Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
Cece woke up, yawned, and rolled over to find Peanut already up. No surprise there. That cat had the uncanny ability to know exactly when Cece was done sleeping. It was her superpower. And she rarely used it for good.
Peanut stared Cece down, meowing loudly.
“All right, you know I’m awake, but you need to learn the difference between awake and able to function. They are not the same, you silly creature.”
Cece squinted at the clock. It was not quite seven thirty. Early for her on a Sunday morning, but she was sure the rest of the Queen Bees, except for Maude, were up.
She reached for the phone, dragging it closer without lifting her head from the pillow. She wondered if Blaise had sent an update on Brick’s son. Cece scrolled through the banner of notifications that sat at the top of the screen. There it was. A text from Blaise.
Cece tapped the text open, eyes sharpening as she read. The text was for her alone.
Still at the hospital with Brick. Holland’s in surgery but stable, we think. Could you let Beau out this morning and feed him for me? Keys under the blue flowerpot. I’ll update when I know more. Thank you.
For a second, the words felt oddly unreal. Then her stomach dipped in sympathy.
“Oh, Blaise,” she murmured. “Oh, Brick.”
She read the message again, slower this time, catching on stable and making herself focus on that. Stable was good. Stable meant there was every reason to hope.
She quickly texted back, I’m on it. Don’t worry about Beau!
Peanut, who had given Cece barely sixty seconds reprieve, climbed her way up to Cece’s chest with a not-so-quiet chirp, planting a paw squarely against her collarbone.
“I know,” Cece said, running a hand gently over the calico’s back in an attempt to distract her. “I’m getting up.”
Peanut purred like a small engine, unconcerned with anything beyond the fact that morning meant food.
“Breakfast first,” Cece promised.
She slid out of bed, the cool floor a small shock against her bare feet, and went into the kitchen.
The early light coming in through the window was too bright, but the neighborhood was quiet.
Usually was on a Sunday. Not that she was ever really up this early, but it was good she’d woken up before her usual time.
Poor Beau probably had his little legs crossed. Peanut twined herself around Cece’s ankles, her meow more insistent now. She didn’t care what Beau was doing.
“All right, all right.” Cece pulled out a clean cat dish, dumped in a small can of wet food, and set it down. Peanut immediately attacked her breakfast like she hadn’t eaten in days. Apparently, the handful of treats Cece had given her before bed was long forgotten.
Cece made a fast cup of coffee, all while picturing Blaise and Brick in the waiting room. Trying not to think too hard about what might happen but being unable to do anything else. And Brick, doing that tough guy thing men did when they were trying not to fall apart.
Cece took the coffee with her into the bedroom to change. She tugged on lightweight leggings and a loose T-shirt, then pulled on a pair of sneakers she kept by the door.
Of course she would take care of Beau. It wasn’t even a question.
She checked her reflection in the mirror by habit, then grabbed her sunglasses from the entry table where she kept her keys and odds and ends. She went back into the bedroom for her phone and realized she had only barely responded to Blaise.
On my way to take care of Beau now. Don’t worry about a thing. Whatever you or Brick need can be handled.
“Peanut,” she called as she headed for the door again. She glanced toward the kitchen. The cat was already finished eating, washing her face with the paw she’d just licked. “I’m going to go walk Beau. Not sure how long I’ll be gone. Hold down the fort.”
Peanut flicked her tail once as if to say obviously.
Outside, the morning wasn’t as warm as Cece had expected, a slight breeze moving through the palms. That was nice.
Maybe she should get up earlier more often.
Around her, the Colony was waking up slowly.
In the distance, a lone jogger made his way down a path.
Then a golf cart quietly hummed past, the woman driving it dressed for tennis.
Somewhere, sprinklers ticked on, watering a lawn that probably needed it.
Blaise’s place was just next door and took no time to get to. The small house looked so empty with the blinds drawn, and no sign of movement inside. Cece found the key and let herself in, calling softly as she opened the door.
“Hey, Beau. It’s just me. Auntie Cece.”
Beau appeared almost immediately from the bedroom. His ears perked up and his tail went into that hopeful but hesitant wag dogs got when they suspected something good was about to happen but weren’t entirely certain yet. When he realized it was someone he knew, the wag got stronger.
“How are you doing, beautiful boy?” Cece asked, crouching to scratch the side of his neck. “You ready to go out?”
He answered with a low, excited sound that wasn’t quite a bark.
“Thought so.”
Except he headed for the kitchen. As long as he wasn’t rushing for the door, she was happy to feed him first. She filled his bowl with kibble, set it down and waited while he ate. She didn’t know his usual order of things but getting him fed felt like the right move.
Then she saw the little puddle near the closet door. With a smirk, she cleaned it up. “That explains why you wanted to eat first. We’ll keep this a secret from your mom, okay? I don’t want her feeling bad.”
Once he’d finished and taken a long drink of water, she grabbed his leash from the hook by the door.
“Let’s go, little man. Let’s see if we can wear you out on the beach,” she said. “Just in case your mom’s gone a while longer.”
He trotted beside her willingly, leash loose, as they made their way toward the beach access path. The air was cooler in the shadow of the dunes and carried a faintly damp scent from the morning dew mixed with salt and the greenness of the sea oats and dune grass.
It was a good smell. Refreshing. Not one she’d experienced before, probably because she was usually asleep at this hour.
As soon as they reached the harder sand near the waterline, Beau picked up the pace, nose to the wind, tail high.
The beach was blessedly quiet. Here and there were a few other walkers.
A fisherman was setting up farther down.
Plenty of room for Beau to explore and not run into any other dogs without notice.
“All right,” Cece said. “Let’s do this.”
She let the leash extend a bit and picked up the pace.
Beau kept up easily, trotting ahead, stopping to sniff at interesting clumps of seaweed, then bounding back to her when she called his name.
It felt good to move, to get her legs working and fresh air in her lungs.
It brought her fully awake in a way that lying in bed scrolling through social media never could, that was for sure.
She found herself talking to Beau as they walked.
“Your mom’s at the hospital with Brick,” Cece said, not really expecting him to understand. “His son got hurt but he’s going to be okay. Probably a long road, but he’s young enough that he should be all right. Anyway, I’m sure your mom won’t be gone too much longer.”
Beau glanced back at her briefly, tongue lolling, then veered toward the water. A small wave chased up around his paws and he startled backward, then jumped back in as if he couldn’t resist.
Cece laughed at his antics. “Silly thing.”
They walked a good ways farther down the beach, Cece letting Beau zigzag just enough to satisfy his curiosity without tangling the leash around her legs.
She’d just started to angle them back toward the access path when she noticed another woman ahead, moving at an easy pace, barefoot, with her sandals in one hand.
Big sunglasses. White sundress. Dark, highlighted hair pulled into a glossy high ponytail.
Cece recognized her immediately. Kind of hard not to.
“Morning,” the woman said as they drew closer, her smile wide and warm, like she’d been waiting for company. “Your dog is adorable.”
“Thank you,” Cece replied, slowing only slightly. “He belongs to a friend.”
“Well, he’s clearly living his best life,” the woman said, glancing down as Beau paused to investigate her toes. “I’m Gigi.”
Cece already knew that. Did Gigi not recognize her? Cece was in sunglasses, but that wasn’t much of a disguise. “I’m Cece. We met at book club?” And, Cece wanted to add but didn’t, you flirted with my boyfriend at Shooters.
“Oh, of course. You look different in sunglasses.”
Gigi matched her pace without asking, turning so they walked side by side as if this were the most natural thing in the world.
“How do you like the Colony? I’ve been trying to figure out who’s who around this place.
It’s such a community.” She made the word sound like a feature in a brochure. “How long have you lived here?”
“I like it fine. I’ve lived here a while,” Cece said. “About the same as most of my friends.” That wasn’t really true, but Gigi didn’t need to know details.
“You mean the book club ladies?” Gigi asked quickly, head tilting with interest. “I loved that group. I had no idea it was invite-only. How did that come to be?”
Cece assumed she meant the club. “It just sort of happened. Paige put it together.”
Gigi laughed lightly. “That’s always how good things happen, right? A friend with a great idea.” She glanced out toward the water, then back at Cece. “So how many of you are there?”
Cece kept her expression neutral, even as her protective instincts quietly kicked in. “Six.”
“Ah,” Gigi said, satisfied. “And how long have you all known each other?”
“Long enough,” Cece said without sounding snarky. But that was enough with the questions. “What about you? Settling in all right?”
Gigi seemed a little surprised by the redirect, then recovered smoothly. “I am. Still unpacking. Still meeting people.” She smiled again, softer this time. “It’s nice here. Friendly. Though I get the sense some folks like their routines.”
“I would think so,” Cece said. “Most of us came here because we were past wanting to reinvent ourselves every five minutes. And there’s comfort in routine for a lot of people.”
Gigi laughed, though it sounded a touch forced. “Speak for yourself.”
Beau gave a tug on the leash, signaling he was ready to turn back. Cece adjusted her grip. “I need to get him back.”
“Well,” Gigi said, pushing her sunglasses up onto her head to reveal perfect makeup. “I hope I didn’t interrupt your morning. Maybe I’ll see you ladies again soon.”
Cece met her gaze. Who had that kind of energy for makeup this early in the morning? “Maybe,” she said calmly. “This is a pretty big place.”
“Not as big as people think,” Gigi replied, something keen sparkling in her eyes.
They parted with Gigi continuing down the beach, and Cece heading back toward the Colony. As she walked, she couldn’t quite shake the feeling that the encounter hadn’t been accidental at all. Maybe Gigi had seen her and decided to approach.
Then why pretend she didn’t know who Cece was? Unless Gigi was hoping for a fresh start. Still odd.
By the time Cece and Beau reached their neighborhood again, his tail was still wagging, but his energy had come down a notch, the edge worn off in the best way. Exactly what she’d wanted.
Back at Blaise’s, she wiped off his paws with some damp paper towel and refreshed his water. He took a drink, then circled inside his bed in the living room twice and flopped down with a deep, satisfied sigh.
“Good boy,” she said softly, leaning down to press a quick kiss between his ears. “I might check in on you later, if your mom needs me to.”
She checked Blaise’s text thread again, thinking about what to send. She decided to keep it simple and left out the encounter with Gigi. Cece felt no need to give that woman any more time than she already had.
Just walked Beau on the beach. He’s fed and napping. I’m here if you need anything. Love you.
She locked up behind her and headed back to her own place. There was still worry in her heart about things to come, about the unknown test results that awaited her, but Beau had been a good distraction.
Somehow, taking care of him had actually helped her forget about her own issues for the moment. That wasn’t a bad way to start the day.