Summer on Blossom Street (Blossom Street #6)(55)

Hutch held up his scarf. In his own opinion he’d made exceptional progress, especially considering where he’d started.

“Oh, sorry,” Lydia said, “I mean with the quitting aspect of the class. I can see how the knitting’s going, and you’re all doing an excellent job.”

“Well…I’m no longer knitting armor,” Hutch told them. His tension had loosened considerably. He’d become more comfortable with the needles, and he credited Lydia for that. But he credited Phoebe for several other changes in his life. When no one else responded, Hutch felt obliged to f ill the silence. “The knitting’s def initely helped me relax and it seems to have improved my blood pressure.”

“Very good.” Lydia smiled in his direction. His mental attitude had improved, too. He’d stopped obsessing about the lawsuit, leaving it in the hands of his attorney. Nothing he did now would affect the outcome, anyway. Knitting had changed his life, he thought with a grin. Through the class he’d met Phoebe and everything seemed different now. Because of her recent loss he didn’t want to rush her, so he made a point of calling her no more than once every other day, counting the hours between calls and dates. With Phoebe he felt witty, clever and downright fascinating. The prospect of seeing her excited him.

They shared many of the same interests. Her appreciation of old books was only one example of that. Over the weekend she’d shown him her collection, including a f irst edition of Mark Twain’s The Innocents Abroad published in 1869 that, amazingly, she’d picked up at a garage sale for f ive dollars. When he’d gone to her place on Saturday afternoon, he’d f lipped through her stack of DVDs, which conf irmed that they loved the same movies from Bogey to f ilm noir to Indiana Jones. Afterward they’d walked to the theater and shared a bucket of buttered popcorn, watching a brand-new animated feature in the company of at least a hundred kids.

Hutch didn’t think he’d ever enjoyed an afternoon as much. On his way home, he’d stopped at the off ice, out of pure habit. From the day he’d taken over as CEO, he’d spent every Saturday there. However, he stayed for less than an hour, his mind on everything but business.

“How’s your thumb?” Lydia asked, bringing him out of his musings.

“Not bad, thanks,” he said, bending his thumb to demonstrate his mobility.

Lydia nodded. “And Phoebe?” she asked next. “How are you doing?”

Phoebe glanced at Hutch. “Better. Much better.”

“I know this is a painful time for you….”

She lowered her eyes, and when she spoke, her voice was barely audible. “I was late for class because I ran into…an old friend of my f iancé’s. I…I told him I’m seeing someone else now and he got terribly upset.”

Under the table, Hutch clasped her hand. “Who you’re seeing is none of his business,” he insisted.

“I know, but he didn’t want to hear that.”

“Situations like this are diff icult, especially when other people are still grieving, wanting to hold on to the past,” Lydia said. “I hope you won’t let that confrontation ruin your evening.”

“I won’t,” Phoebe promised, squeezing Hutch’s f ingers, silently thanking him for his support. She exhaled slowly. “If you don’t mind, I’d rather not discuss this right now. I’m still upset about it. But I’m trying to put it behind me.”

Alix looked at them both as if seeing them with new eyes. Her gaze held his for an instant—and then she winked at him. Hutch assumed that was her way of condoning the relationship. He winked back.

“I want everyone to know,” Alix said. “I went twenty-four hours without a cigarette.”

Lydia clapped her hands, and the rest of the group joined in.

“Good for you, Alix!”

“Hey, congratulations,” Hutch added.

Margaret nodded with dignif ied approval.

“It wasn’t easy,” Alix said. “I was so cranky that by dinnertime I wasn’t f it company for man or beast. So I went outside and worked in the yard. I managed to weed the whole garden. My body was screaming for a cigarette.”

“But you didn’t give in to the craving.” Lydia’s tone praised her. Alix shrugged. “No, but I think by then, Jordan was ready to beg me to smoke again.”

“No, he wasn’t.” Margaret shook her head. “He wants you to quit as much as you want to quit. Maybe more.”

“Have you tried any of the nicotine-withdrawal products?”

Lydia asked.

“I’ve tried the gum. It does take the edge off.”

“What about chocolate?” Hutch asked.

Alix groaned.

“I would, but with my addictive personality I’d weigh three hundred pounds in about three weeks.”

Hutch grinned and reached into his briefcase, taking out a dozen of his company’s new Mount Saint Helens candy bars. He f igured Phoebe was right, and he should tell his fellow classmates about the family business.

“Hey, what’s this?” Margaret was the f irst to comment, automatically picking up one of the bars. “I’ve never seen these before.”

“They’re our new product,” he explained.

Phoebe smiled. “In case no one realized it, Hutch and his family own Mount Rainier Chocolates.”