When Alice had mentioned shopping, I was picturing an endless stream of clothing stores. Turns out that Alice was less into clothing and more into browsing through antiques and consignment shops. Trying to save my money for the essentials, I was more than content eye shopping while watching her excitement over her newest treasure.

Mid-morning we stopped by for my personal treasure and splurge of the day, an iced white mocha at Starbucks. Strolling with our drinks we found a bench to people watch as we indulged. Alice filled me in on how she and Jasper had both grown up on the island and were familiar with one another through mutual friends. During high school they began to see more of each other at parties when finally Alice said she'd waited long enough and asked him why he'd never asked her out before. Apparently they'd been together ever since. From what I'd seen briefly of them together, not to mention the sparkle in her eyes when she talked about him it was evident that they were truly in love.

Of course the conversation then turned to my own love life, or lack thereof. I'd dated a few people in high school and college, but nothing that was memorable enough to share stories about. I knew that life doesn't happen like in the books I read, but I found myself wanting more than what I was finding in those past relationships.

"You sound like my brother," Alice laughed as I described the on and off again relationships from home. "He dates someone just long enough to realize he's bored by them. Drives my mother crazy of course."

"She doesn't like the girls he dates?" I asked.

"It's not that she dislikes the girls, it's that she wants to see him settled down already. Mom and dad got married young, I married Jasper when I was 21, and so Edward being 26 and single she just worries."

"And that is why I'm glad Charlie pays no mind to my love life. I'm still 10 years old in his mind and I'll happily keep it that way."

"Don't worry, I'm sure that mom will have plenty of time to worry over you now too," Alice teased as we got up to throw away our empty cups and continue our journey through the town.

Up ahead I saw a sign hanging for Anne of Green Gables Chocolates. Alice rolled her eyes as I begged for a quick stop.

"Anne of Green Gables fan I take it?" she asked.

"Fan would be an understatement. I can't tell you how many times I've read those books. I think I actually believed I was Anne for a while there, waiting on my own Gilbert Blythe to show up," I replied. "Oh raspberry cordial drinks, I have to get these to try. I used to pretend that my raspberry tea was the same back home."

"You weren't missing anything. The chocolates I can go for, but the raspberry cordial I can live without."

Regardless of Alice's advice I picked up a package of the raspberry cordial drinks from the fridge area to bring back home. I could already picture sipping it while laying on my hammock looking over the meadow.