The last day of the vacation arrived with the same golden light and salt breeze as all the days before it, but something in the air had changed. The children sensed it. They were louder at breakfast, more determined to squeeze every possible moment from the beach. Lily announced that she and Leo would build their greatest sandcastle yet. Kyle declared that his would be even greater. The competition that had been simmering all week was about to reach its climax.

By mid-morning, the beach had become a construction site.

The twins’ skin had darkened a shade despite the sun cream Arianne diligently reapplied every two hours. Lily’s arms were brown against her white floral swimsuit. Leo’s face had a golden glow that made his dark eyes seem even darker. Kyle had developed a patch of freckles across his nose that Julian said came from his mother’s side.

"Ours is better," Lily announced, stepping back to admire her and Leo’s creation. The sandcastle had towers now—actual towers, built with the plastic buckets the housekeeper had found for them. Leo had carved windows into the sides with a stick.

"It’s not better," Kyle said. "Mine and Daddy’s is taller."

"Taller doesn’t mean better. It’s going to fall over."

"It’s not going to fall over. Daddy put sticks inside."

"That’s cheating."

"It’s not cheating. It’s building good."

Leo typed on his tablet: OURS IS MORE STABLE.

"See?" Lily said. "Leo agrees."

Kyle looked at his sandcastle, which did appear to be listing to one side despite Julian’s best efforts. "It’s still taller."

Julian, who had been lying in the sand with a hat over his face, sat up with a groan. "Are we still arguing about the sandcastles? We’ve been arguing about the sandcastles for an hour."

"We’re not fighting," Lily said. "We’re talking about which one is better."

"It’s the same thing."

"No it’s not."

By late afternoon, the heat had grown heavy and the children had been persuaded to abandon the beach for the estate’s swimming pool. Franz was in the deep end with Lily. He was teaching her to float on her back. His hands were under her shoulders, holding her up. Lily’s face was all scrunched up, her arms out wide, her body stiff.

"Relax," Franz said. "I’ve got you. Let your head fall back."

"I am relaxed."

"You’re not relaxed. Your shoulders are up by your ears."

"That’s where my shoulders live."

He laughed. Lily’s shoulders were indeed somewhere near her ears. He supported her head with one hand and waited. Reluctantly, her body began to loosen. Her back arched. Her legs rose toward the surface.

"I’m floating," she whispered.

"You’re floating." 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

"Don’t let go."

"I won’t."

Nearby, Leo drifted in an inflatable ring shaped like a turtle. He wasn’t swimming. He was just sitting in the water, looking peaceful. Every few minutes he kicked his feet and moved closer to Franz and Lily, watched them, then floated away again.

In the shallow end, Julian was with Kyle, who wore arm floaties and a pair of goggles that made his eyes look enormous. Kyle was practicing kicking, his legs churning the water into foam while Julian held him under the arms.

"You’re doing great," Julian said. "Try to point your toes."

"I am pointing them!"

"Point them more."

"That’s all the pointing I have!"

Arianne watched from a chair by the pool. Her hand was on her belly. It was bigger now, rounder. She could hide it under loose clothes, but it was there. Real. Everything hurt today. Her back. Her legs. Her whole body felt different, like it was changing too fast and she couldn’t keep up.

The places where her body was rearranging itself to make room for the life growing inside her. She had spent most of the afternoon lying here, letting the sounds of the children wash over her.

Amanda lowered herself into the chair beside her. She was holding two smoothies—one for herself, one for Arianne. The condensation beaded on the glass.

"Mango and banana," Amanda said. "Estella made them."

Arianne took the smoothie. "Thank you."

"Why aren’t you swimming with them?"

"Everything aches. I just want to lie down and not move."

Amanda smiled. "Layla said the same thing. Almost those exact words. ’Everything aches, Amanda. I just want to lie down forever.’" She shook her head. "Of course, it was worse for her. She was carrying twins. Alex was a nervous wreck the entire time. He kept trying to convince her to stay in bed."

"Did she?"

"Absolutely not. She told him she was pregnant, not dying, and if he tried to wrap her in blankets one more time she was going to smother him with one." Amanda smiled at the memory. "He backed off after that. Mostly."

Arianne almost smiled. "That sounds like Layla."

"She was good for him. She never let him get away with anything." Amanda sipped her smoothie. "Franz is different with you. He’s not nervous like Alex was. He keeps trying to feed you."

"He’s been doing that since we found out."

"I told him to ease up a little. If he overfeeds you, you might have trouble when it’s time to give birth."

"So that’s why he stopped piling food on my plate. I wondered."

"I hope you don’t mind. I didn’t want to interfere, but—"

"I don’t mind. I was starting to feel like a foie gras goose."

Amanda laughed again. They sat together, watching the pool. Lily was trying to swim now, her arms going in big circles. Leo was in his turtle ring. Kyle was splashing Julian, and Julian was pretending to fall over from the splashes.

Then Amanda’s face changed. She looked more serious.

"Arianne. Can I ask you something?"

"Yes."

"Will the Summers family acknowledge your child? Or the Conways? When the baby is born."

Arianne didn’t stop to think. "My baby doesn’t need them. The baby is a Rochefort. The other families don’t matter."

Amanda smiled. It was a real smile, unguarded and glad. "Good. That’s what I wanted to hear."

She sat back in her chair. "I used to worry about Franz. For a long time. He wanted to be an actor, and no one in our family had ever done that. And he never—" She stopped, thinking about her words. "He never seemed to like anyone. No girlfriends. No one he wanted us to meet. Vincent and I wondered, for a little while, if maybe he liked boys instead."

Arianne made a small laugh. "Does Franz know you thought that?"

"No, and please don’t tell him. He’d be mortified." Amanda smiled, but it faded quickly. "We were worried because he seemed so alone. We tried to set him up on dates—friends’ kids, people we knew. He always said no. I thought maybe he just cared about his work and nothing else."

"And then he had to marry me."

"Yes. And I was worried. For both of you. You came from such different worlds. The company, the media, the constant scrutiny—it seemed like a recipe for disaster. And my greatest fear..." She paused. "My greatest fear was that Franz wouldn’t be truly happy. Because he didn’t marry for love. He married because the company needed stability. Because circumstances forced his hand."

Arianne said nothing. She knew this story. She had lived it. She let Amanda talk.

"Then he brought you to see us. After you got married. And I saw how he looked at you." Amanda’s voice got softer. "It was how Vincent used to look at me. When we were young. Before the company. Before all of it. Franz looked at you like you were the most important person in the world. Like you made the sun come up and he was just happy to be there."

She shook her head. "That’s when I got it. He didn’t have to marry you. He wanted to marry you. Because you were the one he wanted the whole time. He probably wanted you for years."

Arianne didn’t confirm or deny. She didn’t need to.

"It reminded me of something Alex said. Years ago. I was worried about Franz—worried he’d never find someone, never settle down. And Alex told me, ’Mom, don’t worry about Franz. Even if he chooses not to marry, he’ll be fine. And as for his love life—he has to deal with that on his own.’" Amanda looked at Arianne. "I didn’t understand what he meant then. I thought Alex was just being evasive. But he knew. He’d probably known for years."

"He knew," Arianne said.

"He knew."

The pool was golden from the late sun. Lily was swimming short bits by herself now, her face popping up from the water with a big smile every time she reached Franz. Leo had left his turtle ring and was sitting on the pool steps, his whale next to him, watching Lily. Kyle was tired out and floating on his back in the shallow water, Julian’s hand under his head.

Arianne watched from her chair. Franz looked up from the water, saw her, and smiled. It was the same smile he’d had since he was younger. The same one he’d given her across rooms and years.

He was in the water with the children. He was happy. He was where he should be.

Tomorrow they would go home. Tomorrow work would start again—filming and meetings and getting ready for the baby. Today, there was this.

Amanda’s words stayed with her. About Franz looking at her like she made the sun come up.

He looked at her like that. Every day. He probably always would.