Page 54 of Baby, Be Mine

He nodded, those dark lake blue eyes missing nothing. “Sure.”

Relief washed over me, and we strolled down to the edge of the beach. The quack of ducks rustling in the tall grasses eased my nerves.

“Ducks are big here.”

“In the Cove or here?”

“Both.”

“Accurate. One of the moms used my shed as a place to hide out this winter and then we ended up with dozens of chicks taking over the grass. And they never left.”

“Oh, that’s sweet. Is that why you added ducks to the mural on the boat?”

“Caught that, huh?”

“Didn’t quite go with the elegant lights the artist painted, but now it makes sense.”

I turned to look at my restaurant and pointed up at the second level deck. “A few ducks there too.”

I spotted the wooden carving with the wings spread along the top of the roof and another one on the post. Then I noticed a string of ducklings trailing along the spaces between the rungs of the railing as well.

“Clever.”

“I try to use local artists when I can. And all the renovations have been done by John Gideon.”

She frowned. “I know that name.”

“If you like coffee, you probably know his wife.”

“Oh, right. Macy. She had mom-friendly half caff coffee that got me through my pregnancy. Who the heck can survive on one measly cup of coffee?”

“Not this guy.”

I laughed. “You use Macy’s coffee here too?”

“I couldn’t afford it.” He steered me away from the lapping water. “But we do well enough. Henry and his second-in-command make sure we have an elevated breakfast for those who want it.”

“I really like your place, Mason.”

He smiled down at me. “I’m pretty proud of it.”

The smile made my chest tighten. Not just for a feeding time for once. No way could I have that be a thing, so I shoved the unexpected feelings aside. “Just wait until you see what I do to help you with the party boat.”

“I contacted Gideon about your idea for the lighting inside the boat.”

“Oh, yeah?”

“Not sure he does work on a boat or not, but we are a lake town. Can’t be the first time he’s had to do something on the water.”

“Speaking of, I think I’m ready to go back to the MJ2. Thanks for distracting me for a few minutes.”

“No problem.” He gestured to Adriana. “Are you going to be holding her all the time?”

“She likes it.”

“I wasn’t knocking it, just wondering how all this was going to work. I honestly can give you more time—”

“Can you really? Because I don’t know about you, but I think you need me just as much as I need you.”

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