Not an issue. I do smile then, just pleasantly enough, and wave.
“’Morning.”
Thankfully, Sylvia ignores me as expected. Stirling, though, glances up from his paper as I pass the table to get to the sink.
“Come join us Amanda. I made scrambled eggs, and there’s still plenty left in the warmer.”
“Absolutely. I just want to grab a drink of water first,” I say.
Leave it to old eagle-eye Margot to notice my lip.
“What happened to you? Did you get bitten by a stray crab on your morning swim?”
“Nah, just a cold sore that opened up while I was swimming.”
I can’t tell if she believes me when I glance at her. She’s wearing huge sunglasses, but I don’t want to study her face too long and give her the chance to look at my lip too closely.
“Well, you look refreshed anyway. That’s what paradise will do for you.”
Not this time, I think.
Instead of going to the sink out here, though, I head inside, where I can sneak a look in the mirror and clean myself up more thoroughly, away from Margot’s inspection.
“You’re right, and I’m starved. Those eggs sound amazing. I’ll make a plate for myself and grab something to drink inside.”
A quick detour to the guest bathroom off the kitchen reveals that I don’t look quite as horrible as I feel this time. A little seaweed in my hair, some salt patches on my face, plus I’m quite ruddy and tanned from the weekend already. And the slight lip injury, which, once I clean up and cover it in the lovely coconut aloe lip balm I bought at the store the other day, will fade soon. Somebody might actually call me sexy if this was a GAP commercial.
I hurry through my lip repair and leave my hair tousled, but free of seaweed. A quick wash of my face and I dart upstairs for some moisturizer and the lip balm. If I’m gone too long, Margot will come looking for me.
In the kitchen, I heap my plate with scrambled eggs, because I really am famished, and he really does make amazing eggs, and add some fresh cut fruit to my plate. I fill a glass first with ice and then cold water from the door of the fridge and head out to join Margot and Stirling.
“Ah, the fair lady has returned,” says Stirling like he’s hosting an episode of Masterpiece theater.
“And ready to chow down on this delicious breakfast.”
Over the next half hour or so, our conversation floats between Stirling’s favorite tidbits from the Metro section of the morning paper, and Margot’s excitement about how well Cammie did in school this past year. It’s blessedly absent of any mention of Damon, which means that no one saw him coming back from the beach.
“Unfortunately, I have to spend some time in the office today, if I want to go on the hike tomorrow,” announces Stirling. He stands and tucks the folded newspaper under his arm. “I hope you’re coming with us, Amanda.”
“We’ll see,” I say. “I may just want to hang by the pool with a good book.”
“She’s under no obligation to do every activity with us,” says Margot.
“Understood. I just wanted to make sure she knows she’s welcome,” he says, good-naturedly. Stirling picks up his coffee cup and smiles at me on his way into the house.
“I’m, uh, actually thinking about heading back to Los Angeles,” I say to Margot after he’s gone.
“Oh, nonono, honey, you can’t! Please don’t go. Believe it or not, I’ve really looked forward to spending this time with you. I really need some sister time.”
“I know, I’ve looked forward to it too. But now…”
“Now there’s a big old skunk of a situation. But you know what? Damon doesn’t want to see us any more than we want to see him. Frankly, I don’t understand why he doesn’t just spend the summer in New York anyway, or Paris, orsomewhere. But he isn’t, so we can all avoid him. None of us can allow this to ruin our vacation, especially you.”
“Well, I have seen him, this morning on the beach as a matter of fact,” I admit, “and it’s clear he’s never going to accept any kind of apology.”
“You talked to him?”
“Yes. I actually stood up to him and told him that this situation isn’t anyone’s fault. But I did say I was sorry for hurting him five years ago.”
