Chapter 2 #2
Standing on the sidelines of his daughter's soccer game, hands cupped around his mouth, appearing to be cheering loudly.
On the beach at sunrise, wetsuit half-zipped, surfboard under his arm, looking determined but slightly intimidated by the waves.
About Me
I founded a medical software company at twenty-four and retired two years ago when my wife passed away. We moved to Willet Cove for a fresh start, and my kids and I are still adjusting to the slower pace—but we're getting there.
I married their mom when my son and daughter were three and five, and I've been their dad ever since. They're my whole world. They miss her every day, and so do I. But they've also made it very clear that I need to “get back out there” (my son’s words, not mine). So here I am, taking his advice.
These days, I coach my son's baseball team, volunteer at the local food bank, and attempt to surf. The surfing is not going well. I've wiped out more times than I can count, but my kids think it's hilarious, so I keep trying.
I'm a serious person by nature—disciplined, routine-oriented, maybe a little intense. I'm learning to loosen up. My daughter says I need to stop “optimizing everything.” She's probably right.
I've been lucky enough to fall in love twice. Both relationships showed me what's possible when two people really see each other. Looking forward to finding that again.
Some of my favorite things
Street tacos from the truck on Ocean Street
Really good salsa verde (the kind that has a kick)
IPAs after a long day
Baseball games on Saturday mornings
Latin music in the kitchen
Sunday sleep-ins
Biographies of great leaders
Spy novels
Running before sunrise
My kids' laughter
My real-life superpower … is staying calm under pressure—unless my kids are running late for school.
After work, you'll find me … at the baseball field, coaching at the food bank, attempting to surf, or reading on the couch with my kids nearby.
I promise I won't judge you … if you think my salsa verde could use more heat. I'm still perfecting the recipe.
Favorite song … “To Make You Feel My Love” – Adele version
What's your comfort movie—and will you share the popcorn? The Sandlot. My kids and I watch it every summer. And yes, I'll share the popcorn—but my daughter likes her own bowl.
I stared at the phone in disbelief. He’d adopted his wife’s children. Just as I’d adopted Grace. He hadn’t been a liar or a cheater.
What was I supposed to do now? Before I could think anything through, my phone pinged with a text from our group chat.
Delphine
Annie fessed up right away. We need to call an emergency meeting. Meet at The Pelican in an hour?
Esme
Robbie told me everything too. I’ll ask Mrs. Young if she’ll come stay with the kids and meet you there.
Gillian
I’m in too. I have something really important to share.
Seraphina
Since Tyler’s been sent to his room with a sandwich and instructions to think about what he’s done, I’m in too.
Lila
Mia’s beside herself. Sounds like they knew exactly how risky it was to do what they did but they felt strongly it would help us.
Gillian
Put the links to your profiles in here. I want to see them. Then we should take them all down.
Lila
We can “hide” them for now. I mean, just in case we decide to try the app for real sometime.
Delphine
Have you lost your mind?
Lila
Years ago.
The Pelican Tavern was our local watering hole, known for craft beers and the best burgers in town.
It was the kind of place one would expect in a sleepy beach town, all dark wood and a gleaming bar.
The owner was a local and basically retired.
Just recently he’d hired a new bartender to take his place.
Although as a community we resisted change, we’d made an exception for his replacement.
Hunter Sloan was a hunky, brooding type that I imagined had a checkered past. Not that we would know.
He was polite, but not friendly, and certainly not talkative.
Someone had told me he was rumored to have once been a musician but lived with some reclusive rich guy who had been his friend since childhood.
How anyone knew this, or if it was even true, I couldn’t say.
Regardless, the ladies and I didn’t mind admiring his wide shoulders and bad boy persona.
The perfect example of something we could look at but not touch.
Talk about a disaster of a choice in men. Or, that was my perception anyway.
The five of us had been meeting up at The Pelican since the kids were in kindergarten.
A lot had changed since then. Delphine’s husband died.
Esme and Lila both got divorced. We were all single mothers to children in the same grade.
Bonded since the boohoo coffee hour the PTA had hosted on the first day we dropped the kids off at school.
Although different in many ways, the five of us had enough interests in common that we’d fallen into an easy friendship.
They were as important to me as family. Like sisters, connected by love instead of blood.
We shared freely with one another about every aspect of our lives, gave support when needed, and also laughed our heads off on a regular basis.
And now we had yet another thing in common. Our children had conspired against us.
When I arrived at The Pelican, Delphine and Seraphina were already sitting in our usual booth in the corner. Esme brought a pitcher of beer to the table, her blonde hair loose around her shoulders. Lila followed closely behind with five mugs.
Once we were all settled, we got right into it.
“Where do we even start?” Delphine smoothed her crisp, white blouse—she must have come straight from the gallery, still in her tailored navy trousers.
“They’ve violated so many levels of trust, it’s impossible for me to even get my head around it.
What they’ve done is highly inappropriate, not to mention potentially dangerous.
They put our photos up. This is a small town. Pretty much everyone knows us.”
“I know,” I said. “Between my Pilates classes and all the children who take ballet at my studio, I know half the people in Willet Cove. Anyone on that app can see us.”
“Not to sound awful, but I’m a semi-famous person.
” Seraphina tugged on her hoop earring, her copper hair threatening to escape from where she’d piled it high on top of her head.
“Now I’m out there for the world to see on the internet.
My agent will be justifiably angry if she finds out.
I have a certain image, and going on a dating site is not it. ”
“Why would she care?” Esme asked, wiping foam from her upper lip. She’d clearly been at her flower shop before heading over for dinner. She wore a pair of jean shorts and a tank that flattered her slim, athletic frame. “I mean, what's your image exactly?”
Seraphina’s lips pressed into a thin line, her fingers still fiddling with her earring.
“Confident, glamorous, always in control. She says readers don’t want to think about the woman behind the books eating leftover Chinese food in sweatpants or fumbling around on a dating app.
My agent says every public appearance, every social media post, every interview—it’s all part of the brand.
Two of those photos he put up were very personal. Not ones I want shared.”
Esme snorted. Only she could make it seem adorable. “That’s ridiculous. If anything, it makes you more relatable.”
“Well, I had him take it down, regardless,” Seraphina said, straightening the collar of her striped boatneck top. “I’ve never been so angry with him.”
I slid my phone across the table, where I’d loaded the app and logged into my account to make the profile “hidden.” “Mine has photos of me teaching Pilates. Wearing practically nothing. It’s embarrassing.”
Lila leaned forward, the muted florals of her wrap dress catching the light from the window. “You look amazing in that photo.”
“I agree,” Esme said peering at my phone. “You should show that body off.”
“I know we’re all angry and mortified,” Lila said. “But the kids were just trying to help us. They worry.”
“Which I hate,” Seraphina said. “We’re adult women without a need for a man to rescue us.”
“I don’t think they want us rescued, given what they say in the profiles,” Lila said. “They were clear about the kind of man we would want.”
“I mean, I personally love what Tyler wrote about you,” Esme said. “‘Not every redhead is feisty.’ And then schools everyone on how hard it is to write a romance novel. I kind of cheered a little when I saw it. It’s obvious how proud he is of you. And rightly so.”
“That was sort of funny,” Seraphina said. “Except that I was supposed to have written it, which makes me sound kind of arrogant.”
“People will think it’s funny,” Lila said.
“Easy for you to say. Your daughter said nice things about you,” Delphine said darkly. “Whereas mine said I’m rudely blunt. And that I hate it when people talk at movies.”
“You do hate that,” Esme said meekly. “And her admiration for you was very clear.”
“She knows you well,” Lila said.
“Fine. She’s right. But still.” Delphine frowned into her beer.
“Now everyone knows I don’t share popcorn,” I said, trying to sound serious, but a giggle escaped. “That was a great prompt. It really showcased who we are.”
“Robbie said he made sure everyone answered the same questions,” Esme said. “So that they would all match.”
“Of course he did,” Lila said.
“And unlike all of your children, he showed no remorse when I confronted him,” Esme said. “He said it was statistically unlikely we would find our match on there, but that it was worth trying, and that surely it couldn’t pick any worse than I had on my own. Meaning his father.”
“Well, he has a point,” Delphine said.