Page 88 of What Started In Deception

Ty waited until Will’s footsteps disappeared before he grabbed his phone.

Hey! We made it to Mass last night. I’ve had a chance to meet some of Lydia’s family. I already have a new workout partner in the gym. Just got started this morning. Not a bad way to spend a summer.

He sent it off, knowing that Nick would understand his message. If anyone ever got hold of his phone, it would look like a normal conversation with his “good friend.”

Wow, great! Welcome to Shoalmans Bay! Looking forward to meeting up soon!

Ty’s thumbs flew over his screen as he replied. The rest of Lydia’s family is coming in today. I’ll reach out when things settle down around here.

Sounds good!

Ty nodded as he glanced around the empty room. Things were off to a decent start. He and Will had officially established the beginnings of a rapport, and his second target would land later this afternoon. The case was moving along, but it was still early days.

Lydia sat next to Everly on a counter stool in the main house’s big kitchen as Mac stood across from them, flipping another pancake on the griddle. The waves crashed against the beach in the distance as a story played on Everly’s Toniebox 2 in the center of the island—the perfect melding of sounds on her first morning back in Shoalmans Bay.

“Did you sleep okay last night?” Mac asked, putting a smaller pancake on Everly’s plate.

Lydia nodded as she went to work on buttering Everly’s breakfast, then helped her pour on the syrup before she started cutting the pancake into bite-sized squares. “Really well. I closed my eyes at midnight, and suddenly, it was six thirty-five a.m.” She’d been so tired she never heard Ty get up and leave.

Everly picked up her fork and dove in as Lydia set the knife down, studying Mac’s stunning face and her hair piled on top of her head in a messy bun, noting the dark circles under her eyes as everyone still wore their pajamas as the clock ticked closer to seven. “Are you getting any sleep?”

Mac shrugged as she poured more batter onto the skillet. “Will was super sweet and took care of Maverick this morning so I could catch some extra Zs.”

“That’s nice. But I mean, are you getting any sort of regular rest?”

Mac shrugged again. “I have an almost five-month-old and a four-year-old. Sleep deprivation is a way of life.”

She hated that her beautiful friend looked so tired. “Aw, Mac. If you need a nap, just say the word. You know I’ll take care of the kids.”

Mac smiled as she flipped the new batch. “I appreciate it, but I’m mostly used to it now. It’s par for the parenting course.”

“Well, if you change your mind, you know where to find me.”

She moved the pancakes to a platter. “Yes, I do. Thank you.”

Lydia smiled as Everly smiled at her in her purple butterfly pj’s. “Things are good, otherwise? Life’s good up here in Shoalmans Bay?”

Mac nodded as she put a couple of pancakes on a plate for herself. “Things are really good. Will’s super busy at work right now, and I’m busy with the kids. We’re going to try gymnastics after the Fourth of July. Aren’t we, Ev?”

Everly looked up from her plate. “Yup.”

Lydia grinned, absolutely in love with her sweet-faced second cousin. Everly had her mom’s bold blue eyes and her dad’s dark-brown hair. “Gymnastics sounds like so much fun.”

Everly nodded again as she went after another square of her pancake.

Lydia hugged her, caring little that her arm was now sticky with syrup. “I missed you so much.”

Everly grinned again. “I missed you, too. Except when I saw you on the computer.”

She touched her hand to her heart as it melted. “Can I bring you home with me when I leave in August?”

Everly looked at Mac.

Lydia laughed as she hugged her again. “I’m just being silly, Ev. Your mom and dad would miss you too much, and who would I read stories to on the computer if you were already in my house?”

“I like stories.”

Lydia grinned. “I know you do, honey.”