He must’ve seen some of the pictures Sloane had shared on Instagram. Charlotte had been worried about that. But she didn’t have the right to ask Sloane not to post. She was using their stay—the architecture, style and furnishings of the Amalfi Coast—to promote her design business.
Charlotte certainly hadn’t posted anything that showed shewas with Jules. She’d been trying to lie low so the furor surrounding the implosion of her marriage would die down. If that happened, she thought maybe Cliff would decide he was better off without her. She didn’t want him trying to win her back just for the sake of beating out the competition.
Jules is just a friend.
That was no longer true. She didn’t know what Jules was exactly. It was too early to define it. But he was certainly her lover, and that was definitely more than “just a friend.”
Still, she sent the text. She needed to put out this fire before it could grow into a conflagration. Her relationship with Jules didn’t really matter. She couldn’t go back to Cliff, regardless.
If that was true, you’d call me back.
Lilly is the reason I haven’t called you back.
What does Lilly have to do with our marriage?
Everything!
You’re saying you’re not fucking this guy?
Dropping back onto the bed, she groaned as she stared up at the ceiling. The fan ticked lazily overhead, its rhythm somehow amplifying the tension coiled in her chest. She was such a terrible liar. If she said no, would he even believe her?
We’re getting a divorce. You no longer have any say over what I do, so I’m not even going to answer that question.
You’re sleeping with him, aren’t you!
Stop! Just stop or I’ll have to block you.
He tried to call, but she refused to pick up.
I don’t want to talk right now, she wrote.
I’m finally making good progress on my book and feeling better. I can’t risk letting you level me again. You have what you wanted. I’m gone. Now leave me alone, okay? At least while I’m in Italy. I’ll let you know when I’m back in the States. We can talk then.
They still had to go through the paperwork, but their divorce should be relatively easy, she told herself. She wasn’t going to try to break the prenup. She wasn’t even going to ask for any of the furniture or other personal property they’d accumulated when they were together. He should be thrilled to get out of the marriage without a long, drawn-out court battle like so many other celebrities faced.
She waited several minutes, but he didn’t respond.
Relieved, she got up again and set her phone firmly aside. She could hear movement downstairs, was eager to immerse herself in the life she had since coming to Italy. The transition she was going through was fraught with risk and uncertainty, but change was like that. She was building a vastly different future, one in which her parents, Sloane, Julian and Lilly played a much bigger role, and she believed it would make her happier in the end.
chapter 27
Lilly told Charlotte she didn’t want to help search through the boxes in the storage room. She felt bad saying no—it seemed ungrateful after all her sister had done for her—but she couldn’t make herself do it. She was too angry. And even though Charlotte had asked why she wasn’t interested, she couldn’t really say. She’d been getting along with her mother before Sabrina died—as well as she ever had when Sabrina was with a man. But something about her mother losing her temper and jumping on that Vespa filled her with such rage; she was afraid it would come ripping out of her like the chest-burster inAlienif she didn’t clamp it all down and look away.
Fortunately, she’d learned how to bury her feelings deep. Sometimes her jaw ached from how hard she tried to keep them inside. But it was the only way she could cope from day to day. She was afraid she’d fly apart if she didn’t—or rant and rave and scream profanity at everyone around her like her mother used to do.
And just look where that had gotten Sabrina. Besides Lilly, no one had ever really loved her. Steve tried, but even he couldn’t do it in the end. No one had wanted to be aroundher for very long. No one had even been able to muster a small amount of sympathy for her situation. They all thought she deserved what she got—including her own family.
And they could be right. She’d created so many of her own problems. Even Lilly had been able to see how easy it would’ve been to avoid most of them. If only her mother could’ve stopped going from man to man. Could’ve settled down and worked a steady job so she could pay her bills. Could’ve focused on building healthy relationships and reconnecting with her family instead of just rolling along from town to town, hunting for something she could never find.
Lilly had tried to tell her as much, but Sabrina would never listen. She made the wrong choice over and over again. Maybe that was what made Lilly so mad. Even though she’d always been there, willing to give her mother the love she craved, it wasn’t enough. Sabrina had always wanted more.
“What are you up to?”
Sloane had entered the kitchen where Lilly was staring at a recipe. She’d opened the cookbook thirty minutes earlier, while Sloane was handling some work-related things for her design business back home, but she hadn’t been able to focus.
She forced a smile as she said, “Just looking for things we could make.”
The scent of bacon lingered and dust motes danced in the sunlight coming through the windows as Sloane responded. “You really like to cook, don’t you?”
