We made our way from the bedroom into the hall.
“I’ll make it up to you.”
He bounded down the stairs like a teenager. “How?”
“I dunno,” I said, surprisingly hungry all of a sudden. I hadn’t been eating all that well lately. “I’ll think of something.”
5
BECK
“There’s my girl. Lookin’ a little rough today.”
Mason’s wife Pia sat at the kitchen stool of the “old house,” the part of their inn that Mason grew up in. When Mason’s dad died and he decided to leave law enforcement and take it over, Parker moved in to help renovate. And since Parker and I were roommates at the time, we both ditched our shared apartment and were now one big cozy family.
With renovations nearly complete and Parker now owning his own building company, he and his fiancé Delaney stayed between the inn and her apartment in town while he worked on building them their “dream home,” a log cabin with a lake view.
As for me? It was my turn to go too. Especially since Pia was very pregnant. In the meantime, while searching for an apartment, I liked walking up the hill to work, being on the lake and, frankly, always having someone around.
Pia looked up from her sandwich.
“I wasn’t until you ruffled my hair.”
“True,” I admitted. “But that’s neither here nor there.”
I took a water from the fridge. A confused-looking Pia stared at me.
“What?”
“Something’s… weird about you.”
“Thanks,” I said, sitting on the other side of the island and taking one of her chips despite just having eaten brunch at the O’Malleys’.
“No, seriously.” Putting down her phone, Pia waited for me to incriminate myself. She must have been taking lessons from Mason.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Stop stealing my chips.”
“Someone’s gotten food territorial,” I said as Mason walked into the kitchen. “Since getting knocked up.”
“Nice.” Pia made a face at me.
“Cole left already for the ceremony?” I asked.
“Yeah. He had to get there early.” Mason took one of Pia’s chips too and she promptly slapped his hand. “After reminding me we were not allowed within fifty feet of the place. Apparently he doesn’t trust us to behave.”
“So obviously we’re going?” I asked.
Mason looked at Pia.
“Go ahead,” she said to Mason. “I’ll stay here for check-ins while you boys torture Cole.”
“Sounds like you don’t approve.” Mason kissed the top of her head before heading to the fridge himself.
“As if it matters. So what’s up with him?” she asked her husband, who looked up, as if assessing who she was talking about.
“Good thing you left the NYPD,” I said. “Your deduction skills are lacking.”
