Page 24 of Always You (A Lilac Bay Novel)

Dinner at my sister’s house was always a loud affair, particularly when Andrew was present. The boys talked over each other in louder and louder voices, trying to get and keep his attention. I had a headache after ten minutes.

“It sounds like someone took their hyper pills this afternoon,” Jake said, giving me a sheepish smile. “Sorry, Riley.”

“What are you sorry for?” Rebecca asked, passing Jayden his refilled glass of milk. “She’s the one that gets them all wound up.”

“I do not!”

She raised an eyebrow at me. “So thatwasn’tyou passing them candy when we were saying grace.”

Mason pointed at me. “Busted!”

“I knew I should have kept yours for myself.”

“So, Riley,” Jake said, passing Andrew another beer. “What’s new at the mayor’s office?”

“Not much.” I stirred my chili. “Planning the Fish Fry. That’s about it.”

“I thought the Elks Club did most of the planning,” Rebecca said, somehow managing to grab Aiden’s spoon in midair after he pushed it off the table.

“They do. That’s why it’s super exciting at work right now. Not much to do.”

“That would be nice,” Jake said wistfully, and I shot him a dubious glance.

“Spate of crime on the island, Jake?”

“’Course not. But that doesn’t mean that we aren’t busy.”

“Lots of horse and carriage violations to write, huh?” Andrew asked.

“Ha ha. We do important work on the force everyday.”

“Of course you do, honey,” Rebecca said, in the same placating voice she used when the kids were being unreasonable. I hid my smirk with a crust of bread.

“We did have one exciting thing happen at the office today,” Andrew said, and I glared at him in warning. He must have missed it. “Riley and I sent in an application for Lilac Bay to enter a contest.”

“What kind of contest?” Rebecca asked.

“Like a race?” Jayden asked, looking at me with excited eyes. “Like the kind you ran in college?”

“How is an island going to be in a race, moron?” Mason asked. To my delight, Jayden stuck out his tongue at his older brother. It was nice to see him stand up for himself.

“Not like a race,” Andrew said. “This would actually be for a reality show.”

“A reality show?” Jake asked, eyebrows raised. “On Lilac Bay?”

“It’s a long shot,” Andrew said. “But we put together a really good application.”

“What’s a reality show?” Mason asked.

“It’s a TV show,” his dad explained. “About real people instead of actors.”

“Why would anyone want to have a TV show about this island?” he asked. “We don’t even have cars.”

“What’s this for, Riley?” Rebecca asked me, her eyes slightly narrowed.

“It’s a contest to pick the best small town in America,” I explained. “The winner gets all kinds of prizes. And grants and stuff for the town.”

“Who in the hell is going to watch a TV show about small towns in America?” Jake asked.