“Thank you,” she said, taking one of the berry-topped pastries from her friend and completely ignoring the strong possibility that she would perhaps have a hard time fitting into the dress she was to wear to the wedding.
“So, Ian, Samantha tells us she’s going as your date to the wedding,” Gemma said with a mischievous smile.
“Did you hear that, Henry?” Margaret said. “Ian is taking Samantha as his date to the wedding.”
“I’m right here. Of course I heard,” his father said gruffly, though he looked pleased at the news, as well.
Ian looked embarrassed, as if he didn’t quite know how to respond, so Samantha did it for him.
“It should be a wonderful day,” she answered with a smile for both Gemma and Josh. “You two are a great couple. I know the Helping Hands have been working hard on the decorations. I can’t wait to see how everything turns out.”
“Nor can I,” Gemma said. “Everyone here has been so kind, from the moment I arrived in town.”
“Because we love you,” Samantha said. It was true. Gemma had endeared herself to all of them for her generous heart and her kind soul. Meeting her family gave Sam a very good idea where she had developed those traits.
“Guess what?” Thomas said, rejoining their table. “Aunt Gemma is teaching me how to dance. We’ve already learned the fox-trot and are working on the waltz.”
“And you’re a wonderful dancer,” Gemma said.
“Excellent news,” Henry said. “Dancing is a skill every young gentleman ought to have.”
“May I have a dance with you at the wedding, Miss Fremont?” Thomas asked her formally.
She had to smile at the seriousness coming from a boy of six. “I would be honored to dance with you, kind sir. I’ll definitely save you a dance.”
As the sun finally dropped and the lights came on, they chatted about the wedding and about Lake Haven’s history, with Josh filling in the many glaring gaps in Samantha’s knowledge about her hometown. All in all, it was a delightful, relaxing evening, one of the most enjoyable she’d had in a long time.
She was so at peace she found herself yawning at one point and flushed when she saw Ian looking.
“Sorry,” she mumbled.
“You put in long hours,” he said with a smile. “We should get you home.”
She didn’t want the night to end but knew he was right.
“Do you mind if the children stay overnight at our cottage?” Margaret asked. “We would love to have them. You said you were going out on the lake early in the morning and this way Mrs. Gilbert can sleep in.”
“Oh, may we, Dad?” Amelia asked, looking as if she would be crushed if he refused.
Ian looked trapped for a moment but ultimately shrugged. “If you’re sure it’s no trouble, I’m sure Mrs. Gilbert will be happy if she doesn’t have to wake early. Someone here likes to be up at first light.”
Thomas raised his hand with an unashamed grin, making all the adults smile.
“I don’t mind if you’re up early, either of you,” Henry assured his grandchildren. “I wanted to take a hike to that waterfall you were telling me about in the morning. As you’ve already been there with your father and Samantha, you can point me in the right direction.”
She hoped Henry knew what he was doing, relying on the children as his wayfinders. As she remembered, Amelia and Thomas hadn’t paid much attention to where they were going and had constantly wanted to explore some of the side trails during that trip. She had to hope they all didn’t end up hopelessly lost.
“We’ve things they can sleep in,” Margaret said. “Don’t worry about that. And we can run them back around lunchtime tomorrow.”
“All right,” Ian said. “Good night, darling children. Don’t keep your grandparents up all night.”
Amelia and Thomas both giggled as they hugged their father.
Only as she and Ian headed out to his SUV did Samantha realize the children’s sleepover with their grandparents would mean Thomas and Amelia wouldn’t be available to provide a buffer between the two of them on the drive home. It was only a short distance, she told herself. She could handle being alone with Ian for the time it would take them to make the trip.
His entire family walked them to his vehicle, as if the two of them were heading out on a grand trek instead of merely driving across town.
He hugged his children again, admonishing them once more to behave for their grandparents, and shook his father’s hand.