Page 43 of Clear Blue Sky

“According to your sister, all she ever does is cry.” Nelson took the infant into his arms and gently rocked back and forth. “Hey there, princess. You’ve got a big set of lungs, don’t you?” He pressed his lips on her temple and inhaled Maddie’s fresh baby scent. Lifting her to his shoulder, he kept his cheek against hers and patted her back, humming softly.

Maddie continued to cry, but her wails weren’t as powerful.

“You’re a natural.” Lake pointed to the fridge. “Mind if I snag a beer?”

“Help yourself and get me one while you’re at it.” Nelson continued to sway, bouncing a little more aggressively. But what really seemed to do the trick was making noise in Maddie’s ear.

Lake twisted off the caps to two bottles and set one on the counter. He tilted his head. “Her eyelids are growing heavy. Whatever you’re doing, you will have to teach us.”

“I’m humming against the side of her face.”

“Are you kidding me?” Lake rubbed the back of his neck. “We’ve tried so many different things, including singing, dancing, everything short of letting Maddie cry it out. We both think she’s too young.”

“I know nothing about babies except they smell like a little piece of heaven.”

Lake smiled like a proud father. “Even with her colic—which is what the doctor says she has—she’s precious.” He took his daughter from Nelson and placed her in the tiny portable bassinet, ensuring she was swaddled tightly. “Our pediatrician says she’ll outgrow this in a couple of months. My mother told me that my sister and I were colicky for almost three months. But one day, we stopped.”

“I’m sure she’ll do the same thing.”

“The lack of sleep is getting to Tiki.”

Nelson took his beer and sat on one of the stools at the counter in the kitchen. He glanced over his shoulder. Brandi and Tiki were huddled in front of the fireplace in the living room. He lifted his cell off the counter.

Reese confirmed that Marcus and his crew were back at The Heritage Inn.

Stacey had given them a ticket for not having their lights on while fishing. They tried to get out of it by flexing their military background, but Stacey held her ground. They were lucky they had all the proper fishing licenses as well as having the boat equipped with the required safety gear.

Marcus accused her of police harassment and warned her that he’d be taking it up with her boss.

She handed him his ticket and Jared’s business card.

Nelson found that to be insanely funny. The more time he spent with Jared and all his state troopers, the more he liked them.

“I’m sorry to be adding to your stress,” Nelson said. “Your family has a lot going on. My drama is the last thing you need.”

“Unfortunately, we’re kind of used to this.” Lake tapped his bottle against Nelson’s.

“I wish I knew what the hell Marcus really wanted.”

“Maybe all he wants to do is mess with your head.” Lake leaned against the counter.

“He’s succeeding in that department, but based on what I read in that bullshit manuscript, he wants revenge.”

“Do you think that storyline is a precursor for what is to come? Because if it is, that’s not only fucked up, but then I’d push my mom to change the venue of the premiere.”

“Murdering me wouldn’t be smart.” Nelson rubbed the back of his neck. “Although, the female lead got away with it and she was pretty ingenious in how she did it.”

“I must admit, that idea was pretty creative and plausible, which scares me for you now that I know some of what he wrote is true. Not to mention learning that he didn’t attend that conference puts a different spin on things.”

“Putting it in writing and then doing it would be the dumbest thing ever and Marcus isn’t stupid. If his plan is for me to be six feet under, why would he write about it and send it to someone I’ve been seeing? However, whatever his plan is, it won’t be good.” Nelson waved his finger. “You’re going to need to explain to me how he ended up submitting to her if he never went to that writer’s convention in the first place.”

“Long story short, she couldn’t take the pitches, so everyone was told they could submit. He must have heard that from someone and took a calculated risk that she’d open every submission,” Lake said.

“When was the conference?”

“About four months ago.”

“It takes that long to get a manuscript read at your company?” Nelson had been told that publishing could be slow, but that seemed a bit long for a writer to wait in the world of self-publishing. Not that he knew anything about it.

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