“Izzy, you need to come take a look at this.”

Isabella James, or, Izzy, as she was known to her students, groaned as she stood up to follow Darren. She’d been wedged between the side of a barn and a tree right next to it for the better part of two hours, carefully unearthing a rock that featured a petroglyph carved into it.

Darren led her to the main excavation site, where her crew’s voices were raised in excitement as they stood in a huddle, all looking down at the ground.

“Move aside, you fools,” Darren exclaimed, “The boss lady has arrived.”

Izzy walked down the ramp into the excavation site as her group moved aside for her. They’d been working almost nonstop ever since the owner of this farm had contacted her after they had discovered a strange looking drawing on a rock out in the middle of a field they had been clearing.

“It’s clearly a wall, Iz,” Lara Bruno, her field assistant enthused, “You can see it stretches that way, and then makes a turn down there.”

Izzy felt a little faint all of a sudden, and she knew it wasn’t the hot summer sun, either. This was big. So, so big. Bigger than anything she’d ever dreamed that she’d be a part of, after taking the teaching job at tiny little Haverston College, in the small town of Rook’s Mill, Kansas.

************************************************************************

“I’m telling you, boss, this find is going to put Rook’s Mill on the map.”

Izzy blew an errant hair out of her eye and returned to her task. She grabbed her red marker and scribbled a C- on a paper.

“Hey, that’s not mine, is it?” Darren asked.

“Nope. Your paper only ranked a D, I’m afraid.” she jested, enjoying her top student’s expression of alarm.

“Whatever. Seriously, though, I think you should let me put this all over social media. We’re going to be famous in an hour, guarantee it.”

“I wouldn’t do that just yet.” an unfamiliar male voice said from behind them.

Both Darren and Izzy turned to look at her classroom door. A man in a business suit was already moving towards them. As he approached, Izzy caught the faint but heady scent of expensive cologne at the exact same time that she also noticed his fancy leather shoes and Italian cut suit. She let her eyes drift up to his face and she actually felt her breath catch in her throat. Damn, she thought, he was so handsome it hurt.

“And why is that?” Darren asked him, clearly not as distracted by the man’s appearance as she was.

“My name is William Raines. I’m a lawyer for the Burner family. He reached the desk, “You’re Isabella James?”

His eyes were nearly as dark as his hair, and they were looking down at her piercingly, or, at least that was how Izzy would describe it, if she were asked to describe it, especially if she were writing a romance novel or something. She shook herself, trying to get a grip. What the hell was wrong with her? She knew better than this, didn’t she?

“She is,” Darren stopped staring at her strangely and answered for her, “The Burner family? Who are they?”

“They own the property that your recent discovery is on.”

“No, you’re wrong,” Izzy found her voice, “The property belongs to Mary and Lionel Gates.”

“Mary and Lionel Gates just rent the property,” William’s gaze returned to hers, “The Burner family actually own it, and they happened to see a small article detailing the dig that was written up in the Rook’s Mill paper.”

Izzy looked up at Darren, “I’ve never even heard of them. Have you?” Unlike Darren, she hadn’t been born and raised in Rook’s Mill.

Darren shook his head, “No, can’t say that I have. Lionel and Mary have been on that property since before I was born, though. My dad used to help bring in their corn harvest.”

William shrugged, “Like I said, the property belongs to the Burner family, and they have sent me to hand deliver this,” he handed an envelope to Izzy, “A cease and desist. You are no longer allowed to continue your work at the Burner property.”

Indignation flared inside of Izzy. How dare he do this to her. To the school. Didn’t he have any idea what he was stopping? She stood up and came around the desk to stand in front of him, full of fire, “Well, Mr. Raines, you go tell the Burner family that the school is going to mount a fight on this. We’ve discovered what just might be the most important discovery of early human activity here in Kansas that has ever been found, and I’ll get the backing of every single archaeological professional I know of between here and New York to attest to it.”

An amused smile played at Will’s mouth as she bristled, “You do that, Ms. James,” he nodded curtly, “Now, can either of you suggest a place to get a room for the night?”

“You could stay over at Claire’s place,” Darren said, as Izzy rounded on him with a scowl, “She’s setting up a bed and breakfast and trying to get paying guests.”

“Darren!”

“He has to stay somewhere, boss,” Darren said, sheepishly, “And Claire needs all the help she can get.”

“Sounds good. Just give me the address and I’ll get out of here.”

“Traitor.” Izzy spat as she snatched up the letter and stomped out of the room.

************************************************************************

Izzy’s hair caught the wind as her Jeep hurtled down the two lane gravel road towards the Gates property. She needed to talk to Lionel and Mary. They would surely put that suave lawyer and his claims to rest.

Lionel was the one to open the door.

“Lionel, just the one I wanted to see,” Izzy declared, “Can I ask you a few questions?”

The old man opened the door wider and ushered her inside, “Come on in out of the heat,” he stood aside as she stepped inside the spacious living room, “Let’s go into the kitchen. Mary’s just about to serve dinner. Meatloaf. She could probably make it stretch if you’re hungry.”

“Thanks, but I’m good,” Izzy followed behind him as he shuffled slowly down the hallway. She took notice of the rows of school pictures that lined the wall, “You have three kids, Lionel, right?”

“Sure do. Mark, Dusty, and Vivian. Of course, they’re all grown up now.”

The scent of meatloaf cooking in the oven wafted down the hall, and the sound of plates being taken out of the cabinet made Izzy’s stomach growl. She hadn’t had much to eat all day, but she didn’t want to intrude. She would swing through a drive through on the way home.

“Mary, look who’s here.” Lionel announced, as he led her over to the table and pulled a chair out for her.

Mary turned away from the stove, “Oh my,” she exclaimed, flustered, “Well, just let me fix you a plate, sweetheart.”

“No. No, no, Mary, I’m fine. Really. Actually, I just came by to ask you both a few questions, if that’s alright?”

“Of course. Is this about the dig?” Lionel asked, as he tucked a napkin into his collar.

“It is. You see, a man, well, a lawyer, actually, showed up in my classroom today and he handed me this,” Izzy waved the envelope in the air, “It’s a cease and desist letter. They want us to stop the excavation because, apparently the property belongs to a family named, Burner.”

Both of the old people gasped. Mary dropped her spatula with a clatter.

Clearly, they knew who the Burners’ were, then.

“So it’s true.” she said, with sagging shoulders. This was not the news that she had hoped to hear.

Mary came over and took a seat at the table, “We didn’t think we’d ever hear that name again.” she said, in a voice that was barely audible.

Izzy was stumped, “I’m confused. Do the Burner family own the property, or do you?”

“No, they do,” Lionel said. He got up and went to shut the flame off under the pot of green beans that were simmering on the stove, “But we haven’t heard from them for,” he turned and looked at his wife, “It must be close to sixty years now, wouldn’t you say, Mary?”

“Oh yes, at least.”

“But you’re renting this place from them.”

“No,” Lionel returned to the table and took his seat, “We’re just the caretakers, is all. See, back in the day, this used to be one of the biggest ranches in the state. The Burner Ranch. Albert Reese, Mary’s father, was the foreman …”

“So, where did they go then?”

“We never knew.”

“Wait. So they just what … disappeared? But, why?”

Mary sighed, “There were rumors that they went to New York. They owned property up there, at least that was what we heard.”

That made sense, Izzy thought, considering that Mr. Raines seemed like the big city type, “So how did you two become the caretakers then?”

Mary sighed again. She looked at her husband who gave her a gentle nod.

“There was talk going around in my family, many, many years ago, of course, that my father had a tryst with Lana Burner …”

“Who was she?”

“Lana’s father was Tyron Burner. He came from old money back East. He and his wife, Demaris, also old money, came out here and bought this place. There was talk that Demaris didn’t get on with Tyron’s mother and this was her way of keeping him from her. Don’t know about that, but I do know that they just had one child, Lana. She left behind some things. A few pictures, some journals, and things. Lana was a real looker,” Mary got up and went around the corner. When she returned, she handed Izzy an old, framed photograph of a beautiful, dark haired woman with a regal air about her, “This is her. She went back East to some women’s college, and when she returned, she brought back her new husband, Milton Russell. The Russell family were from England, and were quite posh, at least that’s what my mom always said. He was quite the catch, apparently …”

“Mary, honey, I think she wants you to cut to the chase.” Lionel interrupted her.

“Oh,” Mary seemed flustered as she reached for and patted Izzy’s hand, “Sorry, dear, I do tend to get off topic these days. At any rate, Milton was not a man’s man, as they say, and he had no interest in the day to day running of the ranch. By that time, Tyron and Demaris were getting older and wanted to travel more, so it was decided that they would bring on someone to run things. That man was my father, Albert. I was just a baby when he got hired on.”

“So, forgive me, but you did say that there was a rumor that your father had an affair with Lana? Do you believe that?”

“Oh yes,” Mary nodded vigorously, “My parents’ argued about it for years, long after I was old enough to understand.”

“Do you think that’s why Lana and Milton left the ranch?”

“Most likely, yes, though I can’t know that for sure.”

“But your father was still allowed to stay and work on the ranch?”

“Yes, he was. Even after Demaris and Tyron had died. And when he got too old to run the place, my dad suggested us for the job and we stepped in and took over.”

“And you never formally asked Lana?”

“No. Like I said, we’re the caretakers. It’s just the way it is.”

************************************************************************

“Thank you.” Izzy took the paper bag from the teenager at the drive through window and tossed it onto the seat beside her. On a whim, she drove down Peach Street and parked just up from the ornate Victorian that Claire Wallis owned. She reached for the bag and took out the double cheeseburger with extra onions and started eating while she stared at the house. After visiting Lionel and Mary, she now had more questions than she had had before, and she needed answers. Maybe the lawyer would have them. She finished the burger and wiped her face with a paper napkin. She hoped he liked onion breath, she thought with a wry shrug as she hopped out and headed for the house.

“Hey, Izzy, I never expected to see you here!” Claire Wallis exclaimed, as she opened the door.

“It’s good to see you, Claire,” Izzy said, “Actually, I came to see a guest of yours, William Raines?”

“Ah, yes, he checked in earlier,” Claire stepped away from the door and ushered Izzy inside, “He’s in Room 3, just up the stairs and to the left. I could ring him and see if he wants to meet you in the sitting room, if you’d like.”

Izzy was already half way up the stairs, “No need. I’ll just run up and talk to him real quick.” She reached the landing and noted the ornate, threadbare runner that ran the entire length of the hallway. Claire certainly had her work cut out for her, taking on this old house, Izzy thought, as she reached door number 3, and rapped on it with her knuckles.

The door opened, and William Raines peered down at her, questioningly.

“Uh, hi,” Izzy drawled, trying not to care that he looked ridiculously good in a burgundy bathrobe that hung half open, revealing a surprisingly muscular chest, “I need to ask you a few questions, if you have a minute?”

William shrugged and stepped aside. Izzy followed him inside, thinking maybe she should have taken Claire up on her offer to use the sitting room. Being here with him, with the four poster bed right there, suddenly seemed entirely too intimate.

Izzy stood while William plopped onto the bed and leaned back on the wall of decorative pillows, “So, what did you want to ask me?”

“I just went and spoke to Mary and Lionel Gates …”

“Good,” William snapped, “So now you know that they don’t own the property, just like I told you.”

Izzy fought against the urge to pick up the pitcher of water on the bedside table and dump it over his head. She settled for raising her eyebrow, “Do you want a ticker tape parade, Mr. Raines?”

His lips pulled off to one side as he chuckled softly, “Will,” he said, “Call me Will. And, I wasn’t trying to be sarcastic, just making a point that you can trust me when I tell you something.”

She felt herself softening towards him a bit. He wasn’t her enemy, after all. Maybe she could work with him. Maybe. She pulled a tufted accent chair away from the wall and sat in it, facing him, “Did you know that Mary’s father, Albert, had an affair with Lana Burner?” she asked him.

“No, I didn’t, but how does that have anything to do with now?”

“I’m not sure,” she admitted, “But sometime after, Lana, and her husband, Milton, left the ranch for somewhere. Mary believes it was New York. She said the Burners’ had property up there.”

Will nodded.

“So it’s true?”

“Most likely, considering that is where they hired me.”

“Who hired you, exactly? I mean, it couldn’t be Milton or Lana, I wouldn’t think.”

“No, it was their son, Carson.”

“Did he happen to tell you why he didn’t want the dig to go on?”

Will sat up and tossed a few frilly pillows to the floor. His robe opened more, revealing his taut abs. Izzy wondered why she suddenly felt breathless. What was the matter with her?

Will settled back again, “Look, he filled me in, briefly. He mentioned that the property had been owned by his late parents’ and had passed down to him, and he also said was that it was imperative that there would be no more digging. That was it.”

“Don’t you think that’s strange?”

Will frowned in thought, “Honestly, I didn’t think anything about it. The guy was obviously loaded. I pull up to this stone mansion on the banks of the Hudson, there’s a few sports cars worth half a million dollars parked in the drive, and he comes out looking like he’s on the way to the country club,” he shrugged, “Look, I’m sorry that I have to be the bearer of bad news, but surely there’s more places to dig things up, right?”

Izzy’s mind exploded in rage, “What did you just say?” she cried.

Will looked taken aback by her expression, “Hey, I didn’t mean anything by that. I just meant that you dig for old bones, and those can’t be the only ones out there. Am I right?”

His words, while truly pissing her off, also made an idea foment in her mind. It was a chilling thought, but it was the only thing that made sense to her. Was it possible? There was only one way to find out.

“Any big plans for the evening?” Izzy asked him, with as much charm as she could muster.

“I was going to work on a few briefs for clients. Why?”

“Sounds riveting, but how would you feel about taking a drive with me?”

A slow smile spread across his handsome face, “Are you asking me on a date, Ms. James?”

Izzy was about to quip that, no, she absolutely was not asking him on a date, but then thought better of it. Whatever worked, right? She slowly smiled right back, and tossed in a wink for good measure, “It could be.”

“Well alright then,” Will jumped up and untied the loose robe, letting it pool to the floor, “Just let me get dressed.”

Izzy’s heart was doing a rhythmic dance as she tried to avert her eyes from his magnificent form as he walked to the closet and pulled a shirt off the hanger.

“Uh, I … I think I’ll just uh, I’ll just wait for you downstairs.” Izzy stammered, as she raced for the door.

************************************************************************

“So, where are we going?”

“Oh, I don’t know,” Izzy shifted into third as they left the town behind, “Why don’t we see where the wind takes us.”

Of course, she knew exactly where she was taking him, but he didn’t need to know that yet. Right now, she just wanted to enjoy the fact that it was a warm, moonlit summer night, and she was driving with the top down and a gorgeous man was sitting beside her, enthusiastically air drumming along with the song, “In The Air Tonight.”

She decided to join him, and all the way to Mary and Lionel’s, they sang off tune and air jammed to music on the radio. She almost felt sad when she pulled into long driveway that led up to the house.

Will stopped wailing out, “Don’t Stop Believin’,” as Izzy reached over and turned off the radio. He frowned at her, “Don’t shut it down, babe. I don’t remember the last time I had this much fun.”

A jolt shot through Izzy, “Did you just call me babe?” she called over the wind as the jeep barreled up the gravel drive.

“Is it, Ms. James, then?”

“Izzy. You can call me Izzy.”

“Izzy it is. So, is this your place then?”

Izzy made a horrified face as she pulled the Jeep to a stop in front of Lionel and Mary’s house. Did he really think she was bringing him back to her place already? Granted, she’d not been on a date for ages, but how forward was it considered these days, asking a guy to go for a drive?

“No. No it is not. This is Lionel and Mary’s place.”

“Why are we here?” Will’s expression darkened.

“Look, I have an idea, but I need to check something first. Would you mind waiting here while I run in? I’ll be back in a jiff,” she flipped on the radio, and Bon Jovi came on, “Relax and enjoy the tunes, dude.”

She jumped out and ran to the house, and when she returned, she carried a handful of slim leather journals.

“These,” she handed a few to Will, “are Lana Burner’s journals. I thought we should read them, see if we can figure out why her son doesn’t want us to dig anymore.”

“I don’t want to get involved,” Will tried to hand them back, “It’s probably not legal.”

“It’s not legal to read a book?” Izzy clucked with disappointment.

“Fine,” Will flicked on the interior light and flipped open a journal, “What am I looking for?”

“We’re looking for anything that mentions Albert Reese, that’s Mary’s father, or anything about why Lana and Milton decided to move back to New York. I’m hoping we’ll know it when we see it. If we see it, that is.”

“I must say, Iz, you sure know how to wine and dine a man.” Will pouted, as he started reading.

She pulled a face, “Just read.” she snapped, as she tucked into the journal. From beginning to end, it was just the dreams of a young woman living on a ranch. Back in Lana’s day, the area had been pretty desolate, and it must have been pretty isolating, to say the least.

Izzy tossed the journal aside and grabbed another. She flipped through, quickly scanning the pages for anything that might catch her attention, but it was much the same as the last. She looked over at her “date”, “Anything?” she queried.

“Milton is just the dreamiest. He took me into the city last night and we dined at this tiny Italian restaurant where everyone knew who he was. I felt like a queen. I do believe I am falling for him …” Will looked up, “Tell me, Iz, are you going to write about me like this tonight in your diary?”

“Ha!” Izzy reached over and took the journal out of his hands, “You wish,” she flipped the page and started reading it, “Seriously, though, this means we’re getting close.”

A few minutes later, Izzy snapped the journal closed and reached for another. Beside her, Will had taken to stretching, reaching his arms back behind him and making satisfying noises that made Izzy achingly aware of his masculinity, “Would you stop fidgeting and help me, Will?” she snapped.

“Sure thing, boss lady,” Will grabbed another journal, “But you’re really going to have to up your game on trying to keep the excitement going.”

“Oh shit, I think I found something!” Izzy exclaimed, “Listen to this, “I went to the barn today. I knew Al would be there, working with the new horses. He noticed me right away, I could tell. He finally came over and we talked. He’s so easy to talk to, I swear I could talk to him for hours. Milton never talks to me anymore. He hates it here. He just wants to go back to New York, but Daddy insists that we stay here. Me, I’m just miserable. The only time I feel happy is when I’m talking to Al.”

“Sounds like someone’s about to fly a plane into Cheaterville, huh?” Will said, as he kept flipping through his own journal.

“We’re getting close. I can feel it.” Izzy flipped faster, only stopping when she spotted the words she had been looking for. She read quickly, her fingers flying down the pages, until, finally, she stopped. Her heart was pounding as she read the words. Her mouth dropped open.

“What did you find, Iz?”

Izzy’s voice broke as she read from the journal, “My heart is broken. I will never be the same again. Never. Milton came in and saw me changing and I could no longer hide the fact that I was pregnant. You can’t really hide a seven month pregnancy when you are naked. He knew immediately that it wasn’t his because we hadn’t been intimate in so long. He forced me to admit that the baby was Al’s. He was hysterical, sobbing and screaming, and then he hit me, and then he hit me again and again, beating my stomach until the pains from inside became unbearable and I was in labor, and he forced me to labor alone, with just him in our bedroom. My baby, my beautiful sweet girl, was born dead. I named her Bertha, for her dad. Of course, after, Milton begged me for forgiveness. He was so distraught that I said that I would forgive him, just so that he would leave me alone with my daughter. He went and found Daddy, and Daddy took charge, just like he always does. He told me that this was actually a good thing, losing her. That I would go on to have more children, legitimate children, with Milton, and that I should just let him handle everything. What could I really do? He took Bertha from my arms. I never saw her again. But today, I finally left my room. I walked and walked, just trying to clear my head, and I ended up on Chauncey’s hill. There I found my daughter’s grave. It was almost like she was calling me to her. Someone, my father, probably, had stuck a small cross made of sticks in the dirt. I picked it up and threw it as far as I could. How dare he pretend that he ever cared about her life …”

Tears were rolling down Izzy’s face, dripping onto the journal.

“Hey, you okay?” Will reached out and gently pulled her towards him. The smell of his cologne comforted her almost as much as his soothing hands rubbing against her shoulder.

Eventually, Izzy got control of her emotions and she was able to wipe her face and wonder aloud, “Where the hell is Chauncey’s hill, do you think?”

“No idea. I never came across that name while I was reading.”

Izzy sighed, “It’s late. I need to sleep.” she started the jeep and whipped it around to head back down the driveway.

As they drove through the night, with the hot wind whipping through their hair, the awfulness of what they’d just discovered weighed heavily on both of their minds. They stayed silent until they reached Claire’s place. Izzy didn’t turn off the car to signal that she was just dropping him off. She looked over at him, “Sorry that our ‘date’ ended on such a bad note.”

“Don’t be,” Will reached over and took her hand in his own, “I got to spend the evening with a beautiful woman. Trust me, it was way better than working on law briefs.”

“I guess I got my answer about why Carson Burner wants to stop the dig.”

“Looks like it.”

“Are you leaving soon?”

“I have a flight back to New York in the morning.”

Izzy nodded, somberly. Of course he was leaving. He’d come for one reason, and his mission had been accomplished. It was a pity, really. She was starting to like him for more than his looks.

Will leaned over and dropped a soft kiss on her cheek. Without saying another word, he opened his door and got out, leaving her to watch him walk up the quaint cobblestone path to Claire’s front door and disappear inside.

************************************************************************

The pounding on Izzy’s front door finally managed to wake her out of her dreams. She moaned and rolled over to look at the clock; it was a quarter to nine. The pounding continued and she slid out of bed, grabbed her robe and threw it on as she stomped to the door, “Darren, I swear I’m going to …” she flung open the door. Will was standing there, clutching a bag of donuts and two large coffees.

“Breakfast on the way over to Lionel and Mary’s?” he asked her.

“I thought you had to catch a flight.” Izzy cried, as her hands flew up to her hair. She had to look a sight, while he, well, he looked magnificent, as usual.

Will shrugged, “I stayed. Now, go get dressed. I’ll wait out here.”

************************************************************************

Ten minutes later, Izzy was sipping her coffee and driving out to the ranch, “What made you stay?” she asked Will.

“Couldn’t sleep. I just kept wondering where the hell Chauncey’s hill was. So, this morning, as soon as they opened, I went over to the courthouse and got the land records for the Burner ranch,” he pulled a topography map out of his pocket, “According to this land survey, there are three possible ‘hills’, as it were, on the property. I think we should try to find her, Iz. I think we should find her and make Carson give her a proper burial.”

“Are you sure? I thought you didn’t want to get involved.”

“I care now, okay. I want to see this through. And besides, I kind of liked the way your hair stuck up in all different directions this morning. I might want to see it again sometime.” he winked at her and then bit into a jelly donut and groaned in pleasure.

Izzy felt her heart lurch. Damn, he was good. She was going to need her wits about her, if she wanted to keep up with him.

They reached Mary and Lionel’s, and Izzy ran in to inform them, then hurried back out. She tapped on the door of the Jeep, “Come on, let’s grab some shovels.”

She led him over to the zip up tent that housed the dig supplies. She handed him a shovel and some polyethylene zipper bags, and grabbed a small collection box, as well.

On the way out, they stopped and spread out the map, deciding on the spot they would search first. The heat was rising as they walked across the ranch. It was going to be a scorcher by late in the afternoon, Izzy suspected. The hill, if that was what you called it, was really just a tall slope, (this was Kansas, after all), but it was majestic enough to catch their breaths in their throats by the time they reached the top.

Izzy stood at the top, staring out at the wide expanse of sunlit land. It was poignantly beautiful, but also deeply sad. A rush of compassion washed over her for how Lana must have felt. She would do this for her, and for the little baby girl that had a right to be known.

She turned around; Will was already digging.

“Wait,” she yelled, “Wait. Let me show you how we do it.” Izzy instructed him on how to carefully hollow out the ground, making sure that they didn’t disturb too much. When they found her, they both cried. Tyron had cared after all. He had interred his granddaughter in a small box with her name carefully carved on top.

************************************************************************

“So, what did he say?” Izzy asked, as she dabbed a French fry in ketchup and plopped it into her mouth.

Will sat his cell phone on the table, “He said that he would gladly do as we asked, and that the dig could continue, so long as we kept his family secret out of the news.”

Izzy blew out a sigh of relief and collapsed against the diner booth. She had been so worried that he wasn’t going to agree to their demand that he give his half-sister a proper burial in the Burner family cemetery in New York. It was a victory, and, even better, that he was willing to allow the archaeological dig to resume, as well. She figured it was okay to keep the story to themselves, seeing as how the guilty party were long since gone, and nothing would be gained from sensationalizing it in the news.

“So, does this mean you’re going back?” she asked Will, sort of fearing his answer.

Will put his chocolate shake down, “It does. I have a very important package that I need to deliver.”

Izzy couldn’t help the frown that suddenly pulled at the corners of her lips. She didn’t want to ask him to stay, but she did, she desperately did want him to stay.

Suddenly, Will reached across the table and took her hands in his, “But, I was thinking that this town could use a good, hotshot lawyer. What do you think, Iz?

Izzy beamed. She clenched her hands tight against his, “You know, I was just thinking the same thing. Do you have someone in mind?” she teased.

“Watch it, babe.” Will laughed, and then he leaned across the table and kissed her like he meant it.