More Than Cookies (The Maple Leaf Series) by Christine DePetrillo

understood her mother’s rebellion against the notion. It had been the three of them—Sage, Hope, and Joy—living in the same house for what seemed like forever. After Sage’s father died, the three Stannard females had bonded way deeper than the average mother-daughter connection. Sage believed that bond would keep them close no matter who lived where.
    “Yes, that house, Mother.” She rolled her eyes, while Joy pursed her lips and dove into some dirty dishes at the sink in the kitchen. Sage picked up a dishtowel and dried what Joy washed.
    “I still don’t see what’s so horrible about living here… with me.” Her mother paused a moment to give Sage a good stare down.
    Sage slid her arms around her mother and squeezed lightly. “Mom, you know moving has nothing to do with you. I love you. It’s about me. Time to act like an adult and all that.”
    Joy paused in her dishwashing to lean her head back slightly and kiss Sage’s cheek. “You’ll always be my baby. You, Hope, and Rick are my reasons for getting up in the morning.”
    The corners of Sage’s eyes stung. “I promise to spring for the expensive old folks’ home when the time comes.”
    Joy shrugged free of Sage’s hold. “You beast of a child.”
    Sage picked up the dishtowel again. “So the deal with Scott is, he was perfectly… acceptable.”
    “Oh. That sounds very beige, dear.”
    “Exactly.” Sage traced the maple leaf pattern on the dishtowel. “And the thing is, I may have met someone very not beige.”
    “Oh, really?” Joy shut off the water now and dried her hands. “This requires my full attention I think.” She nudged Sage over to the kitchen table. “Sit and spill, kid.”
    Sage obeyed and said, “When Danielle showed me Cressen’s place, it wasn’t… well, it wasn’t empty.”
    “So you got some bonus furniture? What does that have to do with anything?” Joy’s blonde brows drew together.
    “Bonus furniture and a man.” Now that sounded ridiculous.
    “I’m afraid I’m not following, Sage. Maybe the time for the old folks’ home is closer than I thought.”
    “No. I’m not explaining it well.” She finger-combed the ends of her hair and sifted out a breath. “You know that carved moose we love at the rest stop?”
    “Sure.”
    “The guy who carved that was in Cressen’s place looking for help after being shot in the leg by a hunter. He’d crashed on one of the bonus pieces of furniture. Bled all over it actually. I found him. Danielle called 911. We got him help and he’s home now. He’s my neighbor and I made his father cookies and had dinner with them last night.” She realized she’d dumped a lot of information on her mother at once, but she’d needed to get it all out in one fell swoop.
    Joy sat across from her, blinking as she processed. “Okay. Not beige. For sure.”
    “Rick built a barn workshop for this guy and it’s a beauty.” When she’d wandered around Orion’s shop before the dinner invitation—before The Kiss—she’d sensed Rick’s craftsmanship throughout that workspace.
    “So does this guy… what’s his name?”
    “Orion Finley.”
    “Nice.” Joy winked. “Does Orion Finley have Rick’s seal of approval then?”
    “Does anyone ever get Rick’s seal of approval?”
    “No.” Joy shook her head.
    “But I’m thinking of filing the necessary paperwork to get it.”
    “Sage Stannard,” Joy said, “might you be smitten?”
    Sage thought of that kiss and the way Orion had looked at her all through dinner last night as if he wasn’t sure she was real or something. It had been rather adorable. And Ian. Oh, he was a sweetheart. He’d thanked her a million times for the cookies, but he’d also warned her about not hitting Orion. Had he meant not hurting Orion? From what Sage had witnessed, Witchy Ex-wife had done a number on the poor chainsaw artist. She imagined women in general scared the shit out of him after being married to—and even worse being divorced