“Do you ever regret not going further with it?”
Once upon a time the Olympics had been her dream. “Nah. I needed a few more inches of height to really get where I wanted to go. Besides, I’d never regret settling down with Ethan.” Even more so because they’d had so few years together.
“It seems you might have a little prodigy on your hands.”
Zoey had just attempted a flip turn at the wall.
“We just added that to our practices. Good job, Chickadee!” Maggie called when Zoey came up for air. “Have you heard from your mom and dad? Becky messaged me yesterday from Barcelona.”
“Dad sent me a picture of Mom in some bakery. She looked pretty happy.”
“It’s good to know they’re having a great time. They’ve waited so long for this trip.”
“I love the idea of them gallivanting all over Europe, Mom dragging Dad to all the tourist attractions, Dad complaining about the price of entrance.”
Maggie chuckled. “Sounds about right. When’s their cruise?”
“Not for a couple weeks. Dad’s worried Mom won’t do well with the cramped quarters.” Erin gave her a wry look. “He even paid extra for the balcony.”
“He must’ve been really concerned to dole out that kind of money.”
“Mom says his wallet squeals every time he opens it.”
Zoey wiped water from her eyes and joined Mia by the steps. The girl was adorable with long blonde locks and green eyes—Erin’s mini-me, though she had Patrick’s dimpled smile.
Zoey tried to get her cousin to join her in the shallow end. But the girl wouldn’t leave the safety of the steps. That dimpled smile was nowhere to be seen right now.
“Is Mia okay? She’s always liked the water.”
“Late last summer a wave got her at the beach. She took in some water and it scared her pretty good. I was hoping by the time we opened the pool in the spring she’d have forgotten. She was just learning to swim.”
Mia watched from her post as Zoey tried a handstand several feet away.
“She just needs to build her confidence in the water. I can work with her this summer if you’d like.”
“Really? You wouldn’t mind?”
“You kidding me? I’d love to help her. It’ll give me a chance to get in the water.”
“You’re welcome to use the pool anytime—you know that. But it would be great if you could help Mia. I haven’t been able to get her off that step.”
“Leave it to me. We’ll have her swimming by summer’s end. You’ll see.”
Maggie’s phone vibrated with a text. Her mother.How’s your trip going, honey? I haven’t heard from you since you left.
The words caused a prick of guilt—Maggie had been distracted with settling in. And ever since she’d seen Ethan’s look-alike, she’d been consumed with thoughts of him.
Another text appeared.And something terrible has happened.
As her mom had no doubt intended, the words set off a cascade of concerns and questions. Was it her heart? Did something happen at work? Had the smarmy guy she’d recently started dating hurt her in some way?
“It’s my mom.” Maggie checked on the girls, then tapped out a quick reply.Sorry I haven’t checked in. Everything’s going well here.What happened? Are you okay?She sent the text, electing not to mention where she was—her mom was jealous of the Reynolds family, and Maggie didn’t feel like dealing with a passive-aggressive response.
“How’s she doing?” Erin asked.
“Something’s wrong but she didn’t say what.” Maggie and Ethan had moved to Fayetteville after her mom’s heart attack. She didn’t have any other family. Maggie’s dad had left them years ago—she barely remembered him.
“Try not to let it bother you. You know how she likes to bait you.”
