Page 132 of The Birthday List (Maysen Jar 1)

“Oh, nothing.” She grinned into her water glass.

Zack’s hand stayed on her belly as it rubbed slow circles.

The image of Cole’s hand on my pregnant belly popped into my head, and I jerked, surprised for a moment, until a sense of longing chased it away. I wanted his hand on my growing belly. On our baby. I wanted his hand to have a band like Zack’s, something that showed the world he was mine.

“Poppy?”

My head whipped up to Cole. “Yeah?”

“I asked if you wanted another beer.”

“Oh.” My cheeks flushed as I came back to reality. “Sorry.”

His forehead creased. “Are you okay?”

I nodded and smiled. “I’m great. And yes, please. I’ll take one more.”

“I’ll get it.” Brad grabbed me a bottle from the fridge before turning to Cole. “So I talked to the city manager again this morning. He’d like you to start sitting in on meetings.”

Cole tensed at my side. “Dad. No.”

“It’s just a few meetings. It won’t interfere with your caseload. But if you want to be chief, you need to get to know him.”

“Dad, I never said—”

“Hold that thought.” Brad held up a finger as he emptied the bottle of wine into Mia’s glass. “Let me get another bottle of wine.” He smiled at me, then walked out of the kitchen, heading back downstairs to their wine cooler.

“What’s going on?” I whispered to Cole when Brad was out of sight.

Cole pushed out a loud breath and nodded toward the living room.

I followed him out of the kitchen, waiting to speak until we were alone. “I thought you didn’t want to be chief of police.”

“I don’t. But I’m having a hard time getting through to Dad. I just . . . he’s got these plans for me and I hate letting him down.”

I gave him a sad smile. “I think the only way you could let him down would be by taking a job you don’t want just to make him happy. Don’t you think it would be better if you were honest with him about how you feel?”

Cole ran his hand over his face as he considered my advice. “You’re right,” he breathed. “I need to make him hear me. I’ll tell him when he comes back upstairs.”

I stepped into his space, wrapping my arms around his waist. “Want me to stay?”

He hugged me back and kissed my hair. “No. Thanks, beautiful. But I’ll handle it.”

“Okay.” I let him go and went back to the kitchen just as Brad was coming back upstairs. When Cole called him into the living room, Mia shut off the water in the sink and came to the island.

“Is Cole finally going to make Brad listen to him? It’s about time.”

“What?” My chin dropped. “You knew?” I hadn’t even known.

Mia shrugged and took a sip of wine as Evie laughed. “Oh, Poppy. Mom knows everything.”

“Just wait until we do presents later,” Zack said. “We make her tell us what’s in every one of her boxes before she opens them. In all the Christmases and birthdays I’ve seen, Mia has never gotten one wrong.”

“It’s true.” Evie nodded. “She’s been like that forever. None of us can pull off a surprise. Maybe you’ll be the one family member who can stump her.”

Family member. Those two words sent a surge of warmth through my heart as I realized just how true they were. I was a part of Cole’s family, just like he’d become a part of mine. Brad and Mia. Evie and Zack. They’d let me into their lives, their family, taking the love that Jamie’s parents

no longer wanted.