“We’ll take it nice and slow.” As they waded into the surf, Mac dipped the baby’s feet into the cool water. Thomas bicycled his legs and let out a happy squeal that made them laugh. “Just like the bathtub, buddy, only bigger.” After half an hour of wave jumping, Mac stretched out on the wet sand at the water’s edge and dug a small hole for Thomas to sit in. The waves rushed to the beach, making a pool out of the hole. Thomas splashed and shrieked as Mac drizzled wet sand on his chubby legs.

Mac looked up at Maddie, who was taking pictures of them. “I think it’s safe to say he likes the beach.”

“We’ll be washing sand out of his crevices for a month.”

Mac laughed and plopped an even bigger pile of wet sand on Thomas. They played until Thomas began to yawn and rub at his eyes with sandy hands. “Whoa, dude,” Mac said, grabbing the baby’s hands. “Don’t do that.”

Thomas let out a lusty wail of distress.

Mac took him back in the water to rinse off as much of the sand as he could. Removing Thomas’s tiny bathing suit, he cleaned him up and carried him back to Maddie for a diaper.

“You’ve become an old pro.”

“He makes everything fun.”

Maddie smiled at him. “So do you.”

Mac slid a hand around her neck and brought her in for a tender kiss. “That’s nice of you to say.” He reached for the baby and lowered himself into a beach chair.

Maddie prepared a bottle. “Want me to feed him?”

“Nope.”

Once the bottle was finished, Mac burped him and snuggled him in close. The baby’s sweet breath fanned against his neck. “Is he out?”

“Like a light. You can put him down if you want to.”

They’d brought an umbrella and set up a spot for Thomas to nap.

“That’s okay. I like holding him.” He tugged a beach towel up over the baby to protect him from the sun.

“What would your friends in Florida say if they could see you right now?”

“They’d never believe it.”

“What will you do about your business there?”

“They’ll buy me out and find someone to replace me.”

“Will they be mad that you’re not coming back?”

“Maybe. The three of us have busted our butts to build up a thriving business.”

“It’ll be a blow to them to lose you.”

Mac sighed. The same thought had been weighing on him since he’d decided to stay. “They’ve been texting me with all kinds of questions and problems. We’ve got a lot going on right now. We always do.”

“Did you have a girlfriend there?”

Mac glanced at her, not sure where this was heading. “Sort of.”

Maddie laughed. “How can you ‘sort of’ have a girlfriend?”

“I dated my assistant for a while—and yes, I know that’s a terrible cliché—but we didn’t see much of each other outside of work, which irritated her. But that was over before I came home.”