Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 86537 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 433(@200wpm)___ 346(@250wpm)___ 288(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86537 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 433(@200wpm)___ 346(@250wpm)___ 288(@300wpm)
To Anni, she was Aunt Freya. To Dex and me, she was…well, words could never express our gratitude. She was family and always would be.
As for the rest of our family: Margaret adored her granddaughter. She spoiled her rotten, sending gifts so often that Dex finally had to tell her to knock it off. She also visited quite a bit. And though she might not want to admit it, Wood Hollow had grown on her.
We’d also visited Sweden a couple of times to introduce her to my family. My mother had cried when she’d met the baby. She’d claimed Anni looked like my sister, her namesake…but not really. Our Annika was her own girl, not a replica, not a memory. She was pure sunshine, and I couldn’t have been more in love with her.
And her father.
“Are you almost done here?” Dex asked.
I glanced over at the posse of six-year-olds dancing around Sarah, one of the high school coaches who volunteered for Wood Hollow’s flag football youth league. “Ja. They’ve reached the end of their collective attention span. And their parents are here. Give me five minutes.”
“Take your time. We’ll be picking dandelions.”
I certainly wouldn’t be taking my time. I was ready to go home.
I’d sold my place and officially moved into Dex’s lake house six weeks after Anni was born. I’d put a lot of work into it, and was sure I’d never want to leave, but…life happened. And my idea of home had changed.
I’d immediately built a workshop at the bottom of the hill near the lake, partially hidden in the trees. The permits alone had been a pain in the butt, but it was a nice space. And private. I’d started taking on a few commissions—mostly for personalized birdhouses. In a twist, it was a popular item.
My newest project was making Anni’s “big girl” bed. I hoped to have it ready by summer, before her little brother arrived. It would get done, but Dex and I were both very busy.
Dex had doubled his donut sales last year. Amazing. Tourists came from far and wide to taste his odd concoctions thanks to a popular influencer who’d made the town a mini destination based off a TikTok video. I mean, what the fuck? It was good for business, so no one complained too much.
To his mother’s delight, Dex had decided to open a shop in Michigan, too. It was still in the planning stages and would require a lot of work, but ultimately, it was a smart financial move. And personally, it was a sweet return to his hometown. A way to reclaim what had once seemed lost. Obviously, someone else would run the store. We were too busy in Wood Hollow.
And yes…the publicity was good for flag football too.
So good that I’d gotten roped into coaching. Nah, I didn’t mind too much. The kids were goofy, and I figured dealing with a slightly older age group was nice practice for later.
I high-fived Caleb, Derek, and the rest of the team, and thanked Sarah, who waved at Anni and Dex.
“Your family is so freaking cute,” she gushed.
“I know.”
Sarah punched my biceps. “Mr. Humble. I’ll see you next week.”
“Good-bye, Coach.”
“Oh…hey, ask Dex if he has any plans to make those wasabi cheese donuts again. Those were freaking fantastic!”
I curled my lips in a universal “ew” face my daughter had perfected and shook my head. “I will not do that. Later.”
“Spoilsport!”
I rolled my eyes and hiked my bag over my shoulder before turning to Dex, who was crouched next to Anni in the grass.
Dex stood, wiping his palms on his jeans. “What was that all about?”
“Your wasabi donuts. I’m not condoning those.”
He threw his head back, guffawed, and yelled something to Sarah about extra cheese. On a donut. Disgusting. “C’mon, V. They were good! Everyone says so.”
“First of all, no one wants a green donut and second, cheese doesn’t belong anywhere near a donut.” I kneeled beside Anni. “What do you think, sötnos?”
Anni cocked her tiny chin thoughtfully and held a small bunch of dandelions to my nose. “Smell.”
“Very nice. Are you ready to go home and—”
Anni gasped and dropped her flowers to point to the monarch butterfly hovering near her head. “Look, Papa, look!”
I smiled, squeezing the hand Dex set on my shoulder. Was my sister haunting me as promised? I hoped so. “I love butterflies.”
“Me too!” She chased after it, her pudgy hands raised in the air while Dex and I watched.