“Good mornin’, all y’all.” Joanie waved as she headed to the coffeepot.

Carmen arrived right behind her. “You take forever to get your coffee dosed up just right. Let me go before you—I drink it black.”

“Get up earlier than me if you want to be first in line,” Joanie said.

“No bickering on reunion day. Today you’ll be good.” Tootsie waggled a finger at all of them and giggled. “I always wanted kids so I could say that kind of thing to them.”

“Why didn’t you have a houseful?” Carmen asked. “You are such a good mama to all of us and a grandmother to our girls.”

“God didn’t see fit to give us our own children. Smokey and I both had problems, but He did give us y’all in our old age, so we felt blessed,” Tootsie said.

“That is so sweet.” Diana bent to hug her. “We feel that God blessed us by letting us all move in on your block so you and Smokey could be part of our lives.”

Joanie finally finished adding sugar and hazelnut-flavored creamer to her coffee and carried it to the dining room. “Well, somebody got up early. The table is already set and ready.”

“Couldn’t sleep,” Diana admitted.

“Me, either.” Luke covered a yawn with his free hand.

What’s happened between them that’s kept them both awake? Tootsie stole sideways glances at each of them. Something sure has, because they’re fidgety this morning.

“So you haven’t backed out, have you?” Luke nudged Diana.

“Nope, I’m your date from right before noon until four o’clock.” The blush that turned her cheeks a faint shade of pink didn’t escape Tootsie’s all-seeing eyes.

“Why those hours?” Joanie called out from the dining room.

“That’s when we get there and when we leave.” Diana took the biscuits from the oven and carried them straight to the table.

“Does it involve a good-afternoon kiss?” Carmen teased.

“It does not,” Diana declared.

“How about some hand holding or long gazing looks into each other’s eyes?” Joanie asked.

“Maybe, since we’ve got to sell it to Aunt Mary Lou.” Luke followed her to the table with the casserole pan in his hands.

Now Tootsie couldn’t wait to get to the reunion. Watching Mary Lou’s expression when she saw that Luke had brought a tall red-haired beauty to introduce to the family would be a hoot.

Diana could put on a fantastic front, but down deep she had a case of nerves going on that morning as they drove the motor home from Scrap to Paris. Acting had never been something she was good at, and now she had to be a pretend girlfriend. She wanted to sell it, as Luke had said. When Luke parked the motor home out on the edge of the church parking lot, she shut her eyes and sent up a silent prayer that she wouldn’t blow the whole thing and make a laughingstock out of Luke.

Don’t pretend. Just go with your heart, and make it real, the pesky voice in her head said. You like him. He likes you. For one afternoon, don’t fight it.

She looked up at the ceiling and mouthed, “Thank you.”

All five of them carried a dish of some kind through the side door of the kitchen. Once they were inside, several people rushed to give Tootsie hugs and ask how she was holding up. It wasn’t Carmen’s, Diana’s, or Joanie’s first rodeo when it came to potluck dinners, and the tables weren’t set up any different from when they’d had dinners for army wives who’d lost their husbands on the battlefields. Meat dishes first, vegetables and fruits next, breads beyond that, and desserts last. Iced tea, lemonade, coffee, and water were on a separate table.

A short gray-haired lady with a face like a shrunken potato pushed her walker over to Luke and tapped her wrinkled cheek with a forefinger. He bent down and gave her a quick kiss, then motioned for Diana.

“Aunt Mary Lou, I’d like you to meet my girlfriend, Diana McTavish.” Luke draped an arm around Diana’s shoulders and pulled her close to his side.

It wasn’t difficult to listen to her mind—or was that bit of advice coming from her heart?—and not fight it. It actually felt really good to be close to him and not feel like she should step away.

Aunt Mary Lou’s eyes started at Diana’s shoes and traveled slowly up past her flowing skirt to the green blouse that was topped with a matching cardigan. She had to raise her head to see Diana’s face and red hair.

“A good Irishwoman, I see.” Mary Lou nodded. “I’m pleased to meet you.”

“My pleasure,” Diana said. “But I’m really Scottish, not Irish.”

“That’s even better.” Mary Lou shifted her focus back to Luke. “Hang on to this one. Y’all will make pretty babies.”

Diana’s cheeks burned so hot that she was sure if she looked in a mirror, they’d be scarlet. “Well, thank you, ma’am. I hope that any babies we might have get his blue eyes.” They’d never have children, but saying that had come out so easy that she felt herself falling right into the role of his girlfriend.

“And Diana’s gorgeous hair.” Luke brushed a sweet kiss on Diana’s forehead. “We’ll talk more later, Aunt Mary Lou. I want to introduce Diana to Uncle Clarence before he gets to telling his war stories to the other guys.”

“You better hurry if you intend to do that.” Mary Lou flipped her walker around and headed off toward the group of women surrounding Tootsie.

“You did good. So you want our kids to have my blue eyes?” Luke whispered.

“Of course I do.” She smiled up at him.

He brushed a soft kiss across her lips. “That’s to make sure they believe that I can really get a woman like you.” He removed his arm from her shoulders and laced his fingers in hers.

Clarence met them halfway across the room. A tall, stocky man with bulldog cheeks and deep-set eyes, he reminded Diana of Smokey.

“This is the oldest living Colbert brother since Uncle Smokey passed away,” Luke said. “He spent some time in the army during the Vietnam era.”

“Yes, I was, and, honey, I can tell you some stories.” His deep voice brought Smokey right back to life.

“I bet you can.” Diana smiled.

Luke gently squeezed her hand. “We’ll have to hear them later. We’ve got to make the rounds.”