“All right, enough sentimental crap,” Polly sighed. “I’m about to start crying, so tell us about you and Mack and the kids to get me pepped up.”

“Well,” Lily said, “Braden is interested in the goats, and Granny Hayes invited Holly to have Sunday dinner with her and showed her how to make earrings.”

“Holy shit!” Polly gasped. “No one other than Sally has even been close to that cabin. What did Holly do to get an invitation?”

“Other than the fact she was wearing a pair of the earrings that Granny Hayes makes, and maybe looks a little like my mama, I have no idea,” Lily answered. “She and Holly were visiting about the earrings while Mack brought the truck around after church yesterday. It was storming, so we offered to take her home.”

“Her old mule broke his tether and went home at the first clap of thunder, right?” Polly said.

“Yes, ma’am.” Lily took a second doughnut from the box.

“Well, that just blows my mind away,” Polly said. “Not that old Dusty took off for home, but that she asked Holly to eat with her. Was Holly bored?”

“Oh, no!” Lily shook her head. “She came home all fired up about the whole afternoon. She asked if she could have one of Granny Hayes’s kittens, and she wore her hair in braids to school today.”

“Sweet Jesus!” Polly whispered. “Has that old gal cast a spell on your daughter?”

“I don’t think so,” Lily giggled. “I’m just glad she’s making friends with an older person. She can learn so much if she just listens to what Granny Hayes has to say.”

Polly shook her head. “And I thought she and Sally had a strange friendship. It’s time for me to go if I want to get home before it starts raining again. The weatherman says we’re in for a frog strangler right after lunch.”

“Thanks for stopping by and for bringing doughnuts,” Lily said.

“This is my first usual stop Monday morning. Have to catch up on everything with Sally. Your mama and I used to have coffee out at her place every Monday morning. When she passed and Sally put in the store, I started coming here. It helped, and now that you’re here”—Polly gave her a quick hug—“it’s almost like Vera is back with me. If I don’t see you before then, I’ll be back next week.” She put on her jacket and picked up the thermos. “If you need anything or even want to talk, just give me a call.”

“I appreciate that, and thanks for everything.” Lily stood up, gave Polly another hug, and walked her to the door.

She had a couple of browsers in the middle of the morning, and then a very serious buyer right after that. She felt better after she’d rung up a $500 sale for a few pieces of antique crystal. At noon, she was about to have another doughnut when Teena breezed into the shop.

“You might not recognize me because I haven’t been much of a friend since you came home,” she teased as she took off a long black leather coat, “but I’m Teena.”

“I guess I haven’t been such a good friend, either, because I haven’t called you. Everything has been crazy what with getting the kids settled in and school, and the fancy new job.” Lily giggled and took Teena’s coat, hung it on a rack just inside the door, and motioned toward the doughnuts. “We’ve got instant coffee if you want some.”

“No thanks on the coffee. I like sweet tea better. I just talked to Sally. She said to tell you she’s bringing pizza for dinner today.” Teena crossed the floor in a few long strides—Lily had always envied Teena’s long legs—and hopped up on the counter. “It’s been hectic at home and at the real estate business. I haven’t even been to church in two weeks because I had property to show on Sunday morning, so let’s catch up. What’s this I hear about you and Mack dating?”

“We’ve got to start getting together at least once a month like we did when I was in Austin.” Lily sidestepped the question about Mack.

Teena shook her head. “We don’t have to do that. I’m in and out of this place a couple of times a week. Sometimes I bring lunch with me; sometimes Sally has it delivered. We’ll be seeing each other more now that you’re here every day and my crazy world has settled down. Kudos on the new job. Sally’s needed help for quite a while now.”

The bell above the door jingled, and both women looked that way. Lily even inhaled deeply to see if she could catch a whiff of pizza, but it wasn’t Sally.

“Lily Anderson?” the young lady asked.

“That would be me.” Lily stepped forward.

“This is for you.” The woman put a bud vase with a yellow rose, a pink rose, and a white daisy arranged with greenery and a pink bow in her hands. “Y’all have a great day now.”

Lily set the vase on the counter, removed the card, and read out loud, “Congratulations on completing your first week at the new job—Holly, Braden, and Mack.”

She hadn’t received flowers in years, not even on her last anniversary with Wyatt. He’d gotten her a box of candy, but he’d had to work late that night—supposedly. She had found out a few weeks later that he’d taken Victoria to a fancy restaurant in San Antonio and then to a five-star hotel for a round of sex before he came home to her and the kids.

“Flowers?” Teena raised an eyebrow.

Lily handed the card to her. “Pretty sweet of them, isn’t it?”

“Yes, it is, but then Mack is a sweet guy,” Teena answered. “You should give him a chance. I hear that y’all have been sitting beside each other in church the past couple of Sundays and that Braden adores him. You know that sitting together in church and sharing a hymnal causes folks to wonder what’s going on behind closed doors.”

“Who sent me flowers?” Sally pushed her way into the store with a huge pizza box in her hands. “I got the deal that has pizza, breadsticks, and cinnamon sticks all in one big package.” She set it down on the counter beside Teena. “I’ll get the sodas from the fridge, and we can dive right in.” She headed to the back room.

“The flowers are from Mack and the kids, and they’re for Lily,” Teena yelled toward the back of the store.

“I already knew that,” Sally hollered back. “Polly heard about it from Dorothy down at the flower shop. I saw her at the pizza place.”