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Whereas Sophie had sun-kissed light brown hair and hazel eyes, this woman was all pale blond locks and blue eyes. He could see some similarities in their facial features, though.

But more than their coloring, their personalities seemed to set them apart. Sophie was happy rainbows and sunshine. Her sister was more no-nonsense.

“No worries, Isabelle,” Sophie assured, not looking the slightest repentant. “Cole has no intention of purchasing fabric, precut or otherwise. He prefers buying his quilts premade.”

Isabelle shook her head, then glanced toward Cole. “She’s been like this her whole life. Good luck. She’s all yours.”

I wish.

Cole fought flinching at the unexpected thought. No, he did not wish Sophie was all his.

What he wished was that he wasn’t here, that he’d never gotten to know the smiley, surprising woman who read his journal. But the thought of not having met Sophie left him as unsettled as the thought that she’d read his journal. Which didn’t make sense.

She was a talkative, bubbly person…who might be a little crazy, given the face she’d made at her sister.

Not that he should, nor that he wanted to, but Cole sort of liked her kind of crazy.

Chapter Five

Someday, Sophie would quit giving in to her impulses, but apparently that day wasn’t today. She had no idea why she’d just made reindeer antlers and an immature face at the camera in front of Cole.

Not completely true. She hadn’t liked the nervousness of thinking she was going to do something embarrassing—so she’d taken the pressure off by getting that behind her. Plus, she’d wanted Cole to relax.

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So, yeah, Sophie had behaved childishly, but catching both Cole and her sister off guard had been worth it. Given the chance, she’d do it again.

She snuck a glance at Cole and would swear he was fighting a grin. If it would make him smile, she’d make a dozen faces at the security cameras.

“You’ll be back by two?” Isabelle asked as a not-so-subtle reminder that Sophie and Cole were on a time crunch.

The words sounded almost like a warning, but Sophie knew they weren’t—or at least that they weren’t meant to warn her. Despite Sophie’s impulsivity, Isabelle knew Sophie took their business seriously; she worked long hours toward making it a success. Her sister’s question was directed more at Cole, much as a protective parent might remind a prospective date of curfew time.

Her sister had nothing to worry about. Cole was too honorable to bail on the toy drive, but that didn’t mean he liked being paired with Sophie. He was clearly in a rush to be done so he could walk away from her as soon as possible.

Ignoring Isabelle’s furrowed brow, Sophie asked Cole, “You ready?” His look said he was as ready as he’d ever be to spend time with her. “You’ve got the collection boxes with you?”

Cole nodded. “Everything’s in my truck.”

Sophie grabbed her cell phone, then snagged her coat before waving bye to Isabelle. Hopefully, she wasn’t overly stressing her sister by taking a few hours off. She’d bring back a piece of key lime pie from Lou’s as a peace offering.

“Our list has most of the businesses on the square, so let’s start here, then we can swing by Lou’s Diner, put out a box, get his donation check, and grab lunch at the same time.”

Cole’s expression flickered briefly, as if he was going to refuse her suggestion—probably objecting to the “grabbing lunch” bit she’d thrown in—but then he nodded, as if he was resigned to whatever the day brought.

“I bet Rosie is in a tizzy that Lou wasn’t on her list, although for Lou’s sake, that’s probably best. If she tried to convince him to sign over the diner, he might actually do it, because he’s crazy in love with her,” she rambled on as they stepped out into the surprisingly balmy November day. Unable to resist, she lifted her face toward the sky, spread her arms, and soaked up the sunshine.

“Working on your Christmas tan?”

Cutting her gaze toward him, she laughed. “Ha. That’s funny. Just upping my vitamin D level. First up is Paw Parties.” Sophie giggled at his expression. “It’s a pet specialty store run by one of the ladies I go to church with. You may have met the owner at the toy drive meeting. Pretty blonde named Carrie, in her late thirties, maybe early forties. Super great lady. She specializes in parties for pets and organic treats.”

He didn’t look impressed. “Parties for pets? Are you kidding me? People around here go for that kind of thing?”

Pausing on the sidewalk, Sophie’s hands went to her hips. “People around here? What’s that supposed to mean? That we’re too backwoods to properly pamper our pets? I’ll have you know we adore and celebrate our furry family members in Pine Hill.”

His lips twitched. “Tell me, just how many parties have you thrown for your pet over the past year?”

“Well, none, but that’s because—”