“You like her.” Sam pointed her spoon at him. “You like Evangeline!”
He let his shirt fall into place and crossed to the freezer. “You’re off duty and it’s past your bedtime. Stop throwing accusations around.”
“Mark Bryant MacLaughlin, you’re in denial.” Sam shut the freezer door before he could grab his ice cream. “Admit it. You. Like. Evangeline. Taylor!”
“Could you not yell in my face?” Using his height to his advantage, he blocked her with his shoulders, then grabbed the butter pecan gelato. “I didn’t say I like her, and I haven’t given you cause to think that. Now, if you could excuse me, I’d like to enjoy my ice cream before work.”
Sam let out a sigh. “Come on, bro. I’ve known you for twenty-nine years. Almost thirty. Also, you’re getting old, so you should probably settle down and have a family before Mom disowns you and adopts another son.”
Mark leaned a hip against the counter and took a bite of gelato. “First of all, thirty-one is not old. And—”
“You’ll be thirty-two this fall.”
“But I’m not there yet, am I? Anyhow, thirty-one is not old, and I haven’t found the right woman yet. What about you? You’re nearly the big three-o and you’ve yet to find a husband. A highway goes two ways, sis.”
“Yeah, well, I wasn’t talking about me.” She grinned. “So… Are you gonna ask her out?”
“Really? If I wouldn’t end up getting charged for assault by my own sister, I’d throw this spoon at you.”
“No, you wouldn’t. You’re a softie. Look, Mark, all I’m saying is that I saw how your face lit up when I said her name. I know that she’s not from here and that breaks your ‘shop local’ rules, but I also know my brother. And he doesn’t let minor details get in the way of what he wants. More importantly, what God wants for him. The fact that Miss Taylor happened to end up in Believe isn’t just a coincidence. If you need more prodding, call Mom. She’d love to give you the spiel I just gave you, even at ten-forty-five at night. But at least hers wouldn’t be specific to one lady. Maybe that would help you.”
“No, I think one of you is enough for one night.” He set his spoon in the sink, put the lid on the gelato, and slid it back in the freezer. “I won’t deny that I noticed Miss Taylor, but there’s a lot that would go with it. She doesn’t live here, for one. I’m not moving, Sam.”
“Who says you have to?”
“Sam. She’s from Washington state.”
“Fine. But I’m just saying, you haven’t lit up like this in a long time. If ever. Even Ettie noticed it when you finally came back to the station yesterday.”
“You weren’t even at work yesterday, so how would you know? Besides that, Ettie would notice a caterpillar that likes another caterpillar, Sam. That’s a poor example to support your case. Remind me again how you passed your state patrol training?”
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