to get broken again by letting them get attached to a man

who wil eventual y leave or … die.”

“Oh, Peg,” Olivia said softly, standing up to take hold of

Peg’s shoulders. “We can’t stop living because something

might happen, any more than we can protect our children

from life itself.”

Peg pul ed away to look at the hil side where Duncan—

apparently none the worse from his swim—was sitting with

Robbie and Alec on the track of the excavator, watching the

men cut her pine logs into workable lengths. She turned to

Olivia. “That doesn’t mean I have to go looking for trouble.

Because honestly?” she whispered. “I’m not sure I’d survive

getting my own heart broken again.”

“It’s a picnic, Peg,” Olivia softly growled.

“But what’s the point of it, anyway? Why did Duncan even

offer? What man in his right mind wants to spend al day

with four kids who aren’t even his?”

“Gee, I don’t know,” Olivia drawled, a sparkle coming

back into her eyes. “It couldn’t possibly be that he might

actual y like children, or that he simply wants to spend the

day with a beautiful woman he’s not related to.”

“But I’m not—”

Olivia stepped toward her. “I swear to God, you finish that

sentence and I’m shoving you in the water.”

Peg lifted her chin. “I was going to say that I’m not … that

I don’t … Oh, okay; but besides my beauty, and the fact that

we beat him up and I nearly ran him over with my van, why

is he being so nice to—” Peg suddenly took a step back

and pointed at Olivia. “Dammit, are you putting him up to

this?”

“What? No!”

“I swear to God, if I find out the picnic was your idea, I’l

—”

Olivia burst out laughing and sat back down, pul ing Peg

down with her. “I swear I didn’t put him up to it.” Her eyes

fil ed with laughter again. “But only because I didn’t think of

it. And Mac swears that Duncan’s a good man, Peg,” she

said, turning serious. “A bit old-fashioned apparently,

according to a conversation I overheard at the wedding

reception, but the consensus is that al the MacKeages and

MacBains are noble men.” She nudged Peg with her

shoulder. “But then, Simon Maher is available now that I’m

off the market.”

Peg reared away in horror. “He’s old enough to be my

father!” But then she smiled. “And yours, not that that

seemed to matter to him.”

They shuddered in unison and both burst out laughing.

“Mom?” Peter cal ed out. “It looks like the men are

bringing wood for our campfire. Can me and Repeat and

Henry go help them?” he asked, pointing at Duncan and

Robbie and Alec walking toward them with their arms ful of

wood.

Peg looked around, then nodded. “Okay, as long as you

stay beside them.”

“Come on, guys,” Peter said excitedly. “Let’s go help

them find more wood so we can have a real y big fire to

cook our hot dogs.”

Jacob stood up, looked at Peg, then at the men, then

walked over and knelt down beside the girls and started

working on their sand castle.

Henry started after Peter, but suddenly stopped and

turned back. “Mother? Is it okay if I go, too?”

“Sure thing, Henry; go on,” Olivia said, waving him away.

“‘Mother’?” Peg said even as she sighed at Jacob’s

reluctance to go with them.

“That’s who I am today,” Olivia muttered. “Yesterday I was

‘ma’am,’ and for three days before that I was ‘Mater’—

which apparently is Latin for mother. Ever since the

wedding Henry’s been trying to decide what to cal me,

because he claims ‘Miss Olivia’ is too formal.”

“No offense,” Peg said, deadpan, leaning closer. “But

have you ever wanted to push Henry in a mud puddle just to

see his reaction?” Olivia blinked at her in surprise, and Peg

snorted. “Oh, come on, I know you’ve at least thought about

it. The kid’s a little … stiff. I mean, seriously, Latin? What’s wrong with cal ing you plain old Olivia?”

“Too il -mannered,” Olivia said with a sigh. “But hopeful y

he’l have it figured out by the time we reach California,

because I swear if he shouts ‘Mater’ or ‘ma’am’ at me in

the middle of Disney World, I’m going to pretend I don’t

know him.”

“Jacob,” Duncan cal ed out just as Peg saw him

accidental y drop a piece of wood on purpose. “Could you

come get that for me, please?”

Peg held her breath when Jacob stood up and looked at

Duncan, then at her, then at the piece of wood Duncan was

stopped beside, and she didn’t start breathing again until

the boy started running toward him.

“And that,” Olivia said, “is why going on a picnic is not a

dumb thing.”

Duncan dumped his load of neatly cut branches on the

dead grass just above the beach. “You said ye planned to

cook hot dogs over a campfire tonight.”

Peg felt her shoulders slump. “I guess I did, didn’t I?”

“Oh, are we invited?” Olivia asked, her eyes lighting up

again. “You know how much I like campfires.”

“Sorry, I don’t have any wine,” Peg drawled.

“That’s okay,” Olivia said, pul ing her cel phone out of her

pocket. “I’l cal Mac and have him bring a couple of bottles

as wel as everything for s’mores.”

Peg glanced at Alec and Robbie and Duncan—who also

appeared as interested in the campfire as Olivia was—and

smiled sheepishly. “I only have a dozen hot dogs.”

“You must have some … other meat in your freezer, don’t

you?” Duncan asked, his eyes dancing. “We could have

kebabs.”

“I’l make a store run,” Robbie interjected, “when I take my

crew to Inglenook to bed them down for the night.” He

looked at Olivia. “We appreciate your letting us use your

dormitory until Duncan gets his camp set up, since I

couldn’t find any cabins to rent within fifty miles of the new

Bottomless Sea.”

“Yeah, there’s actual traffic in town now,” Olivia said,

looking down at what Peg recognized as a smartphone.

“Wait,” she said, touching her arm. “There’s no signal

here, Olivia.”

“My phone works,” Duncan said.

“And mine,” Alec and Robbie said almost in unison.

Olivia smiled at her. “It appears we have cel phone

service in Spel bound ever since the earthquake. You need

to get yourself one, Peg, so I can text you a picture of me

pushing Mac into the Grand Canyon.”

“Speaking of my dad, Mr. MacBain,” Henry said,

stepping in front of Robbie. “He told me that you were only

a few years older than me when your father married your

stepmother, and I was wondering how you address her,” he

asked as Robbie squatted down to be eye level. “Dad said

your mama died when you were born, but I was wondering

what you cal your new mom.”

Peg saw Robbie’s startled gaze snap to Duncan, then

slide to Olivia before it softened with his smile as he looked

back to Henry. “Wel , Mr. Oceanus, I had quite a time trying

to decide what to cal her until we both settled on ‘Mum,’

since I usual y referred to my birth mother as my mama.” He

tapped Henry’s chest. “And I cal her mother Gram Katie,

which she seems to like quite wel .”

Henry beamed him a bright smile, then turned to Olivia.

“What do you think of ‘Mum’? And since I have two

grandfathers, I could cal your father Grampy Sam, and his

father Great-Grampy.”

“Works for me,” Olivia said with obvious relief, giving

Robbie a nod of thanks.

“And you can cal me ‘darling,’” Isabel said, rushing over

to grasp Henry’s arm. “Come on, sweetheart; let’s go finish

building our dream castle together.”