He gives me a heavy pat on the back but remains silent. A text comes in from Jade.Let’s talk. Tonight?
Under other circumstances, I’d be thrilled, but I’m too tired to feel the relief.
Theo approaches us, his too-big jacket askew and his hands tucked into the mismatched trousers.
“Can we talk?” he asks, and Thomas nods in our direction before hobbling off to sit on a lawn chair a few yards away. I hear the grunt of him landing in the seat.
I turn to Theo. “I’m sorry,” I say automatically. “For everything.”
He’s looking at the deck. I notice he’s wearing sneakers with his suit, and the sudden surge of affection I feel for him makes my chest ache. “I’m sorry, too,” he says. “I should’ve told you I was leaving, but I didn’t want to ruin all of the fun we were having.”
“I understand,” I say, and then smile sadly. “But I do wish I had known. I would have wasted less time.”
He turns to me with a surprised, eager expression. It makes him look like a little boy. “So, you’re not mad?”
I shake my head. “No. Are you mad at me for getting drunk and making a fool of myself at the brewery?”
He laughs and then sighs. “No, I’m not mad. I’m sorry for getting so weird after our date, too. It just felt like so much pressure, like we were getting too deep, when I knew I was leaving. Maybe I shouldn’t have ever asked you out, and we could’ve just stayed friends. It was selfish.”
I grab his hand and squeeze it. He adjusts to face me, and the sneakers make a squeaking sound against the damp deck.
“No, I’m glad you did. You’ve been the best part of my summer. And you’re going to be a fabulous teacher. I’m really happy for you.”
He smiles the smile I’ve come to love: the chipped incisor, his blue eyes bright and filled with optimism. “Thanks, Lil.”
“So, friends?” I ask, dropping his hand and then offering it to him again for a handshake.
“Friends.” He smiles. “For now.”
I try to ignore the butterflies. “For now,” I agree.
Our hands stay pressed together for a beat longer than necessary until I hear someone approach to our left. Walking out of the glass doors of the country club is William.
“Hello,” he says, approaching. “I, um… Well, I wanted to apologize for getting physical out there. It wasn’t very gentlemanly.”
To my surprise, Theo stands up first, anger making his features look scrunched. “Back off,” he says. “The jig is up.”
In the chaos of the night, I almost forgot about the mysterious text Theo sent me, but now, I realize that must be why he’s acting like he’s in some sort of bad detective show. The jig is up? What on earth is he talking about?
William appears confused, too. “I’m not sure what you’re going on about, but I assure you, I mean no harm.”
Theo scoffs. “Does the name Bunny Andrews ring a bell?”
I look between the two of them, trying to make sense of the nonsensical. Bunny Andrews? The name does sound mildly familiar, and I realize, after some brainstorming, why. She’s a new member at the club: one of Theo’s more recent regulars.
William backs away a step. “No,” he says, but he sounds less confident. “What are you going on about?”
“Bunny moved to the island. Bet you didn’t know that, and she told me a little story about you in Palm Beach. How you tricked her into a relationship and then siphoned off her assets.”
I feel my jaw drop and have to physically remind myself to close it. Rose appears behind William, looking utterly exhausted and wary.
“What’s this now? Please, I can’t handle another fight,” Rose says, but William doesn’t turn around. I watch as his face becomes increasingly more red, almost purplish.
“This is slander,” he says, but his voice wavers. “Rose, ignore them. They’re talking crazy.”
“What?” says Rose. “Theo, what’s going on?”
Theo’s angry expression smooths when he looks at Rose and is replaced with pity. I can sense him hesitate, knowing he doesn’t want to hurt her.
