Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 78894 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 394(@200wpm)___ 316(@250wpm)___ 263(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78894 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 394(@200wpm)___ 316(@250wpm)___ 263(@300wpm)
“Thank you for offering, but your father and I already found a house for sale right on the beach.”
“You’ve been looking?” I asked.
She nodded. “Since the third day we were here.”
Dad chuckled as he added, “And you’ll never guess who it belongs to.”
I gave them a questioning look. “Who?”
Dad replied, “Adelaide’s sister and brother in-law, Sutton and Brody. Apparently, Brody had the house before they were married, and they’ve decided to make Sutton’s home their own.”
“Mom, Dad…this is great! You’ve always said you wanted to live on the beach.”
They turned to one another and smiled. “We’re pretty excited about it. We sent them an offer yesterday—and they accepted.”
“Charlie’s going to be thrilled,” I said as I stood to give them each a hug. “I’m so happy, you have no idea.”
After a round of hugs, we all sat back down and the conversation turned more serious.
“We haven’t—” Mom started, then cleared her throat. “We haven’t told Nick we’re going to be moving.”
Even though Nick had hurt me badly, he was still my brother. “He should be fine with it. After all, he’s traveling all over the place with this job. Why would it matter?”
That made my mother’s eyes tear up. “Boston is still his home. With us leaving, he’ll be there alone when he does come home.”
I nodded. “I get that.”
Mom gave Dad a look, and something passed between them before they focused back on me.
“Back to the original conversation we were having before your father got here,” Mom said. “Ashley. Mason, I’m afraid she’s here to cause problems for you.”
“It’s a free country, Mom, I can’t make her leave.”
“What about Charlie?” she asked.
“Once he goes back to school in the new year, I’m going to warn them about her. Now that she knows where we are, I think it’s for the best.”
“I wish she’d come out and admit why she’s here,” Dad stated.
I huffed. “You and me both. But she likes playing games, and I’m pretty sure she’s figured out that Palmer and I are more than friends.”
Mom smiled. “Well, it’s obvious to anyone who sees the way the two of you look at each other.”
Dad added, “Not to mention the fact that Palmer is Charlie’s nanny, and the two of them are growing closer. That probably doesn’t sit well with Ashley, either.”
I sighed as I rubbed the back of my neck. “But she gave him up. She didn’t want to be a part of his life. Why now? When I’ve moved away and started fresh and have finally found…”
My words drifted off. What had I found? Success with my medical practice. Joy watching Charlie thrive in his new school. And then there was Palmer. My heart started to race as I thought about what life would be like with her in it. And as something more than just Charlie’s nanny and my friend.
“When you’ve finally found what?” my father asked.
I answered with one word that summed it all up. “Happiness.”
Palmer
* * *
THE SEASIDE CHRONICLES
December 31, 2022
IF WISHES WERE FISHES – SPECIAL EDITION
Seasiders,
Another year has come to an end and I, for one, am excited to see what lies ahead for the wonderful residents of Seaside in the coming year. I do hope that all the wishes you make tonight at midnight come true for you! Don’t forget the Seaside tradition of going to the end of the pier and tossing in your wish with a fish—but please remember that we use small bait fish for this wishing process. Someone from Seaside PD will be on hand to make sure we don’t have a repeat of last year. Yes, I’m talking about the person who attempted to toss a small wishing well into the ocean. That’s littering, and we’re not about that. Please respect this tradition that has been in place since our little town was founded in 1762.
Speaking of wishing…I wish Palmer Bradley and Mason Bryan (also known as Dr. Zaddy) would get on with it already! They’ve been spotted numerous times out together—both with sweet little Charlie Bryan and without—yet they would like for everyone to think they’re simply friends. But, from this writer’s POV, there’s something there beyond friendship. Consider this the gentle nudge everyone else is too afraid to give them. After all, this writer believes in love—and love is indeed in the air when those two are within fifty feet of one another.
Now, back to the chatter of Deacon Parker starting his own charter business. I’m happy to report that he has already changed his mind and is currently working for Don Michaels, who you all know runs the local shrimping boats. Maybe Deacon realized there’s more to owning a charter business than meets the eye. It also appears his attempts to win back Palmer Bradley have either failed, or he has since moved on. Knowing him like I do, I’m going with the latter.