Page 37 of The Beach Shack Summer (Laguna Beach #2)
T he Beach Shack was in its sweet spot—post-lunch lull before closing. Stella worked the register while Joey obsessively reorganized his napkin station for the third time. Tyler was at the grill, showing Lisa some new sandwich technique, and Margo sat at her usual spot, going through receipts.
Meg’s phone rang just as she finished wiping down the last table. Anna’s face filled the screen, Bea visible in the background packing what looked like art supplies.
“Perfect timing!” Anna said without preamble. “We’re coming home early!”
“What?” Meg nearly dropped the phone. “When?”
“Friday! The Florence program is cutting the session short because of some flooding in the gallery district. Minor damage, but they’re closing for repairs.” Anna was practically vibrating with excitement. “We’ll be there for all the festivals! ”
“This Friday? As in four days from now?”
“Surprise!” Bea leaned into frame, grinning. “Mom’s already planning which events we’re hitting first.”
Tyler wandered over, drawn by Meg’s excited squeak. “Anna?”
“Tyler! Perfect! Tell Stella we’ll be there for the Pageant of the Masters! I already got tickets!”
“The what now?” Stella had abandoned the register, Joey taking over smoothly.
“The Pageant of the Masters,” Anna repeated. “It’s this incredible?—“
“Weird,” Tyler interjected.
“—artistic experience where real people pose as famous paintings on stage.”
Stella blinked. “Real people... pose as paintings?”
“With full theatrical lighting and orchestral music,” Meg added. “It’s actually quite moving.”
“It’s bizarre,” Tyler corrected. “But in a weirdly compelling way.”
“Joey’s in it this year!” Anna announced. “He’s in the Crab Cooker painting! We just found out—grabbed tickets as soon as we heard we’d be back!”
Everyone turned to stare at Joey, who’d gone bright red.
“You’re in the Pageant?” Stella asked. “As what?”
“It’s nothing,” Joey mumbled. “Just a small part.”
“He’s Coffee Drinker Number Two,” Bernie called from his corner. “Table on the left.”
“Coffee Drinker Number Two?” Stella’s eyes lit up with unholy glee .
“It’s a very important coffee drinker,” Joey said. “I have to hold the cup at exactly the right angle for ninety seconds!”
“Ninety seconds?” Stella pressed. “You just sit there frozen, pretending to drink coffee?”
“It’s harder than it sounds! Do you know how heavy a coffee cup gets after ninety seconds? And the lights are hot! And if you move even a little bit, you ruin the whole tableau!”
“Oh my God.” Stella turned to Tyler. “Dad, please tell me you’re photographing this.”
The Beach Shack went completely still.
Tyler froze mid-reach for his coffee. Meg’s mouth fell open. Even Bernie sat up straighter.
But Stella didn’t notice, already turning back to the phone. “Aunt Anna, is it just the one painting? How many coffee drinkers are there?”
“The Crab Cooker painting is iconic,” Anna said, recovering first, though her eyes were huge. “Local artist, local restaurant. And there are four diners, plus the server.”
“Cool,” Stella said, still oblivious to the bomb she’d dropped. “Dad thinks I should look at the art schools here while I’m visiting, but I don’t know. California’s pretty far from Sydney.”
Tyler made a sound like a stepped-on cat.
“Did you just—” Joey started.
“What?” Stella finally noticed everyone staring. “What’d I do?”
“You called him Dad,” Meg said softly .
Stella’s face went through several expressions—surprise, embarrassment, defiance—before settling on studied casualness. “So? He is, isn’t he?”
“Yeah,” Tyler managed, voice rough. “Yeah, I am.”
“Well then.” Stella turned back to the phone like nothing had happened. “So Joey has to sit there pretending to drink coffee. In front of hundreds of people. In makeup.”
“So much makeup,” Bea offered, clearly trying to help move past the moment. “They have to match the painting’s style.”
“Do they put it behind your ears?” Stella asked innocently.
Joey groaned. “How do you know about behind the ears?”
“I know things.” She grinned. “This is going to be amazing. Bernie, what are the odds Joey spills the prop coffee?”
“Not taking that bet,” Bernie said firmly, but then softer: “Some things aren’t for betting. That moment just now was one of them.”
Anna’s laugh bubbled through the phone. “Oh, I’ve missed you all so much. Stella, we are going to have so much fun at the festivals!”
“There’s also the Sawdust Festival,” Meg added, having found her voice again. “Local artists, handmade everything.”
“I used to sell friendship bracelets there,” Tyler said, his hand having somehow found Stella’s shoulder. “Made a fortune one summer. ”
“You made jewelry?” Stella looked at him with new interest.
“Everyone in Laguna makes something,” Margo said, joining them. “It’s practically a requirement.”
“I make excellent napkin displays,” Joey offered.
“And soon you’ll make an excellent frozen coffee drinker,” Stella said. “Do you have to practice holding still?”
“I’ve been practicing for weeks! My friend times me!”
“Your friend’s very patient,” Bernie commented.
“We’ll be there Friday afternoon,” Anna said. “Our flight gets in around two. Meg, can you?—”
“I’ll pick you up,” Meg said immediately. “Luke and I can both come.”
“Ooh, Luke and Meg can both come,” Bea sing-songed. “Mom, you owe me ten euros.”
“You’re betting on my love life in euros now?” Meg demanded.
“International betting pool,” Anna said cheerfully. “Bernie’s got reach.”
“Darn right I do,” Bernie confirmed.
“This family is insane,” Stella announced.
“Your family,” Tyler corrected quietly.
She looked up at him, something shifting in her expression. “Yeah. My insane family.” Then, because she was still Stella: “Including Coffee Drinker Number Two over there.”
“I’m burning your napkins,” Joey threatened.
“You wouldn’t dare. You love those napkins more than life itself.”
“Friday,” Anna said firmly, drawing them back. “We’ll come by the Shack as soon as we can after landing. Can’t wait to meet Stella properly! And then on to the festivities!”
“It’s not a debut! I was a villager last year!”
“A coffee drinker’s much better than a villager,” Stella consoled him. “More sophisticated. Do you have to hold your pinkie out?”
“I hate everything.”
“No you don’t,” she said, echoing Tyler’s earlier words. “You love us.”
“Unfortunately,” Joey muttered, but he was fighting a smile.
They talked for a few more minutes—flight details, whether Joey’s makeup would survive the stage lights. Normal family chaos, except for the way Tyler kept looking at Stella like she’d handed him the world with one casual word.
After Anna hung up, the Beach Shack settled back into its rhythm. But Meg caught Tyler touching his coffee cup like he was checking if it was real, and Stella’s cheeks stayed pink for the next hour.
“Hey Joey,” a customer called out. “Heard you’re in the Pageant! Break a leg!”
“Please don’t,” Joey said fervently. “I have to hold perfectly still. A broken leg would ruin everything.”
Later, as the afternoon wore on, Meg heard Stella helping a customer: “Sorry about the wait. My dad’s teaching the new girl his secret cheese-melting technique.”
Tyler didn’t freeze this time. Just smiled and kept working.
Dad.
Such a small word to change everything.
“Four days,” Stella said during a lull. “Think I should practice my standing ovation for Coffee Drinker Number Two?”
“Please don’t,” Joey begged. “It’s embarrassing enough.”
“Too late. Already planning to yell ‘That’s my friend!’ during the applause.”
“The audience is supposed to be respectfully quiet,” Joey informed her.
“Even better. My voice will really carry.”
“Tyler, your daughter is planning to ruin my theatrical career.”
“Your theatrical career as a coffee drinker?” Tyler asked mildly.
“It’s ART!”
But he was smiling as he said it, and so was everyone else. Even Tyler, who’d been called Dad twice more in casual conversation and hadn’t frozen once.
Four days until Anna and Bea arrived. Four days until their family grew again. Four days to prepare Joey for the coffee-drinking mockery that was surely coming.
It would be chaos.
It would be perfect .
It would be home.
Thank you for reading—and for spending time with Meg, Margo, and the Beach Shack crew. I hope their story brought you warmth, comfort, and maybe even a little hope—just like the Shack itself.
And the journey isn’t over… in The Beach Shack Artists, new arrivals bring both surprises and second chances, testing the bonds of family and friendship in unexpected ways.
Don’t miss The Beach Shack Artists, the next book in the Laguna Beach series!