extra day. Anne Marie’s husband, Robert, however, had died suddenly, unexpectedly, of a massive heart attack.
“Do you want a Yorkie like Baxter?” Ellen asked.
“I’m not sure just yet,” Elise said in a pensive tone. “I’ll go down to the Humane Society and see what dogs they have available. It seems to me that Maverick would want me to adopt a rescue dog. He always believed in second chances….”
Her gaze fell lovingly on the portrait of her late husband. He wore his cowboy hat and smiled directly into the camera. There was an irrepressible quality about him, Anne Marie thought. As though taking risks was all part of life—taking risks and accepting the consequences with a grin and a wink.
Anne Marie and Ellen left soon after. They’d brought Elise a gift of thanks for looking after the dog—a lovely blue silk scarf with a fleur-de-lis pattern. Ellen cradled Baxter in her arms, murmuring to him as they walked to the car. When they clambered into the backseat, Baxter curled up on Ellen’s lap and promptly went to sleep.
By the time Anne Marie pulled in behind Blossom Street Books, both Ellen and Baxter were napping soundly. It seemed a shame to wake Ellen, who looked up at her with drooping eyes.
“We’re home?” the little girl asked.
Anne Marie nodded. “Let’s go upstairs and tuck you into bed, all right?”
“Okay.”
Anne Marie helped her climb the stairs as the dog scrambled up ahead of them. Ellen fell asleep again within minutes. Anne Marie wanted to do a few chores before she took a nap herself. After transferring the wash to the dryer, she noticed the light blinking on her phone. Checking voice mail again, she discovered another hang-up.
Curious now, Anne Marie hurried down to the bookstore. Teresa glanced up from some new greeting cards she was arranging in the rack.
“Oh, Anne Marie, hi. I didn’t expect to see you for the rest of the day.”