Page 89 of Stone Rules

I fetch her when her bath is ready. She brings her phone so she can call Piper. I give her some privacy to talk with her best friend. But not five minutes go by before I hear her heart-wrenching cries while I’m preparing her a snack in the kitchen. I run in to see what’s the matter, fearing she’s tried to get out of the tub and slipped on the tile.

She’s still sitting in the tub, her legs pulled up and her arms wrapped around them. “What happened? Are you okay?” I ask, looking her over for signs of trauma.

She looks up at me, tears rolling off her cheeks and into the water. She nods to the phone clutched in her hand. “She’s dead.”

My heart thunders. “Who’s dead?”

“Mrs. Buttermaker.”

“Mrs. Buttermaker died?” I ask. “How do you know?”

“Piper told me. Mason told her. When she didn’t show up for her swim last night, the girl at the front desk got worried and called her house. Mrs. Buttermaker hadn’t missed a swim in five years.” She closes her eyes, shaking her head. “It’s not fair, Ethan. That woman was in better shape than most forty-year-olds. She exercised every day. She exercised while her deadbeat husband wasted his life away in his Barcalounger. How is it that she’s the one who died from a stroke and not him?”

“Oh, no. She had a stroke?” I sit on the edge of the tub and take the phone from her, placing it on the vanity.

She nods, her chest still heaving with each breath. “It’s not fair, Ethan. She was so nice and good. Why do bad things happen to good people?”

All of a sudden, I know we’re not just talking about Mrs. B.

Charlie’s sobs come so quickly, I fear she might become hysterical. In record time, I remove my clothes and slip into the tub behind her, wrapping my arms tightly around her.

“Why, Ethan? Why is all this happening?”

I embrace her until she settles down, then something on the floor catches my eye. The ultrasound pictures are sticking out of my shirt pocket. I dry my hands with a towel and reach over to get them. I hold one of the pictures up in front of her. “Look at this,” I say. “It’s amazing. We can see his fingers. His toes. He’s still got so much growing to do, but he’s already perfect.”

She takes the photo from me, tracing his tiny little feet. “Or she,” she says, leaning back into me.

“Or she,” I say.

We stare at the pictures until the water cools.

“We need to get out of here,” I say.

She nods. “Yeah, the water is too cold.”

I laugh. “Well, that, too. But I was thinking we should get away for a few days. Take a vacation before the baby comes. Let’s fly out to California and stay at my parents’ house. It’s right on the coast. We can go for long walks on the beach. We can lie in bed all day. We can fatten you and Junior up with my mother’s cooking.”

“Junior?” she asks.

I shrug. “It could be gender neutral.”

She laughs and it’s music to my ears. “A beach vacation sounds heavenly, Ethan. I just need to see if I can get the time off.”

“Somehow, I don’t think that will be a problem.” I wink at her. “I know people who know people.”

Chapter Forty-one

Our long weekend in Santa Monica has turned into a ten-day vacation. I’ve never seen Charlie more relaxed and carefree. And watching her with my mom—it’s everything I didn’t know I wanted.

Dad and I are sitting at the bar in the kitchen watching Mom and Charlie prepare tonight’s dinner. Chicken Piccata I think they said. It’s amazing witnessing the bond she has formed with my parents in a mere eight days. From the moment they picked us up at the airport, they welcomed her as part of our family and doted on her like the daughter they never had.

Of course, my mother is over the moon about becoming a grandmother. Yes, she’s been one before, and although my mom was a great Nana to Cat, I think she and I both know this time will be different.

My mother pulls Charlie into a hug. “I’m going to miss you so much, dear.”

“We still have two more days, Jackie.”

My mother gives her a stern look so Charlie adds, “Sorry . . .Mom.”

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