“Want some company?”
Will gave him a quizzical look. “You want to come out to Montauk?”
George shrugged. “I haven’t been out there in ages. And I’d love to see what you’ve done with the place.”
Will stared at him, waiting.
“And Emma is scheduled to work every weekend in August and I have nothing else to do.”
“I knew it,” Will said, shaking his head.
“Hey, do you want help with Birdie or not?”
Will frowned. Birdie flirted with George every time Will brought him to a family event. Luckily, George didn’t seem to mind. And, considering everything else on Will’s plate, a distracted Birdie was probably a good thing.
“Fine,” he said, already turning to continue down the sidewalk, leaving George behind. “I’ll have Jenna send you the details.”
CHAPTER 16
For Jane and Lizzy, having a friend whose dad owned a bar had its advantages. They had never been carded, entire tabs mysteriously disappeared at the end of a Saturday night, and on weekday afternoons, when the bakery was closed and the forecast threatened rain, the Lodge was the perfect place to catch up without too many interruptions.
On this particular day, before the doors officially opened and a James Taylor/Taylor Swift cover band took the stage, Piper Donato was able to relax with them at the end of the bar, though muscle memory dictated that she still serve her friends drinks and Tater Tots.
“All right, so let me get this straight,” she said to Lizzy. “Tristan said he was heading out here on the Fourth and was going to text you about getting together, but then he didn’t.”
Lizzy nodded as she took a sip of her beer. It had been a week since Charlie’s party, which meant it had been over two weeks since she and Tristan had shared that moment outside Donato’s. Not that she was counting.
“And you haven’t heard anything from him since.”
“Nope.”
Piper hummed as she seemed to consider. “Have you tried texting him again?”
“You mean after he left me on read over a week ago?” Lizzy asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
“Maybe he’s been working. It sounds like he’s really busy,” Jane said, then turned to Piper. “Your dad was saying all the HamptonFest planning was really kicking off, right?”
Piper picked up the cue. “Totally! He’s barely sat down over the past few weeks.” Then she nodded decisively to Lizzy. “I think you should text him again. Give him another shot.”
Lizzy was ready to argue, but… why not? Jane was probably right; Tristan was busy. He might have completely forgotten about her texts. He deserved the benefit of the doubt, at least.
She pulled out her phone and typed out a quick hello, pressing send before Piper or Jane could critique.
Then she placed her phone on the bar and they all stared at it, waiting.
After a long minute of silence, Jane offered an encouraging smile. “If he’s really busy at work, he probably doesn’t even have time to look at his phone.”
Lizzy almost laughed. “That sounds like the adult equivalent of the dog ate my homework.”
Jane’s expression fell just as Lizzy realized her mistake.
Her sister had barely heard from Charlie since the Fourth of July party. There had been a few phone calls, a handful of texts, but Jane never disclosed what was discussed other than the fact that Charlie was in the city working on a big project. All Lizzy knew for sure was that Marv’s Lament was now dark, and the local gossipmill was convinced none of the Pierces were coming back. Lizzy, on the other hand, was not.
“Charlie’s totally different, though,” Lizzy continued, waving her hand indiscriminately in the air. “He spent every second he was in East Hampton with you. And he wanted to take you away on a romantic weekend. He even programmed Mom’s number into his phone.”
Piper nodded solemnly. “That’s love.”
“Exactly. He may have gotten his ego bruised, but he’ll come back.”
