Chapter 12

12

"Mom?"

"Yeah, honey?" Stacey clipped Elijah's wet swim trunks to the line she'd stretched across one side of the backyard. It held a constant rotation of bathing suits and towels. Living right on the water generated more laundry, but it was worth it to know her kids were getting outside. They enjoyed their life in a different way than they had back in Newton.

"Can we go to the library?" Vivian asked as she waved a bright pink paperback in the air. She'd come out in a tank top and shorts and made herself comfortable on the deck. "This is the last book that I haven't read yet."

Stacey smiled. This was even further proof that the move had been good for her kids. Vivian had always been a reader, but she'd torn into her collection with more voracity than usual over the past couple of weeks. "Sure. I'll have to get a card for the one here in Truro. Actually, I think you're old enough to have your own library card now."

Vivian's eyes widened. "Really?"

"We'll check, but I think so. Of course, you'd have to be responsible with it." Stacey pulled a damp towel from the basket at her feet and clipped it to the line.

"I will! Can we go right now?" Vivian's feet slapped down onto the deck as she sat up.

Checking her watch, Stacey shook her head. "They're probably closed for the day, but we can go tomorrow," she promised. "That'll give you time to finish that book."

Her daughter eyed her current read with bored contempt. "Yeah, I guess so." She flopped back into her chair and found her spot once again.

"How about you, Elijah?" Stacey nudged the laundry basket with her foot, moving it further down the clothesline. "Do you want to go to the library?"

"My name isn't Elijah!" he insisted, flipping up the eye patch he'd donned before coming out into the yard. "I'm Captain Elijah! "

"Oh, my mistake. Well, Captain Elijah, would you like to go to the library tomorrow? It's a new one, one we've never been to before. It'll be an adventure." Considering how he was parading around the yard, waving a plastic sword and yelling all the pirate lingo he could remember, Stacey figured an adventure was right up his alley.

"Yar! Pirates don't read!" he insisted, catching his tricorn hat from last Halloween just before it fell off.

"Sure, they do." Stacey smiled as she clipped a bright pink one-piece to the line. It was one of Vivian's favorites, and it was getting enough wear these days that they'd probably need to get out to the store and grab a few extras. "Pirates like stories just as much as anyone else. How else do they pass all that time at sea?"

He twisted his face as he thought. "They sing songs! And make maps! And walk the plank!"

"Oh, okay. Well, I'm pretty sure Captain Elijah enjoyed going to the library before, so you tell him he can still come with us when we go. We might even find some books about pirates while we're there."

"Can I wear my hat?" Elijah asked, patting it proudly .

"Yes, but you'll have to leave your sword at home. They don't allow swords at the library."

He looked down at the fake weapon in his hand, considering this, and then shrugged before he ran off toward the back corner of the yard, yelling about parrots and doubloons.

Stacey focused on the sunshine on her shoulders and the gentle sound of the ocean nearby. More than that, she concentrated on the knowledge that she was doing exactly what she'd come there to do. Her kids were happy and relaxed. She was right there with them, ready for whatever they might need. Even when she'd been one of the top execs at Martin Marketing, Stacey had always known her first job was that of a mother. It was just too bad that it'd taken such a dramatic change for her to be able to do it full-time.

"Ahoy, there!" Elijah called out.

Stacey glanced over her shoulder. Her son was standing at the back corner of the fence, waving his sword in the air. A man was out on the beach behind Dylan's place, sweeping a metal detector over the sand. She immediately recognized him as Will. Even from a distance, it was strange to see a man who looked so much like Dylan and yet not. Twins or not, Stacey had already decided that she didn't like the man. She'd only met him briefly once, so perhaps that wasn't fair. She was past the point of really caring about what was fair. She just needed to do and feel what was right for her.

"Ahoy, there!" Elijah called out again.

Stacey pressed her lips together. She should tell Elijah to leave the man alone, but it was more for her own sake than Will's. And really, what was the harm in a little boy wanting to say hello?

"Avast ye! Are ‘ye looking for buried treasure?" Elijah called.

Stacey moved around to the other side of the clothesline, needing more room to finish hanging her wash. As she arranged a wet towel over the line, a harsh voice blistered through the air. Will had run right up to their fence.

"Shut up and mind your own goddamn business, kid!"

Elijah's scream immediately followed.

"Hey!" Stacey flicked the towel aside, incensed at such language in front of her young son. She spotted Will, metal detector limp in his hand, storming into the back door of Dylan's house.

Elijah, meanwhile, had dropped his toy sword and was hurrying over toward her, tears streaming down his face. "Mommy! "

"Baby, come here." She pulled him into her arms and held him close, feeling his little hands clinging to her. "It's all right. He shouldn't have been so mean to you."

"He was a monster!" Elijah wailed.

Her heart cracked a little. "There are some people in the world who just aren't nice, unfortunately."

"No, a…a real monster!" he insisted. Snot was running from his nose now. "With big yellow fangs!"

She considered this as she led him back over to the clothesline and pulled down a dry handkerchief from an earlier load of laundry. "Fangs?"

"Yeah, and his eyes were yellow, too! I was close enough to see!"

Stacey mopped his face, her hands moving in gentle contrast to the way she felt inside. Elijah had always had a vivid imagination. That was precisely why he could enjoy himself so much while pretending to be a pirate, astronaut, or train conductor. She had no doubt some of that creativity had run away with him in a moment of fear, but it showed her just how much of an impact Will had made on Elijah. "Why don't we take a break and go inside for some ice cream?"

Vivian's book slapped shut. "Before dinner? "

"Sure." Stacey should've checked the time, and their dinner would probably end up being a little later now, but that would be fine. The only thing she really wanted right now was for her son to feel better. That was something she could achieve in the moment, although she wasn't sure what to do about Will.

"Do we have any chocolate?" Elijah sniffled as they made their way in through the kitchen door.

"I think we have chocolate sauce," Stacey answered, peeking into the freezer and pulling out a half-gallon of vanilla. "And some sprinkles. You go wash your hands and I'll get it started."

"Okay!" Elijah ran off toward the bathroom with his sister on his heels.

"Don't run in the house," she called after them, though she doubted they could hear her as they jostled over who got to use the sink first. Stacey pulled open several drawers, trying to remember where she'd stashed the ice cream scoop. Most of their possessions had been unpacked by now, but she had yet to remember where they all were.

As she scooped big servings of vanilla ice cream into three bowls, she deliberated on what to do. That asshole had no right to speak to her son like that. Elijah was being friendly and pretending to be a pirate. Who chewed out a kid for something like that? Even if he'd been rude, no grown-ass adult should stoop to such a level. She had half a mind to march her ass right over there and tell him so.

But she hadn't forgotten the way he'd leered at her when he'd caught her in the backyard in her robe, the way his eyes had openly roved over her body and made all sorts of suggestions. She didn't trust him.

Splashing and laughing echoed down the hallway. Stacey moved into the living room to get a different vantage point. Dylan's Jeep wasn't in its usual spot in his driveway. He was probably at work, but she'd be keeping an eye out for when he got back home. Then she'd go over there and tell him just what she thought of his brother.

As the bathroom door slammed, she returned to her task. Her hand shook as she picked up the bottle of chocolate sauce and drizzled it over the ice cream.

"More!" Elijah enthused.

"Okay." She added several more swirls before she moved to the next bowl. There was no reason for her to be so nervous. Stacey was doing the safe thing by waiting until Dylan was home before she went over there. She and her kids were safe in their home, so there was no current threat from Will .

As she pulled several containers of sprinkles from the cabinet so the kids could have their choice, she realized that maybe she was nervous for a different reason. Dylan. He'd wanted time apart to handle his own life. She could handle that, and she wouldn't be violating his request. They were neighbors, regardless of whatever else might or might not be between them. Still, the thought of speaking to him was making her body thrum with anxiety. She was livid at Will, but that anger wouldn't let her dismiss the fact that Dylan was a handsome, charming man. A man that she wanted even if she couldn't have him.

Irritated with herself for feeling like such a teenager, she added a generous dusting of sprinkles to her own bowl. What were a few more calories?