Whispers at Seaside

by Addison Cole

  “You won’t need to. My father built that store for his family. It’s about time we stepped up and helped him out. I’ll take care of it. If we work together, we can do this. Can you handle making more calls if I drive Hagen into camp for the next few days?”

  Between her excitement over taking this project to the next level and Matt’s selfless offer, she could barely think.

  “What do you say, sunshine? Want to go on a road trip with your two favorite men?”

  “More than you can imagine.”

  MATT HEADED OVER to Pete’s yard, where he and Caden were unloading pieces of a swing set from Pete’s truck. Joey barked and trotted over. She jumped up, putting her paws on Matt’s thighs, and he loved her up.

  “Hey, Matt,” Caden said. “You two catch up. Pete, I’m going to run inside and grab a drink. You two want anything?”

  “No. I’m good, thanks,” Matt answered.

  “No, thanks. Down, Joey,” Pete said, and the pup dropped to all fours. “Sorry about that. I was going to text you. You up for a baseball game with me and the guys Tuesday night?”

  “I haven’t been to a game in ages. Yeah, I’m in. Should I ask Mira and Hagen?”

  “Not this time. Just Hagen, if that’s okay? We’re doing a daddy-child outing. We do it every few weeks. It gives the girls a break, and we get time with our kids. Win-win.”

  “Sounds good. I’ll ask Mira, but count me and Hagen in.”

  “Will do. What’s going on with you? How was Nantucket?”

  “We had a great time, but I need a favor. Remember what I told you Mira said about Dad’s store?”

  “Yeah.” Pete reached down and petted Joey, who was whimpering for attention.

  Matt knelt beside her and let her lick his entire face.

  “You’re such a pushover,” Pete teased.

  “Look who’s talking.” Matt told him about his and Mira’s plan for the co-op. “I need everyone to pitch in and watch the store while we’re gone. I’ll talk to Grayson, Hunter, and Sky. Can you help for a day or two?”

  “What are you thinking? A week? Ten days?”

  “A week on the outside, I think.” Matt rose to his feet as Jenna came out of the cottage with Bea, and Joey ran to greet them.

  “Unca Matt!” Bea toddled over in a pretty blue sundress.

  “Hi, beautiful.” He lifted her into his arms, kissing her pudgy cheeks.

  Pete smiled. “She loves having you around, you know.”

  “Yeah. I love being around.” Matt met Pete’s serious gaze. “What do you say? Think you can help out while we’re gone?”

  “Where are you going?” Jenna asked as she came to his side wearing a similar dress to Bea’s and matching flip-flops.

  Pete explained what was going on.

  “They’ll do it. Don’t you worry, because if they can’t, the girls and I will.” Jenna waggled her brows. “Things are looking serious, huh?” She went up on her toes and pulled Matt’s shirt, tugging him down so she could speak in his ear. “If you break her heart, Pete will kill you.”

  Matt glanced at Pete, who shrugged and said, “She’s probably right. She’s been a saving grace for Dad. He treats her like another daughter.”

  He gave Bea one last kiss, then handed her to Pete. “She’s a saving grace for me, too.”

  After talking with Pete, Matt called Grayson at Grunter’s, who put him on speakerphone so Hunter could take part in the conversation.

  “Hey, bro,” Hunter said. “I hear you and Mira have become inseparable. It took you long enough.”

  Matt laughed, because he’d been telling himself it was about time, too.

  “We’re happy for you,” Grayson said.

  “Thanks. I appreciate that.” He explained what was going on with the co-op and asked if they’d be willing to help out.

  “Sure. Parker and I are back until the wedding, so I can definitely make the time,” Grayson answered.

  “I’m in,” Hunter offered. “But let me get this straight. You took a sabbatical to write, and instead you’re spending weekends on Nantucket screwing your brains out, and—”

  Hunter’s voice faded, and Matt heard a scuffle but couldn’t make out what they were saying. He grinned, knowing Grayson was giving Hunter a hard time for his crass remark.

  “Come on, Gray!” Hunter hollered. Then there was more scuffling.

  “Tell him,” Grayson said sternly. Then they both laughed.

  “The idiot sucker punched me,” Hunter snapped.

  Good times. Matt snickered.

  “Sorry, Matt,” Hunter relented. “You know what I meant. You’re putting writing second to a relationship. That’s a huge deal for you.”

  “Why didn’t you say that the first time?” Grayson asked with a serious tone.

  “Screwing his brains out is a good thing,” Hunter said sharply.

  The conversation circled back to covering the store, and by the time Matt hung up and called Sky, he was grinning like a fool. He’d missed his brothers far more than he’d ever let himself realize.

  He explained to Sky where he and Mira were relationship-wise, because that’s what she cared about most, and then told her about their plans.

  “Are you kidding?” Sky squealed. “Of course I’ll pitch in. Whatever you need. Cree can fill in for me here, so you guys figure out a schedule, and I’ll be there.” Cree was her newest employee.

  “Thanks, Sky.”

  “I’ll call the girls. Mira’s going to need help. She can’t possibly get everything she’ll need for these meetings done by herself.”

  “She’s got me,” Matt reminded her, though he was thrilled to hear his sister wanted to rally the troops for Mira.

  “Yeah, but you’re not us. The girls and I planned the whole triple wedding. Well, with the help of Lizzie and her friend Brandy for flowers and catering, of course. We can whip up whatever Mira needs so she’s prepared.” Sky filled Matt in on every detail of what they’d planned for her upcoming nuptials. “My only wish is that Mom could be here to see us all walk down the aisle.”

  Matt’s heart squeezed at the mention of their mother. He missed her, and he, too, wished she could be there to see his siblings get married. He realized that the guilt that had shadowed him ever since his mother’s death had finally lifted, and he felt that was connected to being back home and reconnecting with his family.

  “She’ll be there,” Matt assured her. “She’s always watching.”

  Chapter Twenty

  TUESDAY EVENING MIRA sat at the table on her deck reviewing the list she’d made of materials to prepare for prospective co-op partners. Hagen had been thrilled to go to the baseball game with Matt and the others. Matt had invited Drake and Rick, which she was also happy about. She didn’t want them to feel pushed out of Hagen’s life because Matt was getting more involved in it.

  True to his word, Matt had driven Hagen to camp the last two mornings, giving her time to try to garner interest in the co-op. Not that she was having much luck. Monday and Tuesday she’d gone through her entire list of potential companies and had found another six to call as well. None of them were interested, but she wasn’t giving up. Matt had offered to continue driving Hagen until she secured enough interest to make the co-op work. There was no way she could get the research done to find other companies to call and prepare the materials she’d need if the meetings came to fruition. Luckily, Serena was coming over to help.

  “Is my favorite mini-man off to do guy stuff?” Serena asked as she came around the side of the house carrying a bag in one hand and her laptop in the other.

  “Yes, off and happy as a clam.”

  “I got him something today.” She set her laptop and bag on the table, withdrew a thin children’s book, and plunked it down in front of Mira. “You told me they were going to build a Huckleberry Finn–style raft, so I got him a knockoff kid’s book, Hinkleberry Funn the Raft Builder. And I brought supplies for us.”

  She pulled a bottle of wine, a box o
f crackers, and a container of assorted cheese slices from the bag.

  “Hagen will be over the moon, and I am, too. Have I told you lately that I love you?” Mira asked, getting up to grab two wineglasses.

  “I can stand to hear it again. Your brother is making me crazy,” Serena called after her.

  What else is new? She carried the wineglasses out to the deck. “Which brother?”

  “That would be Drake. No, Rick. Okay, both.” Serena tilted her head, listening to several car doors closing. “Who’s that?”

  “No idea. I’m not expecting anyone.”

  They stepped off the deck as Sky, Bella, Jenna, Amy, Leanna, Parker, Jana, and Jessica came around the side of the house, each carrying a colorful beach bag and wearing sundresses over bathing suits, like they’d just come from the beach, even though it was six o’clock.

  “I think we need more wine,” Serena said quietly.

  “There she is!” Jenna said when she spotted them. “We came to help with the co-op stuff. Seaside girls at your service!”

  “Really? All of you?” Mira was overwhelmed. “How did you even know I needed help?”

  The girls came around to the deck and began unloading their bags—laptops, towels, wine, plastic cups, paper plates, a big bag of M&M’s, and two tubes of cookie dough covered the middle of the table.

  “Matt said you were working on the materials for your trip,” Amy said, lining up the plastic cups with the two wineglasses. She struggled to open the wine bottle, and Bella took it from her hands.

  Bella opened the wine and poured everyone a drink. “We’re experts at all things presentation related, and weddings, too. The triple wedding is planned, catered, and ready to roll.” She turned to Serena, who was taking in all the commotion with a glint of amusement in her eyes.

  “I’m Bella, and you must be Serena, Mira’s BFF that we’ve all heard about. You’re so cute. Do you have a boyfriend?”

  “Um…?” Serena raised her brows.

  “Ignore her.” Parker, Grayson’s fiancée was a beautiful blond actress. Luckily, she didn’t have a stuck-up bone in her body. She wore very little makeup and her hair was pinned up in a high ponytail. “Bella’s the prankster of the group, and she’s sworn off playing tricks on Theresa, the property manager of Seaside and the woman who’s officiating our wedding ceremony, so Bella needs a project to keep her mind busy. Being a mom, running a work-study program for high schoolers, and hanging out with us just isn’t enough for her. She’s like Wonder Woman on Energizer batteries.”

  “In that case, please feel free to find me a worthy man,” Serena said with complete seriousness. “I like them tall, dark, and well hung.”

  “Oh geez. You are Bella’s dream project.” Jessica swung her long dark hair over one shoulder and sank down to a chair. She’d been a professional cellist before she and Jamie had their son, Dustin. Unlike busy Bella, Jessica was thrilled to devote all of her time to her family.

  “I could hook you up with my brother Brock,” Jana offered. “I have no idea about the well hung thing—and have no interest in knowing—but girls love him. He owns a boxing club in Eastham. He taught me to fight.”

  “You fight? Mira, where have you been hiding these amazing women?” Serena lifted her glass of wine and said, “To finding me a man. I might just have to start with Brock.”

  They toasted, and Mira introduced Serena to each of the girls. Then, as if the wind had shifted, everyone began opening their laptops and pulling out notebooks and pens and talking about the co-op.

  Amy pointed a pen at Mira. “Tell us what you’ve got.”

  “Okay.” Mira took a deep breath, exhaling slowly as she glanced around the table. “But first I just have to say thank you. I have been stressing out over how I was going to get everything done.”

  “No more stressing,” Sky said. “It’s bad for your aura, and with us around, you’ll never have to stress again.”

  Mira had been friendly with the girls since she started working with Neil. Everyone associated with the Lacrouxs were like one big family. But each of them giving up their free evening to help her? She felt like she’d fallen into a sisterhood. Sisterhood of the Traveling Helpers, she mused.

  She explained what she was thinking of presenting, and they all took notes. “Basically, I need everything, but I can get away with a professional-looking outline of the business plan, lists of warehouses, including prices, locations, and restrictions. I also need to formalize the projected return-on-investment financials. I’ve got the numbers, but I’ll need to present different scenarios, like if we get five investors versus six, or four. I also think it would be wise to give them examples of other businesses who have successfully formed co-ops. Nothing speaks louder than proof that it works. I have my initial research notes, but they’re not in a format that I can present to anyone.” Her shoulders dropped in defeat. “There’s a lot to do, and Matt and I think we should try to make the trip soon, so the people who are interested don’t lose interest.”

  “Nail them down before they get off the couch,” Parker said. “That’s what they say in Hollywood.”

  Jana and Sky laughed.

  “Not like that!” Parker insisted, which made everyone laugh. “You guys have sex on the brain.”

  “Look at our men,” Bella said. “Look at your man. Do you blame us?”

  Parker blushed. “I do adore my soon-to-be husband.”

  “Ladies,” Leanna said loudly. “Less sex talk, more co-op talk.”

  They divvied up jobs and formed teams to work on each one. They were the most organized women Mira had ever worked with. When they were finished, Jenna set a list in the center of the table outlining what they’d discussed.

  “Amy and Mira, you’ll handle the financial documents. Sky, Leanna, and Bella will research warehouses in the areas we discussed. Parker and Serena will take care of formalizing the business plan you’ve already outlined, and Jana, Jessica, and I will formalize your research on co-ops and also find others to include in the report.” Her eyes danced around the table. “Deadline? Does next Friday work?”

  “Pfft.” Amy waved her hand. “Easy-peasy.”

  “Absolutely. And I’ll ask the business manager of my foundation for any tips he has, too.” Parker had created a very successful children’s foundation, and Mira knew her experience would be invaluable.

  “Thank you all so much,” Mira said. “You can’t even begin to imagine how relieved I am to have help. I feel better already.”

  “Good!” Sky reached for the cookie dough and tore the package open. “Now give us the scoop on you and my brother.”

  “Wait, I thought we were going to skinny-dip,” Amy said with a pouty face.

  “Skinny-dip? Here?” Mira and Serena exchanged a wide-eyed glance. “We can’t. Anyone could see us.”

  “Your beach isn’t private?” Jessica asked. “I’m not stripping down on a public beach.”

  Jenna’s hand shot up in the air. “To Parker’s!”

  “I’ve got the cookie dough!” Amy held the tubes over her head.

  A flurry of packing began as food, towels, and computers were put away.

  “Wait.” Mira looked around the table in confusion. “Why are we going skinny-dipping?”

  Parker flashed a mischievous smile. “Remember I told you about the initiation?”

  “I thought that was a joke,” Mira said, remembering the story Parker had told her about skinny-dipping for the first time in her life with the girls in the pond by Grayson’s house.

  “No joke, sweet cakes.” Jenna winked. “You’re a Seaside girl now by association. We were going to initiate you last summer, but then you and Matt looked like you were eventually going to hook up, so we thought we’d wait and do it all at once.”

  “Oh my goodness. I love you guys!” Serena said as she gathered her things. “Skinny-dipping! We haven’t done that since we were kids!”

  “Oh, so you have done this before?” Jana asked. “I knew Mira was
n’t as goody-goody as she seemed.” She held her hand up, and Mira halfheartedly high-fived her.

  “But now I’m a mother,” she pointed out. “It feels wrong to skinny-dip.”

  “Please. Five of us are mothers,” Jenna pointed out. “Now go lock up so you can be a fun mother with us.”

  As Mira locked up the house and met them out front, excitement crept in. By the time they arrived at Grayson and Parker’s house, it was dark out. Christmas, Parker’s English mastiff, bounded out his doggy door and followed them through the woods to the pond. The girls took turns loving him up.

  The other girls dropped their clothes as they walked along the pier, leaving a trail of sundresses and flip-flops. When they reached the end of the pier, they stripped naked, held hands, and jumped in, shrieking on the way down, sending Christmas into a barking, whining frenzy.

  Serena and Mira shrieked from the dock as the girls’ splashes soaked their clothes.

  “Chipples!” Jenna yelled as she broke the surface. “Get ready for chilly nipples!”

  One by one the girls’ heads popped out of the water and a plethora of shouts ensued. “Brr! Freezing! Hurry! Get in! Good thing we’re not guys. Our dingies would disappear!”

  They all laughed.

  “Come on!” Serena stripped off her clothes. “Hurry up! It’s cold.”

  Mira glanced at her best friend’s hairless body as she stripped out of her clothes, lulled by the excitement of the group. “You really do use Nair!”

  Serena rolled her eyes. “You never know when the right guy will come along. Now, hurry up!”

  “You have to hold hands! It’s tradition!” Bella yelled.

  Mira pushed aside the embarrassment of standing naked on the dock and grabbed her best friend’s hand.

  “It’s not tradition,” Jenna snapped through chattering teeth.

  “It is now,” Amy said.

  “Do I have to do something?” Mira asked. It was an initiation after all.

  “You already did,” Sky said. “You brought my brother home for the summer!”

  “But what if we break up?” The words flew from Mira’s lips out of fear of losing not just Matt, but all these glorious friends, too. “You’ll hate me and you will have already initiated me. Isn’t that against a rule or something?”