Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 78085 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78085 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
A horn honked, and we broke the kiss to see Gannon and Addie parking their car.
“I can’t wait to show Addie!” Harlee said as she rushed toward the driveway.
When Addie got out, she looked at the view, then looked at the house and smiled. Harlee made it to her side before they both screamed and hugged one another.
“Need any help?” I asked, walking up to the SUV Gannon had traded his Jeep in for.
Gannon looked down at his almost three-month-old baby in the backseat. “She’s fussy.”
“Give me that baby.” I unbuckled Hannah from her car seat and carefully picked her up. Bright grayish-blue eyes looked up at me, and a little smile played at the corner of my niece’s mouth. “Come here, baby girl. Uncle Brax has you now.”
I held her close as we walked toward the house. Her fussing instantly stopped.
Gannon shook his head. “Dude, how do you do that? Seriously, I need to know.”
“Ahh, I’m not going to share my secrets. Am I, sweet baby girl?”
Hannah made a weird bubble laugh.
“Man, this place is amazing, Brax,” Gannon said as we walked up the steps and into the house. Addie and Harlee, as well as Moose, were behind us, the girls chatting a mile a minute about paint colors and finding the right ones to make the house historically accurate.
Once inside, Harlee gave them the tour, then met me and Hannah back down in the living room. She gave Hannah a kiss and stared at her with longing eyes. I knew how she felt.
“It’s beautiful, Brax!” Addie said while she hugged me, then reached down and kissed her daughter on the forehead.
Another honk drew our attention outside.
“Palmer, Mason, and Charlie are here!” Harlee said, rushing out to the front porch.
We followed. The moment Palmer got out of the car, she screamed in excitement, and little Hannah made a grunt of disapproval.
“I feel you, little one, but they like to scream, so the sooner you get to used to it, the better,” I whispered down at her.
Palmer reached back into the car and pulled out The Seaside Chronicles, waving it in the air.
“What is she doing?” Harlee asked with a laugh.
“She’s back! Oh my God, I knew she wouldn’t be able to stay away!”
With all four of us confused, we asked in unison, “Who’s back?”
Palmer nearly skipped to the front porch. “Ms. Seaside! She’s back, and she wrote a column this morning about Harlee and Brax.”
I snapped my head over to look at Harlee, who had a stunned expression on her face. When she looked at me, I knew immediately she hadn’t been the one to write the column.
“Let me have that baby!” Palmer stated, heading toward me with her hands already out.
Clearing her throat, Harlee said, “Um, it’s such a beautiful day, who wants lemonade on the porch? The realtor brought some, along with some homemade baked goods.” There were two big swings on the front porch, and a few rocking chairs that the previous owner had left for us.
“Let me see that paper,” Addie said, grabbing it from Palmer before I handed her the baby.
“Do you need help, Harlee?” Addie absentmindedly asked as she flipped through the paper until she found the column.
Letting out a nervous laugh, Harlee replied, “No, you guys enjoy the fresh air. Brax, can you help me?”
“Sure.” I followed Harlee into the empty house. Once we were in the kitchen, Harlee spun around, her face white as a ghost.
“So it wasn’t you?” I asked.
“No! My father?”
“But why? Why in the world would your father start writing the column?”
She chewed on her nail, shaking her head. “Actually, he wouldn’t.”
“Then…then who is?” I asked.
Her eyes, filled with confusion, met mine. “I have no idea.”
Three days earlier…
On the other side of Seaside, sitting next to a warm, cozy fire, a woman sat with a pen in her hand and paper on her brand-new writing desk. With a smile on her face, she began to write…
* * *
THE SEASIDE CHRONICLES
October 1, 2023
HIGH TIDE
Seasiders,
Did you miss me?
Harlee
Christmas
“And he won’t tell you?” Brax asked for the millionth time.
I pulled the ham out of the oven and set it on a cooling rack. “He won’t tell me.”
Leaning against the counter, Brax sighed. “The writing is definitely not the same. Do you think other people have noticed?”
“Well, Palmer, Sutton, and Addie have noticed,” I replied as I slid the rolls into the oven and set the timer.
“I mean, I get why your dad did it, it sells papers, but why won’t he tell you who it is? And it’s so random. It doesn’t even come out every week. She only did two articles in October, three in November, and so far, three in December.”
Turning to face him, I crossed my arms over my chest. “I was just as pissed off as you, Brax, when we first found out. But I don’t own The Chronicles, my father does. He can do whatever he sees fit to benefit the paper. And clearly, that column brings in readers.”