Emma and Luke stayed for dinner, and after Emma helped her get their mother situated for the night in the hospital bed in the guestroom, Luke and Emma headed home to reunite with their dogs.

Her dad went to bed as well, which left Molly alone and feeling more than a little restless.

It was Saturday night, and still early. She could watch a movie and make some popcorn, but she really wanted to get out of the house.

She grabbed her phone and, on impulse, called Carter, hoping he wasn’t out on a date with someone else. If he was, he probably wouldn’t answer her call, right? Because if he did and she heard some other female voice, she’d cringe and be so embarrassed.

He answered on the second ring. “Hey, Molly.”

“Hi. What are you doing?”

“You’re going to laugh.”

“I doubt it.”

“I’m decorating my house for Halloween.”

Her lips tilted upward. “You are not.”

“I am. Want to come over and help me?”

She smiled at the invite. “Sure. I’ll be right there.”

“I’m warning you, I take my Halloween very seriously.”

She couldn’t even imagine what he meant by that, but now she was curious. “I feel duly warned. I’ll be there shortly.”

“Okay. See ya.”

She hung up and grabbed the keys to George, grateful to have her car back again after having it repaired. She left a note on the kitchen table for her parents in case her dad got up and was looking for her, then rolled her eyes, mentally noting the inconvenience of being someone her age and living at home again. But that’s how it was, and she had to deal with it in order to take care of her mom.

She made a stop in the bathroom and checked her appearance. Not too bad. Her hair was up in a ponytail and she had on jeans and a sweatshirt, but whatever. It wasn’t a date, anyway. How dressed up did she have to be to help with Halloween decorations?

But she did put on some lip gloss. Then felt stupid for doing it.

Not a date, remember?

She drove over to Carter’s house. The front lights were on. He was outside, unloading bales of hay from the back of his truck. She got out of her car and walked over to him.

“Planning a hayride?”

“Nope.” He dragged one of the bales over toward the giant oak tree in the front yard, then settled it next to two other bales. “Come on into the garage with me.”

“This sounds serial-killer-esque. I fear for my life.”

“Ha. You’re safe, though there is a skeleton involved.”

“See? My fears are well grounded.”

He laughed, and she followed him into the garage, where he had opened a long plastic storage box.

“Jeebus, Carter. You really do take your Halloween seriously.” Inside were two skeletons, which looked totally real, a couple of light-up pumpkins, and some orange lights. God only knew what else lurked in the bottom of the box.

“Carry one of the skeletons for me, will you?”

“If a cop drives by, we could get arrested.”

“Fortunately, I know all the cops.”

“And they let you get away with this? Hope has become such a corrupt town since I’ve been away.”

“Ha ha.” He handed one of the oversized skeletons to her. It was heavier than she thought.

“You got it?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

She hoisted it over her shoulder, convinced it looked like she was carrying a body across the lawn. But she followed Carter to the tree and laid the skeleton down on one of the bales of hay.

“Wait here. I have to go get the rope.”

Rope?

She looked at the skeletons, then the wide branches on the tree, then shook her head.

Oh my.

When he came back with rope, she shook her head. “Seriously?”

He grinned. “Oh, yeah. The kids in the neighborhood love my house.”

“I’ll just bet they do.”

He climbed up on the bales of hay and strung the rope over one of the tree branches, then made a noose and looped it over the neck of one of the skeletons, hoisting it up so it dangled from the ground. There were spotlights on the tree, and he adjusted one of them so it shined on the skeleton. It was highly gruesome, in an awesome, Halloween kind of way.

“What did these poor skeletons ever do to you?” she asked.

He laughed and took a step back. “Does it look high enough to you?”

She walked to the sidewalk. “Looks perfect for a hanging.”

“I knew I could count on your support. Now let’s do the second one on the other side of the tree.”

When he was finished, it really was perfect, especially with the hideous pumpkin faces at the base of the hay bales.

“I’ll string up some spider webbing in the trees on Halloween. I don’t want to do that too early in case of rain.”

“It’s gruesome. Congratulations.”

“Thanks. I also pipe horror music to the outside.”

“I fear for the psyches of small children coming to your house.”

“You’ll have to be here on Halloween. A bunch of people come over. We dress up and scare the shit out of kids.”

She cocked a brow. “Someday you’re going to make your own kids so proud.”

He gave her a look, then a grin. “Thanks.”

It was at that moment she realized their child would have been twelve years old now. She waited for the anguish, but it passed quickly. She was grateful for that, because she was tired of dwelling on it. It was time to put it in the past.

He brushed his knuckles across her cheek. “What are you thinking about?”

She exhaled, refusing to bring it up. They’d rehashed it enough. “I’m thinking you need some headstones in this yard to fully creepify the look.”

He turned around, put his hands on his hips, and stared out over the front lawn. “You know what? You’re right. I’ll get some next week.”

She could already imagine the effect this yard was going to have on the kids. They’d be so scared. Then again, she remembered seeking out just this type of house when she and her friends had gone trick-or-treating when she was a kid. The scarier, the better.

Carter was going to be a huge hit.

He put his arm around her. “How about you come inside with me and we get something to drink?”

“Sure.”