Page 58 of Return to Rosewood Beach

Callie slipped out of the hotel room and Cooper turned to Julia with a smile.

“Thank you again. Tonight has been amazing.”

“You’re so welcome.”

They shared another kiss, and then wished each other goodnight in whispers as Julia quietly left the room.

She walked slowly along the hallway of the hotel, unable to stop herself from smiling as butterflies flapped in her stomach.

“Good morning, Daddy!”

Cooper opened his eyes and saw Macey sitting up in her bed, looking over at him with a big smile on her face. Sunlight was streaming in through the windows of their hotel room, and he smiled to himself, realizing that this was one of the first nights in a long time that Macey had slept the whole night without waking him up. Kind of ironic, he thought, but he was thrilled.

“Good morning, honey.” He climbed out of bed and went to give her a hug and a kiss. “Callie said you guys had a great time last night.”

“Yeah! Can we come back here soon?”

He chuckled. Macey had been having a wonderful time, clearly considering the trip to be some kind of amazing adventure. She’d been happy and excited the day before, and he was glad to see that she still felt that way that morning.

Half an hour later, as he was putting on her shoes, she said, “Can we get breakfast with Julia?”

He grinned, delighted that she wanted to spend time with Julia. “I think that sounds like a great idea. Should we go ask Julia if she wants to?”

“Yeah!” She wiggled off the chair she was sitting on and toddled toward the door of their room.

They made their way over to Julia and Callie’s room and knocked on the door. A moment later, Julia, wearing a yellow sundress and smiling broadly, opened the door.

“Good morning!” She crouched down to be on Macey’s level. “How are you this morning, Miss Macey?”

“I’m hungry,” Macey said. “Do you want to get breakfast with us?”

Julia grinned at the little girl. “I would love to.”

“You’re invited too, Callie,” Cooper called into the hotel room. “Do you want to come get breakfast with us?”

“No, thanks for the invitation, but I think I’m going to order something from the hotel and watch cartoons.” Callie, who was still wearing her pajamas, waved at them. “But you guys have fun!”

Julia grabbed her purse and tugged on a pair of sandals, and then she proclaimed herself ready to go. The three of them took the elevator downstairs, where they asked the receptionist for restaurant recommendations. She suggested a place that was a short walk from the hotel, and they began to make their way there, with Cooper holding Macey in his arms.

The restaurant was charming, and they got a booth in the back which offered a beautiful view of the ocean. Cooper ordered chocolate chip pancakes for himself and Macey, and Julia ordered a yogurt parfait with sides of scrambled eggs and hash browns. Macey babbled excitedly throughout their meal, asking questions about the concert.

“Was it loud?” Macey asked, wiggling excitedly in her seat as Cooper cut up her pancakes into lots of little pieces.

“Yes, but in a fun way.” Julia grinned at her, and Cooper’s heart warmed with happiness to see the way Macey looked at Julia. She seemed to really love her.

“I’d like to make a toast,” Cooper said, raising his cup of coffee. “To today—the first of many.”

He made eye contact with Julia, smiling. He was implying that there would be many more times that he and Julia wentout together, and that there would be many more times that the three of them spent time together.

Julia flushed, and Cooper loved the way she smiled at his words.

I mean it, he thought, telling himself that he was going to say as much to her later when they had a moment alone together.I want many more mornings just like this one, with these two.

“To the first of many,” Julia echoed softly, and she and Cooper shared a warm smile across the table. His heartbeat quickened with happiness as he let himself picture what their future might look like.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

A month later, Julia and Macey were at the park with Hazel and Samantha, enjoying the warm weather and the golden sunshine.

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