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I stu to round the table to get to the like such an idiot over hed, a little embarrassed, and held my hand out to Cat

She stared at it with eyes as blue as Cooper’s, and I felt her hesitation Finally good manners forced her to shake my hand

“Nice tonot so azed at me with polite coolness

I turned my attention to the boy and ht Joey was Cooper’s spitting iiving away hts because his eyes war me

“Are you Uncle Cooper’s girlfriend?”

“Um” I didn’t knohat to say because Cooper and I hadn’t labeled our relationship yet

“Yes,” Cooper said from behind me

Okay, then

Yay!

I grinned “Yes”

Joey grinned back at h She likes my uncle Cooper a lot”

“Joey” Cat shot hi

His eyes went round “What? It’s the truth” He looked at his uncle “I asked her why she was kissing you and she said it was because she liked you a lot”

I raised an eyebrow at Cooper and mouthed, Sadie Thomas?

“That was a while ago,” he assured me “And Sadie will be fine, Joe”

“Yeahshe seeely “You’re not the only one I’ve seen her kissing”

“I’ll bet,” Cat

Who the heck was Sadie Thomas?

“Okay” Cooper moved toward his nephew “Beach today, Joey?”

“Yup!” He started bouncing on the balls of his feet “I havein my backpack” He looked at est sand castle ever today! We’re going to break our own record”

I almost melted at the hero worship in the kid’s eyes He loved Cooper Seeing that kind of adoration for him only increasedso to start to worry that I was —

I cut that thought off abruptly

Too soon, Jess; too scary!

“So what do you think?” Cooper slid an ar me close “You up for the beach today?”

“Oh, I don’t want to intrude”

“Okay, then” Cat gave me a smile that didn’t reach her eyes “We’ll see you some other time”

Ouch

Cooper gave her a dirty look “No Jessica is co with us if she wants to”

I wasn’t sure that I wanted to join the out with so out within that situation

As if he sensed hts Cooper squeezed et to know Joey”

“Yeah!” Joey cried enthusiastically “Uncle Coop said you’re a doctor, which e sand castle isn’t easy”

Engineering a large sand castle“I don’t think you need me,” I said, bloay by his vocabulary “You are clearly wicked smart”

Joey beae brain, yes”

I laughed and caught Cat’s eyes and she softened a little “You must be really proud of him”

“More than,” she said and then heaved a sigh “Okay, if we’re all going, let’s get this show on the road”

“Three weeks?” Cat said

She was sitting besidedown the beach to where Cooper and Joey were starting their sand castle

“Excuse me?”

When she turned to look atblack sunglasses Thankfully she didn’t have hts and reactions behind lasses

We’d taken Cooper’s truck to the beach, parking at his bar The whole drive there and the whole time we set up our towels and picnic area, Cat didn’t say a word to me

When Joey pulled Cooper away to get to work on the sand castle, Cat asked me to stay just as I was about to follow the boys

So out of politeness I’d stayed

Even when I didn’t want to

Because I could feel a lecture co on

“You’ve known each other three weeks Three weeks”

I was right Lecture

“I’m aware”

“Are you?” She cocked her head to the side “Because fro ‘stable, responsible adult’ You ive up your whole life? After three weeks?”

Alright, so I got her point Fro in, I probably seemed crazy

“It’s not just about your brother” I tried to explain what I had discovered aboutthere “I wasn’t happy where I was This trip and the people I’ve become close to in Hartwell haveFriends, relationshipspeace”

“A woman doesn’t start over after three weeks unless she has nothing to lose And a thirty-so to lose concerns ain, and ainst the leg of a chair trying to round the table to get to the like such an idiot over hed, a little embarrassed, and held my hand out to Cat