Second Chance Summer - Olivia Miles Page 0,2

customer. Or non-paying customer, really. Amelia never charged her family for their food at the café. It wouldn’t feel right.

Still, her father always stuffed a few bills in the tip jar, more than covering their meals.

Candy kept on grinning. “You sure know how to cook. Maybe one of these days I can show you the recipe for my famous cheese biscuits.”

Amelia kept her eyes on the cutting board as she sliced through a baguette. As far as she knew, those cheese biscuits were only famous within the walls of her childhood home, where Candy now unofficially resided. Still, she said, “I’ll try them sometime soon. I promise.”

“I can drop some off one day,” Candy offered. “Maybe come in a little early? Have a little girl time in the kitchen?” She laughed out loud. Loudly.

Amelia picked up the plates for the next order—field greens with farm fresh goat cheese and pan-fried Michigan whitefish with a side of her sweet-potato fries—and carried them through the swing door, dodging Candy’s open arms and wiggly fingers as she gestured to the plates.

“Can’t drop these!” she warned. “Oh! And I think Maddie’s already there with Dad.” She grinned at her father, and flashed a warning look on her sister, who didn’t need further communication. They’d all mastered the art of silent glances growing up, and now that Candy was in their lives, it had come in handy.

Maddie called Candy over to discuss the specials and Amelia breathed a sigh of relief as she sets the plates down at table six before going to the patio to greet Britt.

The couple in the corner was sitting side by side now, admiring the view, sipping wine and whispering sweet nothings.

Amelia resisted a sigh.

“Just a heads-up, but Dad’s here. With Candy,” Amelia said, lest there be any confusion.

Britt’s eyes flashed on hers, and Amelia saw Robbie try his best to hide a smile. And fail miserably.

“It’s not funny,” Britt warned, but there was amusement in her eyes, too. Since Candy had come into their lives, they’d learned to adjust, to see that she wasn’t anything like their quiet, unassuming mother, but that their father was happy just the same. He’d been given a second chance at love, and really, they should support that.

Even if Candy was…well, a hugger.

“Beautiful night,” Robbie said, tearing off a bite of Keira’s cookie, which sparked a wail of protest from the little girl.

“Busy night,” Amelia said. But still, beautiful. The breeze was coming in off the lake and there was still some light left in the sky.

They’d be closing within the next hour, meaning she could take a walk along the waterfront, or sit out on this patio and enjoy a much needed glass of wine. Maybe Britt and Maddie would stick around. Maybe Cora would even join them, though she was more of a homebody than the rest of them.

Chances were, though, she would get a start on prep for tomorrow, and then go home. Her feet were tired, and she was already looking forward to catching up on her favorite shows. And she’d made that batch of blueberry ice cream over the weekend as a test run for the monthly specials…

But while all that sounded nice, the truth of it was that it was rather lonely, and seeing her sister sitting beside her high school sweetheart, with his arm casually hooked on the back of her chair, well, it stung. Amelia was happy for Britt, and happy for Robbie and Keira, and they were all overjoyed that Britt had decided to return to town at the start of summer. But sometimes, especially on these lovely, warm nights, Amelia couldn’t help but feel like everyone else had found second chances at love. Except for her.

Britt leaned forward and set a hand on her wrist. Her eyes shone with unspoken words. They needed to talk.

Amelia wondered if Britt was going to say something about Candy again, and much as Amelia saw the good in the woman, she would love to vent about Candy’s determination to make herself at home at the café—as well as the big Victorian house they’d all grown up in—but Maddie called out to her from the patio door, interrupting the moment.

“Amelia. Did you need me to check on that flatbread?”

The flatbread! Amelia muttered her excuses and hurried away, because there was no way that she could burn a table’s order twice!

She pushed her way through the tables, back around the counter, ignoring Candy’s call of “Yoohoo!” and telling herself that