The Calendar of New Beginnings by Ava Miles Page B

“I’m going to beat your pants off tonight, munchkin.”
    Danny giggled. “No, I’m going to beat your pants off, and then you’ll have to walk to your car in your underwear.”
    “That would be a sight,” Natalie said, laughing out loud.
    “Might make a few women faint,” Jane added, joining in.
    “Undoubtedly,” Moira agreed, giving him a playful wink.
    “I’ll catch them as they fall, man,” Matt told their brother-in-law, his shoulders shaking.
    Blake shook his head. “You all wish you could have this body.”
    Matt clapped him on the back, and the group of them left the table and headed for Hairy’s game room, leaving Andy and Lucy alone with Moira. He gave his sister a look, which she returned.
    She fussed with her hands. “Lucy, I’m sure you heard, but I up and left my old job after a few too many run-ins with my boss. I’m planning to take a break in Dare Valley before looking for a new one, and I was hoping…we might get together sometime. What with you being back and all. Plus, I’d love to talk to you more about photography. You’re one of the best out there, and it’s a special hobby of mine.”
    His sister was as close to babbling as he’d ever seen her. Good Lord, was she having another fan moment?
    Lucy was watching her with a neutral expression, but he could feel her gathering herself. Talking about photography was probably the last thing Lucy wanted to do outside of the classroom. Not that Moira had any way of knowing that.
    “Let’s give Lucy some time to settle in,” he said, deciding to intervene.  
    Moira’s mouth parted slightly, a sure sign she was surprised by his response. “Of course. Any time you’d like, Lucy. I’ll just join the others and let you two catch up.”
    A smile flickered on Lucy’s face. “Andy’s right. I have a lot of things to see to right now, but I’m sure we can chat at some point. Good luck finding a new job, by the way.”
    His sister sought his gaze once more before nodding and darting off in the direction of his family.
    “You need a Jameson after that?” Lucy asked him point-blank. “I guess your sister didn’t realize how upset we both were. Me because of the situation with my eye, and you because of my mistake with your son.”
    “It wasn’t that bad,” he told her, trying to be nice. “And I don’t use liquor to handle my stress.”
    She tapped her finger on the table. “Well, I sometimes have a drink when I’ve had a moment. I’m sorry I caused Danny to ask those questions. I would never do anything—”
    “I know,” he said, interrupting her. “He’s smart, and he’s curious. It’s not the first time he’s asked something like that after hearing what should have been a simple story. Kids who lose parents young often have a fascination with death.”
    Whereas all he wanted to do was run as far as he could in the opposite direction. He wanted to believe Kim was in a place called heaven, but when it came down to it, he just didn’t know.
    “I walked right into it with all that talk about mummies and the afterlife,” she said, picking up a cold French fry and throwing it across her plate. “So, if you won’t have a drink with me, what can I do to make up for it? Let’s see. How about we dart over to the ice cream parlor and grab a cone? We can snarf it down before we return so no one will know.”
    Leave it to Lucy to suggest ice cream. A cone share had always been her go-to comforting suggestion when they were at school together.
    “Mocha almond fudge and butter pecan, here we come,” he said.
    “Let’s blow this joint,” she said.
    She rubbed his back, giving him a full-wattage Lucy smile. He shrugged his shoulders to relieve the tension as her fingers worked some magic. Her hands were strong, something he’d never realized. But they were also gentle as they traced the knotted line of muscles running across his shoulders.
    He was about to comment on her strength and skills—and tease her about picking