“Seriously. And don’t try to butter me up with free food, either.”
“Too late.” Piper grabbed a basket of freshly fried Tater Tots from the kitchen window behind her and placed it in between Lizzy and Jane. While the Lodge was objectively awful, their culinary skills with a deep fryer were anything but.
“Well, it won’t work. I’ve got to be up by five to prep for the farmers market and I need my beauty sleep,” Lizzy replied, pretending to fix the mess of hair still piled on top of her head. “Obviously.”
“Boo,” Piper deadpanned, pushing the basket of Tater Tots toward Jane. Lizzy reached over and pulled it back again.
“Why don’t I do it?” Jane offered. “I was already going to meet you there later, so I could get up early and deal with all the prep.”
“Nope,” Lizzy retorted. “You’re not technically on the schedule until school’s out.”
“But you always—”
Lizzy interrupted her with a sigh. “I’m sorry, Jane, but Bennet Bakery has a very strict HR policy.”
Jane shook her head even as she smiled at Piper. “Please talk some sense into her.”
“Oh, I learned that was a losing battle in second grade,” Piper replied. Then she turned back to Lizzy. “Seriously, though, if youwant to stick around, I’m sure your dad can handle it. He’s pretty much recovered at this point, right?”
It was a question that had been nagging Lizzy for a while. Only a couple of weeks ago, she had been so confident in her father’s recovery that she had drafted an email to Columbia, promising that she would honor her deferment and enroll in January, if they had space available. But the next day, he woke up lethargic and spent the rest of the day at the hospital. Every step forward felt precarious, leaving everything else in limbo, including her email.
Lizzy didn’t know how to quantify that for Piper, though, especially since Columbia was still a secret—even from her oldest friend. So instead, she tossed another Tater Tot in her mouth and shrugged.
Piper frowned but before she could press Lizzy further, something on the other side of the room caught her eye.
“Oh Lord,” Piper groaned. “Is Mary handing out pamphlets protesting HamptonFest again?”
Lizzy and Jane followed their friend’s gaze to Mary’s spiky blue hair in the far corner. She was gesticulating wildly to a group of people waiting in line for the bathroom.
“Maybe she just really has to pee?” Jane volunteered.
Piper shook her head. “She better hope my dad doesn’t see her. He has a potential partner from the city coming in this weekend, and if Mary makes a scene, he’ll ban her from the bar again.”
Lizzy hid her smile behind another sip of her beer. For the past few years, the Lodge had hosted a steady stream of potential partners coming by to talk with Hank about HamptonFest. And ever since he announced plans to hold the prospective festival on Gretna Island, a small island off the North Shore that also happened to be the home of the endangered forester field slug, Mary had been trying to thwart him. It was why she had been bannedfrom the Lodge the past two summers and, like clockwork, this year looked like it would be no exception.
“Someone has to think of the slugs, Piper,” Lizzy said gravely.
Piper just rolled her eyes.
As the band entered the stage and began playing the opening chords of what sounded like a heavy metal version of “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” Lydia did a turn around the room with Kitty in tow, and then, with fresh looks of disappointment on their faces, they made their way over to Jane and Lizzy at the bar.
“I can’t believe I wore my new Prada top and there aren’t even any hot guys here,” Lydia huffed, landing on the stool beside Lizzy.
“What are men to beer and Tater Tots?” Lizzy said wistfully, raising her pint glass as if it were a liquid oblation.
Jane laughed.
Kitty looked up from her phone to eye Lydia’s shirt. “How did you even afford that?”
Lydia smiled smugly. “Remember Danny?”
“No.”
“Yes you do. That insurance guy with the Bentley from that white party?”
“Oh, right.” Kitty nodded. “So?”
Lydia waggled her eyebrows.
