Finn held up his hands. “It wasn’t meant as an insult. I just know—I know what it’s like to lose a parent at a young age.” His voice softened. “I know what he’s going through firsthand. It’s a long process.”
“I know,” she said in a clipped tone. “I’ve been walking with him every step of the way.” She hated the defensive tone of her voice, but it felt like Finn was telling her she wasn’t doing a good job with Oliver. It hit her in her most vulnerable place—her fear of not being a decent mother to her son.
“You know what? Forget I said anything,” Finn said. “I apologize for upsetting you. I just thought we both could make lemonade out of lemons. Forgive me. I shouldn’t have brought it up.”
He quickly moved toward the door, turning back to her from the threshold. “Good night, Maggie. If you want to hit the ground running with the store, I can meet you there first thing tomorrow morning. With four weeks until Christmas, we’re really pressed for time. Ideally, if you can get the shop open in two weeks you can still rake in some great proceeds from holiday sales.”
Maggie let out a squeak. “Two weeks?”
Finn nodded. “Keepsakes has always been a big holiday-themed shop on Jarvis Street. It’s a Christmas staple here in town. The shop was shuttered last year a few months after the holidays. At the time no one knew Tobias was sick, so it perplexed a lot of folks.”
She chewed on her lip. “I don’t want to lose out on holiday sales, especially if people are anticipating it being open this year in time for Christmas. Why don’t we meet at Keepsakes at nine? That way I can let Oliver sleep in and then get him breakfast before I head to town.”
“Do you need me to swing by and pick you guys up?” Finn offered.
“Thanks for the offer, but Hazel gave me the key to Uncle Tobias’s truck. I’ll make sure to take it easy down the mountain road.” Part of Maggie wanted Finn to come pick her up, but she knew it was important to start doing things for herself. She didn’t want to take the easy way out. The thought of driving down the mountain road was a bit scary, but she was determined to face it head-on.
“Well then, I’ll meet you in front of Keepsakes tomorrow morning. And welcome to Love.” He opened the door and disappeared into the frosty Alaskan night.
“’Night,” Maggie called out after him. She shut the door behind Finn and leaned against it. She felt completely exhausted after her long journey, the news about Agnes and her awkward discussion with Finn about Oliver. She let out a ragged breath.
“Why don’t you want Finn to watch me?” She turned toward the sound of her son’s voice. He was sitting at the bottom of the steps staring at her with big eyes.
“Oliver, what have I told you about eavesdropping on adult conversations?”
“I wasn’t. At least not on purpose.” There was a sheepish expression etched on Oliver’s face. “I was thirsty, so I came back downstairs.”
Maggie walked over to the staircase and reached for her son’s hand. “Let’s go get some water.”
Once they were in the kitchen, Maggie went over to the cupboard and pulled out a mug. She turned the faucet on and filled it halfway. Oliver sat down at the kitchen table and Maggie handed him the water.
“Why don’t you like Finn?” he asked before taking a generous sip of water.
Maggie gasped. “I do like Finn. We were friends when we were kids. And he’s a really great pilot. But that doesn’t mean I want him to be—”
“My manny?” Oliver asked.
Maggie couldn’t help but giggle. “Manny? Where in the world did you hear that expression, Oliver?”
“Back home one of the kids in my class had one. Manny is a male nanny,” he explained in a matter-of-fact tone.
“I know, Oliver. But I had no idea you would know.”
“I know a lot of things. More than you think I know.” Oliver’s sad expression tugged at her heartstrings. Maggie wasn’t sure she wanted to know what Oliver was talking about. Did he know more about Sam’s death than she’d ever realized? She prayed it wasn’t true. It was such a horrible thing for a little boy to wrap his head around.
“You’re getting to be such a big boy,” Maggie said, wishing she could turn back time to when Oliver was a little toddler in diapers. He was growing by leaps and bounds.
“I like Finn. A lot. It would be super cool if he could watch me while you’re setting up our new store.” Oliver was now pleading with her.
“It makes sense that you like him. But I need to have faith in the person who watches you. That doesn’t come easily.”
“He flew us all the way here in his seaplane. You trusted him to do that.”
Sometimes Oliver’s maturity shocked Maggie. He was wise beyond his years. There was nothing she could say to refute his statement. It was the truth.
“I appreciate your opinion, but this is something Mommy has to decide on her own. It’s grown folks’ business,” Maggie said in a gentle voice.
Oliver rolled his eyes and groaned. “I hate when you say that.”
Maggie chuckled at the look etched on her son’s face. A feeling of immense love for Oliver hummed inside her heart.
As Maggie prepared for bed a little while later, thoughts of Finn’s proposition continued to float through her mind. Was it really so out of the question? What had she really known about Agnes before she’d offered her the position? Surely she knew way more about Finn. After all, they’d
