Page 118 of Undone

Was that the end of the discussion?

It couldn’t be that easy.

“Danica, put out the extra settings and also some maple syrup on the table. Dylan, can you pile the bacon onto a plate? Dayne…” She shook her head and skipped over him. “Ford, honey, grab the creamer, juice and butter from the fridge. And Erin, sweetie…” She pointed toward the large kitchen table. “Just sit and relax. One stubborn man was enough for me. Dealing with two must be exhausting. One of the boys will grab you a cup of coffee.”

Well then…

It was obvious where the Lyons kids got their personalities and their open minds.

Evelyn had always been kind to her. While she and Dylan dated, after her son left Fisher Falls, and even after Erin married Kyle. She was a compassionate woman at her core. If Dayne wasn’t Dylan’s identical twin, Erin would think he was adopted.

Maybe it was true that one black sheep existed in every family.

After settling at the table, Ford dropped off a cup of coffee for her with a wink, then went to fetch the remaining items from the refrigerator.

Dylan brought the mountain of bacon, more than enough for six people—another hint that Evelyn had already known—over to the table at the same time Ford returned with the creamer and juice.

Dylan glanced over his shoulder before whispering, “I think we need to rethink you two staying over here.”

“Privacy would be good,” Ford agreed under his breath.

“Privacy from my family would be even better. If I had expected this to happen, I would’ve either designed the wings differently or scrapped the idea all together.”

Erin assumedthismeant the threesome, not the fact his mother wanted to spend time with her adult children.

“Too late now,” Ford muttered.

“We haven’t been open about our relationship with any of the employees or with anyone in town. Maybe we need to get in front of this whole thing.”

Erin asked Dylan, “By doing what?”

“Not hiding it anymore.”

“Would you be okay with that?” Ford asked him, as surprised as Erin.

“Do we have a choice?”

They really didn’t. This morning was proof. “Your mom already knew,” Erin whispered. “Look how much bacon she made. Look at that stack of pancakes. She’s feeding an army, not just herself and her three children.”

Dylan stared at his mother fussing over something on the other side of the large kitchen. “You think?”

Erin gave him a nod. “Yes, and she recovered from the news too quickly.”

Dylan’s brow furrowed. “Maybe.”

“No, Dylan, she knew. That means rumors are swirling around town already. So, it might be too late to control them.”

“We control them by being open about who we are to each other,” Ford told them.

“We haven’t sat down and actually discussed where we go from here. I mean, right now we’re just living in the moment and not thinking about the future.”

“Well, the future is about to smack us upside the head, Dylan. So, like Ford said, we need to be the ones to be honest and open about it. We need to stop pretending.”

“I’m not sure I’d call it pretending,” Ford whispered. “It was more like burying our heads in the sand. We knew that this would come out, but we hid in our bubble.”

Dylan frowned. “Someone burst it.”

“No surprise since the resort is now the biggest employer in the area,” Erin reminded him. “We’re together too much now for anyone not to notice. It only takes one person mentioning it to someone else for it to spread like wildfire. Gossipisthe most exciting activity in Fisher Falls.”

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