All I can really trust is my own heart. I always knew my biggest adventure would be falling in love. It’s a journey I’ve taken over and over and over again.
Except I did it alone.
This isn’t love for Lincoln, but he’s still given me the adventure I wanted. I’ll always be grateful for that.
I want to take the job with Darcy. It’s new and interesting, and I really think I could do it.What did Charlie say? That shit is transferable.
When Lincoln and I break up, I know Darcy won’t rescind the offer. She strikes me as better than that. But I would still see her every day, still get to know her and be reminded of the life I borrowed for a short while.
Just as I will every time I go downstairs to see Manny.
Even if I never spoke to Lincoln again— and honestly, the chances of that are slim to none, he’d make sure of it— there would still be the memory of him, smudges left on the lens everywhere I look.
No. I know myself.
I’ll read too much into it. Every glance, every smile. Each brush of our hands. They’ll be caught and replayed until I hardly remember what is real or imagined anymore.
If I have any chance of getting over him, I’ll have to move. Say goodbye to everything that leads back to him. At least until I can patch my heart up enough to survive hearing his name.
Once this weekend is over, so are we, and I’ll need to find the courage to walk away.
CHAPTER42
RICH PEOPLE LOVE AMBIENCE
IVY
The Bradbury grounds and estate emerge with the saturation turned all the way up. Even with sunglasses on, I shield my eyes, the sun so bright it’s burned the blue out of the sky.
I’ve seen enoughReal Housewivesto know that the bigger the house, the bigger the ego. Deacon’s ego must have contributed to global warming with how big it is.
You could land a small plane in the driveway. There’s a botanical garden filled with carved statues and a fountain that probably charges for entry. And I can’t believe I’m about to walk into it wearing flared blue jeans and scuffed sneakers.
There’s a tennis court, a stable (empty, to my bitter disappointment), and an excess of goldon the outside.It’s monstrous and epically gaudy.
I’m in heaven.
Despite my excitement, I can’t imagine what it must have been like for Lincoln and his siblings being stuck here every summer. The nearest neighbor is miles away. Whole school populations couldn’t fill this place.
I feel lonely just looking at it.
“The upkeep on this place must be wild,” I say as Lincoln parks out front. If he tells me I need to start bowing and memorizing thirty types of forks, I won’t be held responsible for my actions.
For the past fifteen minutes, he’s been the kind of quiet I’m starting to hate on him. The one that says he’s stuffing himself into the shape of someone he isn’t. On second thought, coming here might have been a terrible idea.
I take a collective breath and follow him out of the car.
“You came!” Darcy calls out, stepping gracefully out of the entrance and making her way over to us.
The extent of my fashion knowledge starts and ends with the floral-patterned leggings I used to wear as a freewheeling toddler— which I kinda miss, if I’m honest— but her flowing brown skirt and off-the-shoulder top suit the aesthetic. Her hair falls perfectly straight, shining a glimmering, soft gold in the afternoon sun.
I ready myself for a weekend of being underdressed.
“I wouldn’t miss it,” I say.
“You won’t be saying that by morning,” she promises. But it doesn’t matter, because what I told Lincoln is the truth. I’m here for him, and I’m not going anywhere until this weekend is over.
As Lincoln collects our bags, two older figures step out of the house, their expressions blank enough that it’s either arrogance or cosmetic.
