Page 80

Although Chase was Ellie’s sister-in-law, she was also Charlie’s cousin. Which meant she was indirectly related to Sadie. How much of what she told Chase would make it back to Charlie? And then to Sadie? Would Alexis tell Blake everything?

Ugh. This is the downside to a big family.

There were no secrets in the Mackenzie family. Ever. It had been something their parents had set in place from as far back as Ellie could remember. Her parents had cultivated a safe space for all their kids, and Ellie never felt judged in their presence. It was why all her siblings had great relationships with their parents. They told their parents everything, and in turn their parents never kept secrets from them. If something was wrong, they handled it the Mackenzie way: together.

Giving in to her insistent sisters-in-law, Ellie asked, “What do you want to know?”

“Who kissed who first?”

“How long have you liked her?”

“Are you two officially dating?”

“Did you all talk about what happens when school starts?”

All their questions blurred together as Ellie quickly tried to remember the order they’d been asked.

“I kissed her first. I’ve liked her since prom. We are officially dating. And what do you meanwhat happens when school starts?” Ellie turned her attention to Alexis, who had asked the question. “Should we have talked about that already? I mean, wejuststarted dating officially a couple of days ago. And college isn’t forweeks, so we have time, right?”

Ellie could hear the panic in her voice as the barrage of questions she’d never thought to ask slowly sank into her heart and mind. She could feel her chest tightening at the mere thought of having to confront all those questions with Sadie.

“Ellie, honey, it’s okay.” Alexis placed a hand on her knee as Ellie sat up on the edge of the chair. Chase moved over to sit beside her, gently resting a hand on Ellie’s back. “I wasn’t asking to freak you out. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. I mean, you asked a good one. We didn’t talk about it, but I don’t feel like we were really avoiding it. It just didn’t really come up.”

“And you’re right,” Chase quickly added, “there’s plenty of time to have that conversation.”

“Yeah, Chase is right. It’s okay. I’m sorry, Ellie. Really.”

“It’s okay.” Ellie put on her acting smile, as her mom called it. It wasn’t her genuine one but rather one she’d learned to plaster on when she needed to. And with the thoughts swirling around in her head, she definitely needed to.

Ellie was typically the one in the family who planned everything before it happened. But things had been different with Sadie. She had followed her emotions more than her mind, and that was clearly short-circuiting her brain now.

“Hey, Ellie,” Isla called out as she walked over to them. She was wearing an aqua-colored bathing suit that looked amazing on her. Her hair was damp from the pool, but she’d mostly dried off everywhere else. She nodded toward the beach. “Wanna walk to the beach with me?”

Nodding, Ellie stood and let Isla put her arm around her shoulder as they walked to the stone path down to the beach. Her mom knew her well enough to know she needed to get out of that conversation before she spiraled, so she stopped walking and hugged her.

“Thanks, Mommy.”

“You’re welcome, angel.” Isla kissed the top of her head before pulling back slightly and looking into her eyes. “I could see you spiraling. You want to talk about it?”

Ellie nodded again, and Isla led her over to the two chairs where she’d found her and Sadie kissing just a few days ago. They sat, and Isla covered Ellie’s hand. She loved both of her parents equally, but Ellie was incredibly thankful for the way they each loved her and her siblings uniquely. While Vera was very much a talker and hugger, Isla always let them dictate how much they wanted her to talk or hold them. But right now? Ellie wanted her mommy.

Isla seemed to understand that as she patted her thighs. Just like when she was a kid, Ellie crawled up into her mother’s lap. They both laughed when the chair creaked, bringing a lightness to the conversation.

“We’re gonna break the chair.”

“We will buy a new one.” Isla rubbed Ellie’s back with her hand. “Talk to me, baby girl.”

“Alexis asked if Sadie and I had talked about what happens when we go off to school and we didn’t. Should we have?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Really?” Ellie furrowed her brow.

“I mean, there’s never arighttime for that conversation. Or really any conversation. But you two are young. You have weeks until Sadie leaves for college. You’ll figure it out.”

Isla paused, but Ellie could say she wasn’t done talking. But when she didn’t continue, Ellie arched an eyebrow at her. “What aren’t you saying?”