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@A_Different_Beat
Chapter 1
Anna Boatwright heaved the last of the luggage into the back of her SUV. She and her live-in twin brother Adam had been working tirelessly for the past two hours packing up to move to Los Angeles to be closer to their dad and ailing grandma.
“Is that all of them?” Anna asked her brother.
“Yeah, I believe so,” Adam replied. “Let’s go!”
Adam kissed his sister and two sleeping nieces before he got into the driver’s seat, gunned the engine, and took off for the airport. It would be about six hours to Los Angeles, including a connecting flight in Salt Lake City, but Anna and Adam were ready for it.
By the time they got to Los Angeles, it was almost lunchtime in Torrance. Neil was waiting for them at the arrival gate when they got off the plane.
“Pepaw!” Naomi cheered as she ran into Neil’s outstretched arms.
“Hey, pumpkin!” Neil greeted his granddaughter. When Claire joined her, he gave her a hug as well. “Claire, the last time I saw you, you couldn’t walk yet!”
“Yeah, she took her first steps at ten months old,” Anna said, going in for a group hug with Adam.
“Oh, wow! How are you handling your S-P-L-I-T?”
Anna gave her dad a thumbs-up sign to represent the fact that she’s glad she divorced Garrett. Sure, the girls were upset at first, and afraid they’d be judged for having a single mom, but after being read books about different family structures by their mother, they feel a lot better about it now.
“It was just finalized,” Anna explained further.
“I’m sorry again to hear you divorced. Maybe God has a man in mind who is even better than Garrett was.”
“Oh, I hope so.”
When Neil took Anna and Adam to their new house, the Brantley and Sons moving truck was parked next to the curb, with the movers waiting on the front porch. The father was good friends with Neil, so he’d hired them on to help move his children into their new home.
“Neil!” Brantley Senior addressed his friend when he saw him getting out of his car. He patted him on the back to say hello. Meanwhile, Brantley Junior watched in anticipation as Neil’s daughter joined them. He had a girlfriend already, but that didn’t stop him from flirting with every girl who crossed his path.
“Hey, sexy,” he said in a husky voice to try and impress the girl. “Are those space pants? Your ass is out of this world!”
Anna was speechless. She’d been hit on with pickup lines before, but this was a new one.
“They’re actually baseball pants – her ass is out of your league,” Neil clapped back. “Besides, you have a girlfriend already, kid.”
“So?” Junior argued.
“So… I can call her really quick and tell her you were flirting with my daughter,” Neil threatened.
Junior blushed. “Sorry.”
“Anna, why don’t you take the girls to the beach while Dad and I move our stuff in?” Adam suggested. “You look like you could use some downtime.”
“Yeah, your car is in the garage over there,” Neil added, pointing towards the open two-car garage with his thumb.
Anna gave him an appreciative smile. “I think I will. Girls, let’s go to the beach!”
“Yay!” Naomi cheered.
“Are you ready to head to the beach, my love?” Luke Hemmings asked his girlfriend, Daisy Landon. They were on their staycation baby-moon and had just checked into a beachside hotel suite. The hotel staff had left them a little note to congratulate them on their incoming bundle of joy, as well as two bottles of wine, including a virgin wine for Daisy.
“Absolutely,” Daisy said. “Are you sure the kids will be okay with Michael, though?”
Luke wrapped his arms around her waist, his hands landing gently on top of her seven-month-pregnant belly. “He’ll be fine.” The tone of his voice made the hairs on Daisy’s neck stand up. “You left him with plenty good instructions.”
“Yeah, I know… it’s just that with the pregnancy, my motherly instincts are at an all-time high right now.”
Luke chuckled, the vibration of his vocal cords giving Daisy goosebumps. “Let’s just go and have a good time, alright?” He kissed her on the neck, and they finally left the room.
“Okay, we’re here,” Anna said to the girls. “Naomi, unbuckle your seatbelt and hop on out, but wait for me while I get your sister.”
“Okay,” Naomi said.
“Bleach?” Claire chirped as Anna undid her seatbelt.
“Yeah, you’re going to touch sand and water for the first time! It’ll be fun.”
After she picked Claire up, the grabbed her dog Lucky’s leash and commanded him to “unload”.
Lucky was a former stray who had escaped an abandoned house. He only has three legs due to one of them being crushed when he was hit by a car. But still, that doesn’t stop him from being his goofy, rambunctious self.
Lucky obeyed his master’s command, and they headed for the sand. Anna scoured the beach for a good place to put the towels and beach toys until she found an empty gap between spots that was just big enough for three towels.
Next to Anna’s spot were Daisy and Luke, who were chatting it up about baby names. Anna sat down as soon as she heard the lady ask the man, “What do you think of the name Claire for a girl?”
Anna couldn’t help but laugh in spite of herself, grabbing the other woman’s attention. “Sorry I laughed, but that’s my youngest’s name,” she said. “What a coincidence if you name the baby that!”
“Oh, it’s okay,” she said. “Luke here has been vetoing every single name I mention, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t like Claire, either.”
“And I don’t… sorry, Dais,” “Luke” added.
“Daisy, huh?” Anna asked. “Cute name! I’m Anna; nice to meet you!”
The two women shook hands.
“You, too,” Daisy said. “You’re not from the south, are you? Because me too!”
“Get out of town! I AM from the south, and I never thought I’d meet another southerner in California, besides my dad!”
“Where are you from? I’m from Dayton, Tennessee, near Chattanooga.”
“Mulberry, Arkansas, near Fort Smith,” Anna replied. “Holy shit, we’re even both from small towns!”
“What brings you here? Are you on vacation?”
“No, I just moved here. What about you?”
“Well… both,” Luke said. “We live here, but we’re also on vacation! It’s a baby-moon for our as yet unnamed baby.”
Anna took a good, long look at Luke. He was handsome! His blond hair stood up on his head, and he had sparkling blue eyes and a lip ring that glimmered in the sun. This ogling made Daisy feel extremely uncomfortable, like Anna was going to steal him away.
“Um… you do realize he’s my boyfriend and my baby daddy, right?” Daisy asked suspiciously.
“Oh, no, I wasn’t trying to flirt,” Anna said. “I can respect boundaries. I was just wondering if he had any single friends.”
“Ah, my mate Michael is single,” Luke said. “Shall we set you up on a blind date?”
“Well, is he good with kids? That’s kind of my top priority.”
“He’s excellent with kids. He’s also sweet, funny, and did I mention that he’s even more handsome than I am?”
“Luke!” Daisy teased, punching his arm. “You’re plenty handsome!”
“Thank you, my love; that means a lot.”
Luke gave Daisy a kiss on the lips and turned back to Anna. “So, are you in?”
“I’m so in!” Anna agreed.
Chapter 1
Anna Boatwright heaved the last of the luggage into the back of her SUV. She and her live-in twin brother Adam had been working tirelessly for the past two hours packing up to move to Los Angeles to be closer to their dad and ailing grandma.
“Is that all of them?” Anna asked her brother.
“Yeah, I believe so,” Adam replied. “Let’s go!”
Adam kissed his sister and two sleeping nieces before he got into the driver’s seat, gunned the engine, and took off for the airport. It would be about six hours to Los Angeles, including a connecting flight in Salt Lake City, but Anna and Adam were ready for it.
By the time they got to Los Angeles, it was almost lunchtime in Torrance. Neil was waiting for them at the arrival gate when they got off the plane.
“Pepaw!” Naomi cheered as she ran into Neil’s outstretched arms.
“Hey, pumpkin!” Neil greeted his granddaughter. When Claire joined her, he gave her a hug as well. “Claire, the last time I saw you, you couldn’t walk yet!”
“Yeah, she took her first steps at ten months old,” Anna said, going in for a group hug with Adam.
“Oh, wow! How are you handling your S-P-L-I-T?”
Anna gave her dad a thumbs-up sign to represent the fact that she’s glad she divorced Garrett. Sure, the girls were upset at first, and afraid they’d be judged for having a single mom, but after being read books about different family structures by their mother, they feel a lot better about it now.
“It was just finalized,” Anna explained further.
“I’m sorry again to hear you divorced. Maybe God has a man in mind who is even better than Garrett was.”
“Oh, I hope so.”
When Neil took Anna and Adam to their new house, the Brantley and Sons moving truck was parked next to the curb, with the movers waiting on the front porch. The father was good friends with Neil, so he’d hired them on to help move his children into their new home.
“Neil!” Brantley Senior addressed his friend when he saw him getting out of his car. He patted him on the back to say hello. Meanwhile, Brantley Junior watched in anticipation as Neil’s daughter joined them. He had a girlfriend already, but that didn’t stop him from flirting with every girl who crossed his path.
“Hey, sexy,” he said in a husky voice to try and impress the girl. “Are those space pants? Your ass is out of this world!”
Anna was speechless. She’d been hit on with pickup lines before, but this was a new one.
“They’re actually baseball pants – her ass is out of your league,” Neil clapped back. “Besides, you have a girlfriend already, kid.”
“So?” Junior argued.
“So… I can call her really quick and tell her you were flirting with my daughter,” Neil threatened.
Junior blushed. “Sorry.”
“Anna, why don’t you take the girls to the beach while Dad and I move our stuff in?” Adam suggested. “You look like you could use some downtime.”
“Yeah, your car is in the garage over there,” Neil added, pointing towards the open two-car garage with his thumb.
Anna gave him an appreciative smile. “I think I will. Girls, let’s go to the beach!”
“Yay!” Naomi cheered.
“Are you ready to head to the beach, my love?” Luke Hemmings asked his girlfriend, Daisy Landon. They were on their staycation baby-moon and had just checked into a beachside hotel suite. The hotel staff had left them a little note to congratulate them on their incoming bundle of joy, as well as two bottles of wine, including a virgin wine for Daisy.
“Absolutely,” Daisy said. “Are you sure the kids will be okay with Michael, though?”
Luke wrapped his arms around her waist, his hands landing gently on top of her seven-month-pregnant belly. “He’ll be fine.” The tone of his voice made the hairs on Daisy’s neck stand up. “You left him with plenty good instructions.”
“Yeah, I know… it’s just that with the pregnancy, my motherly instincts are at an all-time high right now.”
Luke chuckled, the vibration of his vocal cords giving Daisy goosebumps. “Let’s just go and have a good time, alright?” He kissed her on the neck, and they finally left the room.
“Okay, we’re here,” Anna said to the girls. “Naomi, unbuckle your seatbelt and hop on out, but wait for me while I get your sister.”
“Okay,” Naomi said.
“Bleach?” Claire chirped as Anna undid her seatbelt.
“Yeah, you’re going to touch sand and water for the first time! It’ll be fun.”
After she picked Claire up, the grabbed her dog Lucky’s leash and commanded him to “unload”.
Lucky was a former stray who had escaped an abandoned house. He only has three legs due to one of them being crushed when he was hit by a car. But still, that doesn’t stop him from being his goofy, rambunctious self.
Lucky obeyed his master’s command, and they headed for the sand. Anna scoured the beach for a good place to put the towels and beach toys until she found an empty gap between spots that was just big enough for three towels.
Next to Anna’s spot were Daisy and Luke, who were chatting it up about baby names. Anna sat down as soon as she heard the lady ask the man, “What do you think of the name Claire for a girl?”
Anna couldn’t help but laugh in spite of herself, grabbing the other woman’s attention. “Sorry I laughed, but that’s my youngest’s name,” she said. “What a coincidence if you name the baby that!”
“Oh, it’s okay,” she said. “Luke here has been vetoing every single name I mention, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t like Claire, either.”
“And I don’t… sorry, Dais,” “Luke” added.
“Daisy, huh?” Anna asked. “Cute name! I’m Anna; nice to meet you!”
The two women shook hands.
“You, too,” Daisy said. “You’re not from the south, are you? Because me too!”
“Get out of town! I AM from the south, and I never thought I’d meet another southerner in California, besides my dad!”
“Where are you from? I’m from Dayton, Tennessee, near Chattanooga.”
“Mulberry, Arkansas, near Fort Smith,” Anna replied. “Holy shit, we’re even both from small towns!”
“What brings you here? Are you on vacation?”
“No, I just moved here. What about you?”
“Well… both,” Luke said. “We live here, but we’re also on vacation! It’s a baby-moon for our as yet unnamed baby.”
Anna took a good, long look at Luke. He was handsome! His blond hair stood up on his head, and he had sparkling blue eyes and a lip ring that glimmered in the sun. This ogling made Daisy feel extremely uncomfortable, like Anna was going to steal him away.
“Um… you do realize he’s my boyfriend and my baby daddy, right?” Daisy asked suspiciously.
“Oh, no, I wasn’t trying to flirt,” Anna said. “I can respect boundaries. I was just wondering if he had any single friends.”
“Ah, my mate Michael is single,” Luke said. “Shall we set you up on a blind date?”
“Well, is he good with kids? That’s kind of my top priority.”
“He’s excellent with kids. He’s also sweet, funny, and did I mention that he’s even more handsome than I am?”
“Luke!” Daisy teased, punching his arm. “You’re plenty handsome!”
“Thank you, my love; that means a lot.”
Luke gave Daisy a kiss on the lips and turned back to Anna. “So, are you in?”
“I’m so in!” Anna agreed.
