Page 89 of Part of Me (The Seaside Chronicles 2)

Sutton

THE SEASIDE CHRONICLE

November 1, 2022

KEEPIN’ IT REEL (SPECIAL EDITION)

Seasiders,

We all know the youngest Bradley sibling must be the most carefree of the bunch. Last this writer heard, Palmer was employed with at least five different jobs. Pet walker, house sitter, vet receptionist, nanny, and the least of my favorite, pooper scooper. To each her own, I guess.

Word on the docks is Palmer has caught the eye of our latest new Seaside resident and single dad, Mason Bryan. Oh, his little boy, Charlie, is just the sweetest thing. A little seagull has planted in my ear that Palmer will be Charlie’s new nanny…don’t worry, Seasiders, I’ve got my ear to the ground and will keep you updated on this latest development.

Fair winds and following seas!

I took a sip of coffee as I watched Palmer read the special edition of the gossip column.

Her eyes darted up to mine while her mouth opened, then closed. “Does this person have eyes and ears everywhere!?”

“It appears so,” my mother said. She glanced over at my father, who was happily eating his eggs and toast. We were all set to head back to Seaside in a couple of hours. Addie and Gannon had slipped out early this morning to drive to Boston to catch a flight for their honeymoon.

“Why can’t they write about another family? Why is it always our family?” Palmer griped as she slammed the paper down. “For the record, I have not agreed to be his son’s nanny. And I’ve never been a nanny before.”

“That’s a clue,” Harlee said, sipping her mimosa.

“Isn’t it a little early to be drinking alcohol, Harlee?” Braxton asked.

A look of pure outrage moved over Harlee’s features before she covered it up with a smile. “Considering you joined us for breakfast still wearing your tux, I think your thoughts on any subject this morning don’t count. Or at least, no one cares to hear them.”

Braxton opened his mouth to reply, but my mother cleared her throat and shot him a warning look.

“It is a clue,” Palmer said. “That means the person who’s writing this doesn’t really know us very well.”

“Or they simply made a mistake and threw nanny in there among your other current jobs,” Brody said with a shrug.

“Oh! Or they did it to purposely throw us off,” my mother added.

Harlee pointed at her. “You’re a genius.”

Mom blushed and waved off Harlee’s compliment while Braxton leaned over and whispered something in Harlee’s ear.

Next thing I knew, he was jumping and letting out a small whimper. Harlee calmly picked up her drink and smirked before taking a sip.

My father cleared his throat. “Well, I, for one, wish they would stop writing about my daughters. Go after Braxton, at least.”

“Hey!” my brother said, shooting our father a wounded look.

Harlee huffed. “From the little they’ve already written about Brax, it appears they know him very well.”

Palmer and I both covered our mouths to hide our laughter while Brody, Chip, and Thomas—Harlee’s boyfriend, and one of my brother’s best friends—all laughed.

Mom and Dad both rolled their eyes. “Can I not get a moment’s peace over breakfast?” Dad groused.

“I knew we should have joined Ken and Janet on that morning walk,” my mother mumbled as she lifted her coffee and took a sip, side-eyeing Harlee’s mimosas.

“Can we get back to this stupid gossip column?” Palmer sat back in her chair and folded her arms over her chest.

“What’s wrong?” I teased. “You don’t like being the subject of the gossip mill?”

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