Maddie burst into tears and reached for the baby, hugging him close to her. “I can’t believe it! Where did that come from?”

“We’ve been practicing,” Mac said, overwhelmed by her reaction.

“I just can’t believe it.”

Thomas ran a chubby hand over the tears on her face. “Mama.”

“Yes, baby.” She hugged him tight. “I’m your mama. Who’s that crazy guy?” She pointed to Mac.

“Dada.”

Mac’s mouth fell open. “I swear I didn’t teach him that.”

She laughed through her tears. “He seems to have come to that conclusion all on his own.” Maddie reached for Mac to bring him into their hug. “That was the best surprise ever. Thank you.”

“It was all Thomas.”

“With a little help from his dada.”

After they dropped Thomas off with Tiffany, Maddie drove painfully slow and made a full and complete stop at every intersection on the way to North Harbor.

“At this rate, we should get there by next Tuesday,” Mac muttered.

“Be quiet. I’m concentrating.” When they finally arrived, Maddie released a long sigh of relief. “That was stressful.”

“You’ll get used to it.”

“Whatever you say.”

He kissed her and sent her on her way to the hotel.

As she worked her way through her list of rooms, Maddie thought about the job offer from the Beachcomber and how it would make her life—and Thomas’s—much easier. She was on her last room when Daisy came rushing in, clutching the Gansett Gazette.

“You’re all over the paper, Maddie!”

A ripple of fear settled in Maddie’s belly. “What do you mean?”

“Look.” Daisy thrust the paper at her.

Maddie did a quick scan, gasping as she read one of the letters to the editor. “Oh my God. No. No!”

“You didn’t know?” Daisy asked, looking stricken.

“I have to go.” Leaving the room unfinished, Maddie rushed past her friend and headed for the stairs. On the hotel’s expansive front lawn, she fought back tears as she lowered herself into one of the Adirondack chairs and read the letters.

To the Editor,

I’m writing this letter to clear up a misunderstanding dating back to high school. Maddie Chester did nothing to earn the nickname we gave her, and it was wrong of us to say what we did about her.

Darren Tuttle

Gansett Island

“Oh my God,” Maddie whispered as tears poured down her face. “How could he do this to me? I told him that stuff in confidence!”

To the Editor,