Elizabeth of East Hampton (For the Love of Austen #2)

Chapter 16

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 gossip mill 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.”

Jane sighed, pushing her dark hair away from her face. “And if he doesn’t?”

“Then we fall back on our original plan,” Lizzy said patiently. “A derelict mansion and two dozen cats.”

Her sister fought a smile as she sent Lizzy an exasperated look. “I think we’re approaching the age where Grey Gardens references stop being funny.”

“And start being aspirational?”

Piper rolled her eyes at both of them. “You two are ridiculous.”

“Don’t worry, you can come visit us,” Lizzy said, popping a Tater Tot in her mouth. “You just have to learn to like cats. And the occasional raccoon.”

Piper shook her head, stealing Lizzy’s pint glass and refilling it. “Stop. The odds of a guy ghosting either of you are close to impossible, so if it somehow happens to both of you in the same week, I’m officially renouncing any and all belief in true love.”

Lizzy smiled, resting her chin in her hand. “And how does Sasha feel about that?”

“I just promised to take her out to Montauk for a romantic weekend next month, so it could definitely get dicey.”

Lizzy laughed. Piper’s girlfriend, Sasha, was one of her favorite people in the world, and she regularly begged Piper to have her move down from Boston. She was about to ask when she would be in town, when an idea suddenly struck her.

“Oh!” Lizzy perked up and turned to her sister. “Charlie wanted to take you away for a weekend, right? Why don’t you book a place in Montauk and surprise him?”

Piper’s forehead knitted with confusion. “Who’s booking what now?”

“Jane needs a grand gesture to show Charlie how much she cares about him, so we’ve been brainstorming,” Lizzy explained.

Jane sighed. “That’s not a grand gesture, Lizzy. He was talking about Paris. Montauk is only twenty minutes away.”

“Who cares? It’s still away ,” Lizzy replied.

“You can get a good deal after Labor Day, too,” Piper said, leaning her elbows on the bar. “They’re practically giving rooms away in the off-season.”

“And you have so many vacation days saved up, Jane,” Lizzy added. “You can use a few to take a long weekend in September, right? It’s perfect!”

Jane bit her lip as she seemed to think about it, then nodded. “Okay. I’ll check it out when we get home.”

A bit of the weight in Lizzy’s chest lifted. It felt like a huge win, and she was about to celebrate it when she remembered what had brought them to the idea in the first place.

“Wait, rewind,” she said, turning to Piper. “When were you going to tell us that Sasha is coming down next month?”

Their friend bit back a smile. “Okay, remember how I’ve always wanted to get my master’s in psychology but never had the money?”

Lizzy’s eyebrows pinched together. “Yeah?”

“Well, I applied to Boston University, and I got in! Sasha and I are celebrating before classes start.”

Jane jumped off her stool, clapping. “Piper! That’s incredible!”

“I know! I wouldn’t be able to afford it except that I got a massive scholarship. And since I’ll be moving in with Sasha, my living expenses will be close to nothing. It’s finally happening!” Piper said. Then she saw Lizzy’s face and she became pensive. “Are you mad?”

“No, I just…” Lizzy paused, trying to school her expression. “I didn’t even know you applied.”

“I didn’t tell anyone except Sasha. I didn’t want to have to deal with all the questions from everybody if it didn’t work out, you know?”

Lizzy wanted to say no, that she had no idea what she was talking about, but that would be a lie. She had done the exact same thing with Columbia. Except Piper was putting her plan into action, while Lizzy’s remained stagnant. Suddenly, her frustration crumbled, and a new, unfamiliar ache replaced it.

“Well, that’s great,” Lizzy said. She hoped her thin smile was convincing. “Congratulations.”

Piper waved her off. “Don’t get too excited. I could still fail out and end up back here shilling drinks and free advice until I’m eighty.”

Lizzy sighed. “Pipes, you were our valedictorian.”

“That doesn’t matter when you’re writing a two-hundred-page dissertation and—”

Lizzy’s phone began vibrating across the bar. She reached for it, quickly flipping it over to see the screen illuminated with a text message from Tristan in the center.

“Is it Tristan?” Piper said, craning her neck to see. “What does it say?”

Lizzy picked it up before either Piper or Jane could see the message.

TRISTAN

Hey! Crazy with work. Maybe we can grab a drink next time I’m in town

“He says he’s been really busy with work,” she finally said.

“Well, that’s good, right?” Jane said. The manufactured levity in her voice was painfully obvious.

Lizzy nodded. “And he says we should grab a drink next time he’s out here.”

“I knew it!” Piper exclaimed. “And then there’s the party at his place in September. You’re going to that, right?”

Lizzy didn’t have the courage to admit she hadn’t been invited. He hadn’t even mentioned it. So instead, she just said, “Right.”

“It’s all working out,” Piper said, raising her glass of water. “To Boston. To Montauk. And to… HamptonFest!”

Jane laughed. Lizzy tried to as well. She really did. But she couldn’t help feeling that the ground was beginning to erode around her feet. The world was washing out to sea and leaving her behind.