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Melanie linked an arm through hers, the two of them sitting there staring out at the ocean, the fog beginning to lift around them. Rory leaned a head on Melanie’s shoulder, feeling thankful that she had a girlfriend she could rely on in what could sometimes be a suffocating town.

She would tell her everything else about Tyler. Soon. Just…not yet.

* * *

Rory pulled into the Scoops lot later that afternoon and parked next to Tyler’s Jeep. She rushed into The War Room, knowing she was a few minutes late, but it didn’t seem to matter. They were waiting on Jess too.

“You’re late,” Calvin announced.

“Thank you, Captain Obvious,” Rory deadpanned. “I’m not the only one.”

“We will start without her,” Ron said. “Okay, team, take a seat wherever you can. We’ll be here for a little while.”

The Scoopers shuffled around The War Room, finding places to sit. Rory’s eyes flicked to Tyler, but he didn’t notice as he flipped over the empty garbage bin and sat down.

She sighed, scanning the room, and thought about Jay. It felt strange not having him at the first Scoops meeting of the year; being away at college was enough of an excuse to miss it. She did miss him, missed his fuller-than-life presence, the way he made her laugh. But what she said earlier to Melanie still rang true. Breaking things off with him felt right, and even if she missed him as a friend, she didn’t miss anything more than that.

She hopped onto the cabinet next to Melanie as Jess flung open the back door, looking frazzled. She still had on her Post Road Market uniform, a smear of pink frosting on her shirt.

“I can be here for a half hour, but that’s it,” Jess announced, grabbing a folding chair from the back. “Let’s make this speedy.”

“You know it’s never speedy with Ron,” Blake quipped.

Calvin glared at him, a clear warning to keep his mouth shut.

“I think we’ll start with the biggest news,” Ron said. “It feels bittersweet to announce that this will be my last summer as the manager of Scoops.”

The room went dead silent, the drips from the sink the only sound Rory could make out.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere,” Ron continued. “I am still staying on as owner, but after this summer, I will be handing all managerial roles over to Calvin.”

The Scoopers sighed in relief, then followed with a few whoops and cheers. Tyler reached over and slapped Calvin on the back.

“You guys know he’s been working in this type of role here for a while, but he’ll have his degree by next summer and it was always our goal to have him take over officially,” Ron said.

“Does this mean we’re done experimenting with horrible flavors?” Jess asked unapologetically.

The Scoopers snickered at that, remembering Ron’s choice to bring in the Blue Bombshell ice cream last summer that, in Rory’s opinion, tasted like feet.

Ron frowned, but Calvin gripped his shoulder and answered for him. “Maybe not at first, but I won’t stop reaching out to and experimenting with local suppliers and vendors. It helps to drum up business from customers outside of town if they know their favorite flavor is being served somewhere else.”

“Just make sure it tastes good,” Jess mumbled. Calvin kicked her foot.

“Speaking of new flavors…” Ron started.

They all groaned, but listened as Ron explained what he was adding to the menu this year—some sort of almond butter flavor with amaretto that sounded repulsive. As the Scoopers listened to Jess pleading with Ron not to add a new flavor, Rory’s eyes strayed over to Tyler again. For a brief moment, he returned her gaze, their eyes locking across the room. He gave her a bashful smile, and his confession in the rain washed over her again.

It was killing her.

He broke their gaze, and she wondered if she imagined the entire thing. Focusing again on Jess, Ron, and Calvin, she bounced from person to person as they debated about the ROI of bringing in a horrible new flavor for the summer…whatever that meant. She didn’t manage to get his attention again, and a half hour later, Jess was flying out the door as Ron was calling the meeting to an end. By the time she made it outside after everyone, Tyler’s Jeep was already gone.

Chapter Twenty-Two

The next morning, Rory and Melanie found Blake waiting by their lockers. His arms were crossed and his shoulders were tense as he scanned the halls.

When he saw them, he rolled his eyes. “Finally, took you guys long enough.”

“Aww, missed me, Blakey boy?” Rory asked, shooing him aside so she could get to her locker.