It was indeed a new year, and Whitney couldn’t have been happier. The children were off doing their school lessons, and Liam and his father were discussing business. Just thinking of Liam set her heart to hammering and made her head feel fuzzy. And against all odds, against all obstacles, he seemed to feel the same way that she did. How was that possible? A month ago, this would have seemed like a royal mistake. But the children were thriving, and the house back in Oregon was fraught with too many memories, with the constant sense of her sister’s loss. Her only problem, Whitney told herself, was having too little to do. She’d have to remedy that somehow. Maybe get a job or finally finish her master’s degree. But for now she was just walking the halls. Perhaps she could get a ride into town, but she’d be wandering around all alone, just as she was now. While strolling by Frederick’s office, she stopped when she heard her name.
