Chapter Eleven

Ethan hadn’t slept well.

He would like to think it was because he’d gone to bed after two in the morning. After making up with Lauren, he’d returned to the bar to find it was still packed and going strong. Luckily, Joe had had everything under control. Ethan really needed to give him some kind of bonus for last night alone.

Kind of shocked to think it, but he was excited about having a baby. A baby. A teeny, tiny human being that would be dependent on him for everything. Diapers and bottles and cribs and all that crap that babies needed. His brain was swimming with possibilities.

When he’d returned home after work, mentally and physically exhausted, he’d grabbed a beer instead of heading to bed. Walking around the house, he noticed a lot of areas that needed work. Really, the entire house. Like so many things in his life, Ethan had bought the house on a whim. It had been a great price, super close to the bar, and he knew he wouldn’t have any problems selling it when the time came. Plus, it had a little backyard perfect for barbeques.

But as he’d moved from room to room the night before, he’d wondered what Lauren would think. Of course, she’d been here already, but they’d been a little preoccupied with other…activities. What would she think of the comforter on his bed? Would she like the way his kitchen was set up? Did she even cook?

The more he thought about it, the more interested he was to see her in his space.

He grabbed a second large cup of coffee from his Keurig and leaned back against the counter to enjoy it. No sooner had he taken his first sip than the doorbell rang. Ethan made his way to the front of the house and opened the door to find a flushed Lauren on his doorstep.

Her cheeks were red, her eyes were bright, and he couldn’t miss the fact that her fingers were curled into tight fists.

“Good morning, sexy,” he said.

She raised a brow. “Good? Good? It is not a good morning. It is a completely screwed-up morning. That’s what it is.” She shoved a bag into his arms. “Here, I brought muffins.”

The scent of baked berry goodness hit his nose, and his mouth watered. Before he could ask what kind of berries were in the muffins, he noticed his elderly—yet still very active in the town’s gossip chain—neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Crawford, working in their yard. They were both watching Lauren openly with interested expressions on their faces. Ethan offered a wave and ushered Lauren inside.

“Let’s get you away from eager ears,” he said, nodding toward the Crawfords as he closed the door on their fascinated stares.

“What does it even matter?” she asked. “Everyone already knows our business. They all know we slept together my first night in town.”

“Yes, so let’s not give them anything else to get chatty about.”

She sighed loudly and then collapsed onto his couch. She held out her hand. “Muffin. Stat.”

He chuckled as he hopped into the kitchen to grab plates and napkins. “You want any coffee?” He paused, stuck his head around the corner. “Are you allowed to have coffee?”

He jumped when he found that she’d walked over and was right in the doorway.

“I’ve read that one mug a day is totally fine. But I’ve already had some today. I’m good with water.” She snapped her fingers impatiently. “Seriously, I need those carbs like yesterday.”

“Rough morning?” he asked, handing over the plate with the muffin.

She bit into it, closed her eyes, and moaned. His mouth watered again, only this time it had nothing to do with the baked goods.

She went to the tiny peninsula in the kitchen and pulled out the stool to sit. He put a tub of butter in front of her, just in case.

“Yes, butter. That’s what I need. We should follow this up with ice cream sundaes.”

Since he only had one stool for the peninsula, he stood across from her, content with his muffin, which he finished in three large bites. “Muffins, butter, and ice cream. Is this a weird pregnancy craving?”

“No. This is a Seaside Cove hasn’t changed at all thing. It’s a Seaside Cove is the capital of gossip thing.” She swept her hands out dramatically. “It’s a having a dog does not equate to marriage thing.”

“I was with you until that last one. Care to elaborate?”

She sighed. “Grams thinks that Lucy Love and some guy named Simon should get married because they live together and have a dog. Also, do you know that people still use the phrases ‘living in sin’ and ‘making an honest woman out of’ someone around here? And not ironically.”

He nodded, waiting for more. When she didn’t continue, he spoke up. “What exactly is going on with Lucy and Simon? I just played poker with him the other night. He didn’t mention anything about Lucy.”

“Something about Simon proposing—”

“Simon asked Lucy to marry him?” Ethan interrupted. “That’s awesome.”

“She said no.” With that, she flung her head down onto the counter yet managed to hold onto the last bite of her muffin.

“That’s too bad. I thought they were heading in that direction.”

“Not the point,” she mumbled against the granite.

“What’s the point? Lauren? Lauren?” he tried again, softer this time. “What is going on?”

She remained silent.

“If you don’t finish that muffin, I will.”

She reluctantly smiled and straightened. “Over my dead body.” She shoved the muffin into her mouth.

“You’ve finished your muffin. Now you must spill the beans. Not that I mind seeing you all razzed up—”

“What does that even mean?”

Ethan kept going. “Your cheeks are all rosy, and your eyes are even bluer today. Whatever made you mad also made you more beautiful.”

She stared at him, that perfect mouth opening and closing. He’d disarmed her.

“Thanks,” she said almost shyly.

“You going to tell me what has you all riled up now?” He picked up his coffee, which wasn’t quite as warm as before she showed up on his doorstep.

She scrunched up her nose. “I mean, I think I’ve been away from here for too long. I forgot what it was like.”

“Good old Seaside Cove,” he agreed. “Remember how they would go nuts and talk for days over the littlest crap? Who asked someone to prom? Did the local team win the hockey game? So and so was getting divorced.”

“Yeah,” she moaned.

“Well, we gave them something kinda huge to discuss when we left the bar together that first night. Imagine if they knew about that little peanut,” he said with a nod toward her stomach.

She returned her head to the counter.

He leaned down, pressed a kiss to the top of her head. She rose again, met his gaze. “I want to be mad at you.”

“Oh yeah?”

She nodded. “I want to say it’s your fault that we clearly forgot protection at some point. Yell at you for letting me drink all those gin and tonics. I don’t know, just take it out on you.”

“But you can’t?” he asked.

She shook her head. “I can’t.”

“Because I’m so loveable.”

“Ethan…”

“And crazy hot.”

She laughed.

“It’s okay,” he said. “People tell me all the time. You should have heard the gossip train when I first returned. All anyone in town could talk about was my hotness. My raw, animal sex appeal. It was overwhelming.”

She threw her napkin at him. “Stop making me laugh. I’m trying to brood.”

He squeezed her hand. “We’re having a baby together! It only matters what you and I do from this point forward. Which brings me to something else.”

She arched a brow.

“I’ve been doing some thinking. You could move in with me.”

She blinked. Once, twice. Other than that, she didn’t move a muscle.

Ethan pushed a hand through his hair. “We’re having a baby. Doesn’t it make sense that we live under the same roof?”

She blew out a long breath, laden with frustration. “Ethan, I thought we went over all of this yesterday. You said—”

“I know, I know.” He put his hand up. “I’m not asking you to marry me.”

She eyed him for a long time. “Explain yourself.”

“We’ve known each other since elementary school. We were great friends in high school. At least, when you weren’t annoying the crap out of me.”

Her only response was a grumble.

“I don’t think it should come as a shock that we have great chemistry together. In and out of bed.”

She blew out a breath of air, her eyes darting everywhere. Everywhere but at him.

“I have this house all to myself. We should share it.”

She pushed away from the counter, stood up. “I don’t even know if I’m going to stay here, Ethan. More than likely, I won’t.”

“I understand that,” he said, holding his hands up in a surrendering gesture. “But while you’re here in Seaside Cove, why not stay with me? Don’t you want to go through this whole process together? Wouldn’t it be helpful?”

“I came here to help my sister, which I’ve been a real slacker about. Something is going on with Gabby, and I’m trying to get to the bottom of it. I want to make sure she’s okay.”

He got that. He did. “I guess I’m just excited we’re having a baby. I’m going to be a dad. It’s going to be fun.”

“Fun?” She shook her head. “It’s going to be a ton of work. There is research to do and protocols to follow.”

Protocols? Wow.

“I know that,” he said. “There are doctor’s appointments and baby books to read. But if we do everything together, I’m sure there will be moments of fun.”

He had visions of scrolling through a baby-related blog while they snuggled on the couch. He could see backyard barbeques with her sisters and his friends. Shopping for baby clothes and supplies. Making dinner together before he went to the bar. Bingeing a new show while he rubbed her growing belly and felt little kicks.

Lauren pointed at her stomach. “Stop saying fun. Nothing about this is fun. It’s a serious responsibility, Ethan.”

He frowned. Her words gave him pause. “Just because I’m not making a to-do list every single day doesn’t mean I’m not being serious.”

“Right now, I feel like I’m going to throw up at any minute. I can’t stay awake for more than six hours at a time. Everything’s changing. And I haven’t even told Grams yet.”

He perked up. “Let’s go tell her right now.”

Lauren looked like he’d just slapped her. “We can’t do that.”

“Why not? Is she not home?”

“Ethan, we can’t tell Grams because…because…”

“Because why?” he asked.

“Because she’ll make us get married.”

In all honesty, Ethan didn’t know if he wanted to get married, either. But seeing the disgusted look on Lauren’s face didn’t make him feel too great. It wasn’t like he was some troll living under a bridge.

He crossed his arms. “You don’t want to move in here, even temporarily. You don’t want to get married. You don’t want me to help with anything. And you don’t want to tell your grandmother who raised you that this baby even exists. Maybe, Lauren, you are the one who isn’t taking this seriously.”

Ethan knew it was immature, but he was happy to see that he’d stumped her.

…

After Lauren left Ethan’s house so he could get ready for work, she decided to roam the quaint little town center of Seaside Cove. She needed the walk and the time alone, since her thoughts were racing in a million directions at once.

That hadn’t gone well.

What had she expected? She’d been in a sour mood when she arrived at Ethan’s house.

But he hadn’t helped matters with his moving in together and “babies are fun” talk. Not to mention, telling Grams. What was he thinking?

She ran a hand over her flat stomach. They had created a baby. Now they had to figure out how to proceed.

Pausing, she took in a big whiff of fresh, salty air. The birds were singing, there was a nice breeze in the air, and the sun was shining.

Yet, Lauren still felt uneasy, and it wasn’t only because of her visit with Ethan. Or the gossip she’d heard from Eleanor. Or the fight she’d had with Brooke.

She started walking again, turning the corner of Main Street onto Willow Avenue, spotting a whirl of energy with long brown hair wearing a beautiful, but completely out of place for this town, pale pink dress with nude wedges. Brooke had just left one of the businesses on Willow.

Lauren couldn’t keep the sigh inside. She let it out and walked toward her sister. Brooke was the last person she wanted to see at this moment. Their little tiff this morning had gotten under her usually-much-thicker skin. Typically, whatever Brooke was going on about went in one ear and out the other. But today, she’d hit a nerve.

Still, Lauren was curious why her sister currently looked pissed. Lauren knew that pinched expression and clipped movement. Something wasn’t going perfectly in Brooke’s utopia.

“Hey, B,” Lauren called.

Brooke stopped and craned her head. She put a hand over her eyes to shield her from the sun. “L? What are you doing here?”

“Just taking a walk. What about you?” she asked as she caught up to her sister. Together they began walking toward the water as if they’d silently agreed on the direction.

Brooke hitched a thumb over her shoulder. “I need a little help with the wedding I’m planning. The bride’s parents added an extra hundred people to the guest list. One hundred.” She pulled a disgusted face that caused Lauren to giggle. “I can’t believe I need help. You think I want to admit that?”

“I’m shocked you did,” Lauren said.

“Well, I don’t want to tell Lucas or anyone else in the company. With a hundred extra guests, every count, every estimate is off. We need more of everything. I’ve been running around all morning.”

Lauren halted briefly to pull her sunglasses out of her purse. “Have you ever thought about opening your own company?” Brooke was currently working for a huge event firm in Chicago, which just happened to be owned by her dear fiancé’s parents.

“Come on, L. You know the prices in Chicago.”

“I also know the prices here in Maine. Why not open something and run it out of Seaside Cove?”

“You and I, we don’t belong in Seaside Cove anymore. We’re fish out of water here.”

Lauren shrugged. “I don’t know. I kind of like being back.” She found the admission somewhat startling. Even with the gossip and the rumors, she still thought her hometown was charming.

Brooke rolled her eyes. “Enough to move back here?” She waved a hand through the air. “There’s no movie theater in town. You have to drive for an hour to do any decent clothes shopping. There’s not even a Starbucks, for god’s sake.”

“Good thing, too,” Lauren said with an exasperated voice. “Since our grandmother runs a café where most of the town picks up their morning lattes. And she’s currently employing our little sister.”

Ignoring the sarcasm, Brooke stopped at a spot next to the water with a nice view of all the ships in the harbor. “Speaking of Gabby—”

“Were we?”

“We should. How do you think she’s doing? Really?”

Lauren leaned onto the railing. “Honestly? I’m not sure. She seems like her usual, happy-go-lucky, bubbly-Gabby self one minute, and then the next minute—”

“It’s like a dark cloud is hovering over her,” Brooke finished. “I see it, too. What’s with all the phone calls she’s ignoring?”

Lauren shook her head. “I wish I knew. If she’s in trouble, I want to help her.”

“Same.” Brooke reached into her Kate Spade handbag and pulled out a lip gloss, which she applied expertly without a mirror. “You don’t think she owes money, do you? I know she had that roommate who really screwed her over financially, but I thought she was past that.”

“I did, too. I came up here to help her get back on track,” Lauren said with a sigh. “I’m not doing a very good job so far. I tried to go over her finances the other day, and she clammed up. She won’t even entertain my vision board. And I’m getting the distinct impression that she doesn’t want to be an actress anymore.”

Brooke’s eyes widened. “But that’s what she always wanted to do.”

“It doesn’t make any sense. I was thinking—”

Brooke’s phone started playing “Chapel of Love.”

“That’s Lucas. I have to take this.” She answered her phone while Lauren suppressed her eye roll.

“I’m working on it, honey. You don’t have to check in on me every five minutes. I’ve been in the event planning industry for a lot longer than you.” She listened for a moment. “No, I don’t mean to insult you. I know your parents are counting on you. Yes, of course, I realize that you are trying to prove yourself so you can take over the business. But I just…well, yes, no. Everything is under control with the wedding here.”

Brooke began pacing with her phone, completely distracted as she continued reassuring Lucas, who was really starting to grate on Lauren’s nerves. She’d only met him a few times, and she’d never gotten a particularly warm-and-fuzzy feeling from him. But the more she heard Brooke talk about him and with him, the more worried she felt for her sister.

“Seriously, Lucas, come on. Don’t you trust me?” Brooke did something very unusual for her. She ran a hand through her perfectly glossy and well-styled hair, mussing it up. She looked like she was about to punch someone.

Right at the moment when Brooke was about to change the course of her aggravated pacing, she turned, running smack into a very tall and built man. Lauren hadn’t even had a chance to call out a warning. The man came out of nowhere.

Brooke stumbled backward, dropping her phone. The man reached out and steadied Brooke before she fell onto the ground like her cell.

Holy hell, Lauren thought. Who was this? She definitely didn’t remember him from high school, and someone that tall and muscled would have no doubt left an impression.

Before Lauren could think on it anymore, a large, shaggy, black-and-white dog the size of a pony came barreling around the corner. With a lopping tongue, he targeted Brooke and jumped up, his muddy paws reaching the shoulders of Brooke’s fancy pink dress.

Now covered in mud with a slobbering dog trying to give her kisses, with a stranger sporting a man-bun holding her arms, Brooke looked like a deer in headlights. Tempted to snap a pic of the comical scene, Lauren ran over to her sister instead. She reached down and scooped up Brooke’s phone, which was luckily not cracked or broken. She could hear Lucas shouting, so she gleefully ended the call.

“What the hell!” Brooke pushed away from the man. She tried to disengage with the dog-horse, but said dog-horse wasn’t having it. She looked like he’d found his new best friend.

“No,” he said to the dog. “Bad girl. Down,” he commanded.

Lauren stifled a laugh. Brooke always claimed she didn’t like dogs, yet they always seemed to gravitate toward her.

“You okay, B?” Lauren asked, handing the cell phone over.

“Yes. But my dress.” She let out a little whine. Then Brooke turned narrowed eyes on the man. “Who in the hell are you? You just run into people and knock them over and then have your ferocious dog try to eat them?”

Lauren had to hand it to the guy. He seemed pretty unruffled. As for his “ferocious” dog, well, he was just happy as a clam with his tongue lolling to the side and tail wagging a million miles an hour.

“I’m Kai,” he said. He took his time looking Brooke up and down. “I’m sorry about my dog. This pretty little lady,” he said with a nod toward the mutt, “is Princess.”

And “Princess” could pass for a small dinosaur.

Lauren spotted someone running toward them from the opposite direction. She recognized Ethan immediately and couldn’t stop the smile from forming. It was automatic, a natural response to seeing him.

“Lauren, what’s going on? Is everyone okay? Oh, hey, Kai,” Ethan said.

“Ethan,” Kai greeted. “The bar open yet?”

“Joe should be setting everything up for lunch now. I was just about to head over when I saw you guys. Are you okay?” he asked Lauren with a slight tilt of the chin toward her stomach. She nodded. “I see you’ve met two of the three Wallace sisters,” Ethan said.

Kai whistled. “Two out of three? There’s another one? Oh boy. Is she as beautiful as… What’s your name?”

Brooke just stared at him.

“That’s Brooke,” Lauren said, “and I’m Lauren. The youngest is Gabby, and yes, she’s beautiful, too.” She thought both of her sisters were gorgeous in their own way.

“Can’t wait to meet her.” Kai stepped closer to Brooke. “And I’m really glad I met you. I hope we run into each other again.”

Brooke’s response was to gesture to the mud on her dress and sulk. With that, she abruptly turned on her designer shoes and stalked away from all of them.

They all watched her go, but Kai seemed especially interested. “Your sister is…special,” he decided.

An apt word choice. “Yeah,” Lauren agreed. “We’ve been trying to give her back for years, but they won’t take her.”

Ethan, who wore an amused expression on his face, finally jumped in. “Why don’t you and Princess head on over to The Thirsty Lobster? Have a beer on the house.”

“Not gonna turn that down.” Kai made a clicking sound, and the dog dutifully jumped to attention next to him. “Nice to meet you, Lauren. And nice to meet your sister, too.”

Lauren grinned. Until she realized she and Ethan were alone again. She shivered, as the sun had decided to hide behind a cloud.

“I’m sorry, Lauren. About earlier at my house. When you said you didn’t want to get married…well…”

She tilted her head. “What?”

“You don’t want to get married, or you don’t want to get married to me?”

She met his gaze and saw the vulnerability there. Not to mention the hurt. A lump formed in her throat.

“I get that it might be difficult to tell your grandmother that I knocked you up.”

Lauren scrunched up her nose at the term he used. “Lovely.”

Ethan let out a small chuckle. “You know what I mean, and I get that Grams isn’t going to be thrilled with either of us. I’ve always been a little afraid of her.”

Even if she thought his suggestions of moving in together and/or getting married were unfounded, she knew his heart was in the right place. He deserved more than she was giving him.

A few rays of sunshine started peeking out from behind the clouds as Lauren took Ethan’s hand. “My parents got married because Mom got pregnant with me,” she admitted out loud for the first time ever.

Lauren remembered the first time she’d heard her mom talk about this. Adults tended to think that kids didn’t understand things. Maybe they didn’t. All Lauren knew was that she remembered that comment into her own adulthood, when its meaning became clear.

She had been conceived out of wedlock, and her mom and dad had been forced to marry. Marry because of her. And they’d never been happy.

Ethan stiffened. “Ah.”

“They had a horrible marriage, which ended, as I’m sure you and everyone else in town knows, with my dad walking out on us.”

She didn’t expect him to pull her toward him, but that’s what happened. His arms made her feel warm and secure.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered against the top of her head.

She leaned back. “It’s okay. It was a long time ago.” She chewed on her lip while she considered.

Ethan nodded slowly in understanding. “Your aversion to marriage is becoming a lot clearer. But you know that Grams will eventually find out about the baby.”

“I know. That’s why…” She paused for dramatic effect. “I came up with a plan.”

Ethan raised an eyebrow. “A plan? Seriously? You wrote out a plan?”

“Ha ha, very funny.” She took a step back and whipped out her phone. “Yes, I’ve been putting considerable thought into this. And I made some notes.” She shook her phone.

“Of course you have,” he said drily.

Lauren sighed. “This is how I do things, Ethan. You know that.”

He ran a hand over his face. “Sorry. Continue.”

“Okay, the plan for telling Grams is pretty simple. First, I think it’s important to wait until I’m at twelve weeks because it’s safer for the baby at that point.”

“Less risk of miscarriage after the first trimester,” Ethan said, to her surprise. “What?” he asked. “I read some articles.”

She smiled. “So, you get it.”

“I should point out that your sisters already know.”

Lauren looked up from her phone. “That’s different. They were there when I realized I might be pregnant. Then, they went with me to buy the test and they were with me when I took it.” She tapped her phone. “But speaking of my sisters, I think they should be there when we tell Grams.”

“Why?” he asked.

“Gabby makes Grams smile, and Brooke is good with defusing a situation. All that experience dealing with bridezillas.”

Ethan was rolling his neck back and forth as if he’d just had a really tough workout. “Not that I don’t appreciate ‘the plan,’” he said with air quotes, “but can’t we just tell her now? I understand not making it public for a few months, but this is your grandmother who raised you.”

She shoved her phone in her purse and stepped into his face. “Ethan! We have so much going on right now. Gabby is still getting situated, and Brooke needs to get through this wedding she’s planning.”

“That’s why we should consider telling Grams without your sisters.”

Lauren was tempted to pull out her phone again so Ethan could review her notes. But she resisted. “We need to maximize the positive energy and Grams’s good mood. That’s why we need Gabby and Brooke. Now, I was thinking the first week of August would be an ideal time to tell her. Maybe August fifth.”

“I don’t know,” Ethan said. “I think I have a dentist appointment.”

Shoot. She bit her lip, considering what other dates in August would work—until she realized he was making fun of her.

“You suck,” she said for lack of anything more intelligent.

“Sorry, I couldn’t resist.” He leaned over and kissed her lightly on the mouth. Even the brief kiss had the effect of wiping her mind clean. She sighed and slowly unscrambled her thoughts.

“I think the best way to do this is to make the whole thing about Grams.”

“Oh, sure.” Ethan rocked back on his heels. “Your pregnancy is totally about Grams. Why would it be about either of us, or, you know, a new person coming into the world?”

She ignored him. “Anyway, we need to make it less about the fact that I’m preggo and more about Grams becoming a great-grandmother. Gabby can make a cake, and I’ll have Princess Brooke decorate with some balloons and streamers. Maybe a bouquet of flowers.”

“You’re telling me that we have to wait until August—”

“Fifth,” she supplied.

“August fifth,” he repeated. “We’ll have cake and decorations and congratulate your grandmother on becoming a great-grandmother.”

“Yes, exactly.” She kissed the tip of his nose, and a smile spread on his face.

He sighed. “I don’t agree completely because I think it’s going to be really hard for all of us to keep this secret…”

“But?” she prompted.

“But I’ll go along with it.” He nodded, decision final. “August fifth it is.”