“For the record, Mia didn’t belong with Whit. He would have hurt her worse than sleeping with Beth did,” John said. “Now, he was like a son to me, but the boy was spoiled. He was keen on Mia helping him out of the fix he was in but quick to turn away from Crazy Cooper when all was said and done.”
“I picked up on that.”
“You and she were quite the item at the time,” John said.
“Yes, we had a good couple of months.”
“That flitch destroy that?”
“Partly, and partly me,” Burt said. “I’m a little bit like Whitney. I need to be number one, and in our line of work, Mia’s the best there is,” he admitted. “Plus, there’s Murphy…”
“Ah, the rogue horse.”
“He’s never going to let go of Mia, and from what I see, Mia doesn’t want him to. You have to be a very confident man to take all that on.”
“So, back to Beth,” John said. “I think the young woman likes competition, but she doesn’t like losing. She picks out her mate. I bet she knew from the get-go that Ted, with the right prodding, would become a millionaire. She would be in on ground zero when he hit it big. She would guide him away from ghost hunting and into the wonderful world of making money. But then she starts seeing that his eyes and heart are heading in another direction. I think she thought that Mia Cooper, resident crazy of Big Bear Lake, shouldn’t be too hard to sideline. Except, Ted sees Mia Cooper as Wonder Woman, and that’s pretty much that. So Beth became obsessed with destroying their marriage. She planned to be right there to pick up the pieces, sealing Ted in a mercenary marriage.”
“A very dangerous person,” Burt said sagely, “in the guise of a sweet, helpful young woman.”
“If you want my advice, if she’s walking down your side of the street, cross it. I’d take her out of the rolodex of your life. She may try again to get at the Martins through their trusted friends.”
Burt nodded, taking John’s advice to heart.
Mia rowed the boat in, near the public beach on the other side of the lake. Ted hopped out and pulled the boat up onto the shore. Mia handed him Brian and the beach bag before jumping out of the boat. The two hugged a moment.
“Should we kiss the ground?” Mia asked.
“I knew we would make it,” Ted lied. “It was Brian who was hanging on for dear life.”
“Pblsst!” Brian spouted.
Mia nuzzled her son’s tummy. Brian broke out in giggles. Ted put his arm around his wife, and the three walked over to the beach.
The summer visitors saw the young couple and smiled. Here was a handsome family. The residents, however, saw something completely different. They prayed that the Martins wouldn’t put down their blanket next to theirs. Mia’s hard-won respect didn’t permeate the population that had no use, yet, for her abilities. They still saw her as Crazy Cooper and her husband as a foreigner. Mia had to go out of state to find a man who would marry her.
Sensing the mood of a few of the beachgoers, Mia directed Ted to put their blanket over nearer to the vacationers. Here, she could enjoy the afternoon without feeling like she was under the microscope.
Ted helped Mia get Brian ready for the water. He also spread a liberal layer of sunscreen on Mia’s back. He liked the feel of her strong back under his hands. He must have lingered a bit too long because Mia stopped moving.
“Is everything alright?” she asked. “You haven’t found, you know…”
“What?” he asked, continuing to rub in the lotion.
“Feathers,” she whispered.
“Oh no. I was just admiring your new rowing muscles. Maybe we should have dropped our blanket over there.” He nodded to the youths that were busy showing their bodies off to the local girls.
“Big Bear Lake’s equivalent of Muscle Beach?” Mia asked, surprised. “Ah, no way. I like being here with all the families, thank you.”
“Me too. Come on, I’m hot,” Ted said, getting up.
“Not before I put lotion on your back, Kansas boy. Let’s see if we can get rid of that farmer’s tan.”
Ted sat back down so Mia could reach his back and neck.
“Excuse me,” a woman asked them from the next beach blanket over. “Aren’t you the Ice Queen?”
“I beg your pardon?” Mia asked, surprised.
“My son has a picture of what I think is you on his bedroom wall,” she explained.
“I’m flattered, but I’m no ice queen,” Mia said. “If I were, this heat would have melted me,” she said, finishing with Ted’s back.
“Sorry to bother you,” the woman said disappointedly.
“I do appreciate the compliment,” Mia said. “But that woman and I are worlds apart. I’m just Mrs. Ted Martin, and this is our son Brian.”
Brian took over talking while Mia and Ted prepared to escape to the cool lake water.
“He sure is a talker,” the woman said and smiled as the young couple excused themselves and walked towards the shallows.
“Just Mrs. Ted Martin? Just? Come on, Mia, you’re married to Batman,” Ted said, feigning hurt feelings.
“But we can’t let them know that. If the beach public knew that the Ice Queen and Batman were here, we’d be mobbed,” Mia teased.
“You’re right. We have to keep our secret identities safe.”
“Yes we do,” Mia agreed, wading into the water with Brian.
Ted watched as his beautiful wife sat down in the water. Brian gasped as the water hit his feet but soon smiled as Mia moved him around in the water. The flotation devices Ted had made for Brian kept the child floating with his head out of the water. Mia moved a little deeper so her breasts would be covered by the water, much
