Page 21 of One of Six

Maggie leans over and pats my hand again. "I know that, Bea. But I have an idea." She looks at her sons. "Atilio, go and get Evelyn."

My heart pounds. "She can't be involved. She's too close to me. I can't let her lose her job. She needs it. And I need her there."

"Don't worry. Evelyn may know a way to get you back to the house without the sheriff catching you."

"Oh yeah! That would be good."

"I'll go get Evelyn," Ridge volunteers.

Atilio breathes a sigh of relief and sits close to me, taking my hand. His affection does not go unnoticed by his mother. I like his touch, which is soft and gentle. It doesn't make me tingle like Essex's touch had.

Nico clears his throat and chuckles. "I'm going to get us pizza. Galen and Boone can come with me." He puts an arm around my shoulders and catches my eye. "What do you like on a pizza?"

"I've only ever had cheese. I'd like to try something with meat, if that's what you're getting."

His face breaks into a grin. "We all get a full meat."

Excitement bubbles in my stomach. "That sounds perfect."

He squeezes my shoulder and starts to pull away when I grab his hand. "I just wanted to thank you for rescuing me."

"You're welcome." He kisses my hand and grins before leaving with his brothers.

"Make sure you get enough," Maggie calls to their backs. To me she says, "Let me dry your clothes."

I watch as she picks up my clothes and goes into another room.

"I like your family, Atilio." I say to him, stifling a yawn.

"They like you too." He plays with a strand of my hair. "I could take you home across the river."

"That's not a good idea," Maggie says, coming back into the room. "You went into the water, and instead of helping you to land, Nico took you to the boat. It's a problem."

I pull my hand away from Atilio's and cover my face. "I'm sorry. I just wanted to get away from Jason. I wasn't thinking. This is all my fault."

Arms go around my back and I hear Atilio whisper, "Nothing to be sorry for." He kisses the side of my head.

Maggie glances between us, brows furrowed. "Ridge is back with Evelyn."

"He is?!" I jump to my feet and run to Evelyn as soon as I see her. "What am I going to do?" I mutter into her neck.

She looks at me and chuckles. "As much as those clothes suit you, you should change quickly and then we have to go."

"Gleeson's bringing his boat around to pick up Bea," Ridge says.

"That won't explain how she ended up on it, because there's no way anyone's going to believe Gleeson swam and saved her," Atilio offers.

Evelyn gives me one last hug before letting go. "We'll figure it out. No one should worry. Bea, get changed quickly. It won't be long before the sheriff shows up."

That gets me moving. Maggie hands me my slightly damp clothes and I grab my sandals from the floor where Galen left them. I go to the bathroom Maggie shows me.

Behind the locked door I smile in delight at the beautiful bathroom. The walls are white with sketches of fishing boats scattered about. The bathroom suite is dark gray with matching towels.

There is a feeling of warmth in this house, something that is missing from mine. With these thoughts, I quickly remove Essex's shorts and t-shirt. I fold them up and place them on top of my bra and search for my panties. Where are they? Surely, I didn't drop them. My cheeks heat at the thought as I pull on my dress.

The zipper sticks as I struggle with it. Oh, bother! I pull on my shoes and breathe in slowly. Exhaling just as slowly, I feel ready, even though I feel strange without my underwear. I hope they fell overboard and not on the floor on my way to the bathroom. That would be embarrassing.

I don't find any panties in the kitchen, but I do smell pizza. My stomach rumbles, which surprises me after the steak I had earlier.

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