Charlie smiled through a grimace. “Well, at least she’s outside.”
“That’s only because they haven’t made up all the beds yet,” Annabelle said. “Speaking of which, we’re taking the two suites downstairs. You two are upstairs, in the bedrooms on either end of the hall.”
Charlie clapped his hands together again, as if the motion recharged his enthusiasm. “Sounds great!”
“What do you think of the house, Will?” Annabelle asked, a smile now on her face as she waved her hand in the air. “Aren’t you glad you came out?”
Will tried not to frown again. The reason he’d finally accepted Charlie’s invitation to stay on the weekends wasn’t the house, or even to relax. It was nice to catch up with the Pierces, of course, but it also meant Will could ensure Charlie remained on task with work. The fact that he could use the time to also check in on the renovations of his own house in Montauk was an added bonus. There were roofers and plumbers to coordinate, electricians and carpenters to hire… even the thought of it gave him a headache. He should have ordered a second cup of coffee from that bakery.
“It’s… big,” he finally replied.
“And beautiful!” Charlie quickly added. “Really gorgeous. And yes, really… huge.” He paused, looking around. “I mean, I love it, but do we need something this big?”
“Of course we do! Even if Will is only here on weekends, the rest of us are here all summer. We need enough distance from Vivienne so when she gets arrested for stalking her ex-husband online, we can all claim plausible deniability.”
From the lounge chair, Vivienne raised her hand again, this time to give her sister the finger.
Annabelle ignored her. “Besides, we need the space for entertaining. You’ll want to invite friends out at some point, right? I’m already thinking of throwing a party on the Fourth. Supposedly there’s a fantastic fireworks display right out there over the water.”
“Perfect. I love it.” Charlie smiled broadly, strolling over to the windows. “And that view of the beach! Did you see it, Will?”
“Yes,” he responded flatly.
“It’s private, too,” Annabelle added, smiling smugly.
Will paused, frowning down at her. “The beaches out here are public.”
Annabelle’s red nails batted away the words. “Technically, yes, but not many people wander down this far. Supposedly a few surfers in the morning, but the real estate agent said they’re usually gone by the time we get up, thank God.”
Will wanted to challenge her again, ask what was wrong with a few surfers, people who were likely locals and enjoying a beach that was theirs, anyway. But then Charlie interrupted.
“Oh! We found a bar for tonight!” he exclaimed. “A local recommended it. Supposed to be very authentic.”
Annabelle’s lips pinched, like she was mentally cataloging all the possible definitions of the word, while across the verandah, Vivienne finally perked up.
“Do they have alcohol?” she called out.
Charlie blinked. “It’s a bar, Viv.”
She seemed to consider, then turned back to face the water. “I’m in.”
“Fine,” Annabelle replied. “But if my shoes stick to the floor, we’re leaving.”
Charlie’s smile broadened as he turned to Will. “What about you?”
Will wanted to say no, that this bar was probably god-awful and the woman with the dark eyes and fiery red hair knew as much. But it had been a challenge. And as he thought about it, he found himself wanting to meet it. He was practically a local himself—and although he had nothing to prove, there was nothing he hated more than someone thinking he was something he wasn’t. “Let’s leave by nine.”
CHAPTER 5
At precisely seven p.m. Lizzy pulled her old pickup truck into her parents’ driveway on Surrey Lane. The sun was still peeking over the evergreens surrounding their yard, casting a soft orange glow off the wood-shingle siding of the Bennet home: a modest two-story saltbox house that hadn’t changed all that much over the last twenty years. When the Bennet sisters were young, it had barely been big enough for their family of seven. Now, with all five girls grown up and still living at home, its meager 1,700 square feet felt like it could explode at any moment.
As if on cue, Lizzy’s phone pinged in the front pocket of her overalls. She took it out to find the text chain with her sisters on the glowing screen.
THE BUTTER FACES
LYDIA
I found a pic of Charlie Pierce! Sooooo hot
