Page 57 of Faking It With the Grumpy Single Dad

With the police alerted to a missing child possibly wandering around town, we split up again. Flo goes back toward the beach with Eli, while I drive back up into the suburban side streets to search every nook and cranny around Mermaid Shores. I cover the back roads and the edges of town where the trees close in and the roads become twisted, half-familiar trails with mystical, sun-dappled energy.

I keep calling Cody’s name, scanning every shadow, every corner, my voice growing hoarse from yelling, and my heart thundering louder with each unanswered call.

After what feels like hours, I find myself back near the beach, climbing up high on a dune overlooking the water. I stare out at the waves and the endless stretch of sand, my chest tightening. The fear has taken root, spreading through me like poison, and I can’t shake the image of Cody, lost and alone, calling for me and wondering why I haven’t come to find him.

I don’t realize I’m crying until I taste the salt on my lips. I close my eyes, letting the wind whip around me, my hands clenched into fists.

With a deep breath, I straighten my spine and wipe the tears from my face. I’m not giving up yet.

“Hold on, Cody,” I whisper to the empty beach. “I’ll find you.”

Chapter Nineteen: Poppy

Ipace the length of my kitchen, feeling helplessly frantic.

Joe’s youngest son is missing.Missing.

I’m not even a parent, but it’s the primary thing everyone fears might happen to their children. That, one day, all of the disturbing statistics and terrible possibilities have turned against them. It’syourchild missing this time.

But… it can’t be dire, can it? This is Mermaid Shores. I might not have called this town home for very long, but I’ve been here long enough to know that it’s a thousand times safer than Malibu. Even now with the tourists popping up for the start of the season, it’s a haven. Especially for children. Aiden once said that this is the sort of place where some people still leave their front doors unlocked because they trust their neighbors that much.

So, for a child to disappear into thin air… there has to be a reasonable explanation.

At the same time, however, I can’t shake the horrible feeling that this is somehow my fault. If I hadn’t monopolized Joe’s time with all my drama and my problems, maybe he wouldn’thave been distracted enough with me to come over here this afternoon. He would’ve been with his sons, exactly where he belongs, instead of dealing with the disaster zone that this cottage became after Percy barged in.

Instead, Joe’s out there somewhere, desperately searching for his son, and I’m just… in here. Useless.

A sick feeling settles low in my stomach, twisting tighter and tighter with each step that I pace up and down the length of the skeletal first floor. I don’t know how long I’ve been tracing a trail back and forth through the construction site, but it’s long enough for the afternoon light to deepen into a pure gold through the windows.

I can’t stand this. I need air. I need wide open spaces, like the endless sea. I need something to stop the overwhelming guilt that’s closing in on me.

I step out the back door and head toward the path that leads down to the beach. The salty air hits me, sharp and bracing, but it doesn’t do much to ease the knot of worry in my chest. It’s unexpectedly chilly today, unseasonably cool even for the fresh dawning of summer.

My mind keeps looping through the events of last night and this morning, replaying every moment I spent with Joe… and every minute he spent here instead of with his kids.

Obviously, I know he has to do his job. And the boys have to go to school. Naturally, they wouldn’t spend every second together.

But, still. Joe came back tomethis morning. I’m the one who was on his mind. I’m the one who let my chaos consume his life.

I wrap my arms around myself as I walk along the sandy path winding down to the frothy, frigid water. The sun is high in the sky, yet simultaneously heavy, as if it’s just as tired as I feel. It casts a soft glow over the ocean, and I’d usually find it breathtaking—calming, even—but right now, all I feel is dread.

I can’t even focus on the good news: the fact that Percy is now in police custody. The fact that I now have substantial reasoning to file a restraining order against him. Not even the fact that I’ll most likely never have to deal with him again can cool the fiery panic singeing the frayed edges of my heart.

Each minute that passes without word from Joe makes me certain that Cody is still nowhere to be found.

Not that I would expect to be the first one he reaches out to once he’s reunited with his son.

I let out a long, loud sigh. I’m just about to turn back toward the cottage when I catch sight of a small figure sitting in the sand just around the sloping edge of a dune, his knees pulled up to his chest as he stares out at the waves.

I blink several times, wondering if the salty air has blurred my vision, even as my heart leaps into my throat.

It’s a little boy. Alone and hunched over, with a forlorn look on his face that makes my chest ache.

“Cody?” I call out.

He lifts his head, his expression instantly lighting up with a hint of recognition. I can tell it’s definitely Cody, even though I’ve only met him once before. He looks just like a tiny Joe with his dark hair and somber eyes.

I don’t waste a second, and pull my phone out and quickly send a text to Joe, my fingers shaking as I type,Cody is here at the cottage. I found him on the beach.

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