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

Chapter 22

CHAPTER 22

When Labor Day arrived in East Hampton, tradition dictated that locals congregate at Donato’s for everyone’s favorite holiday of the season: Get the Hell Outta Town Day. This year was no different.

“Good riddance!” Hank Donato bellowed from behind the bar, raising his pint to the window as a steady stream of Mercedes and Land Rovers crawled by, heading west. The rest of the bar cheered, and somewhere on the far side of the room, someone started an off-key rendition of “Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye.”

None of them really minded the weekenders. If they were being honest, Lizzy knew most of them would say they might even miss them. Sure, it was nice to have their town back again, to be able to drive down Main Street in five minutes instead of twenty, and not to share the beach with a half dozen influencer photo shoots. But the end of season also meant that the locals’ main source of income was gone. So many of their jobs, their businesses, existed because of the people who summered there every year. Now it would be a matter of hunkering down and surviving until next Memorial Day. Bennet Bakery was no different.

But today marked another milestone, too, one Lizzy hadn’t dared say out loud: Charlie had never come back.

And neither had Will.

Not that she wanted him to. In fact, Lizzy had been plotting out what she would say to him if he did. How she would balance all these new emotions and still play it cool. But that chance never came. And now the summer was over. Temperatures were already dipping below sixty at night. Jane was getting ready to welcome a new class of first graders this week. The gossip mill was even whispering about how a team had already been hired to winterize Marv’s Lament.

“Hello, Earth to Lizzy,” Piper said, cutting off her train of thought.

“I’m listening,” Lizzy said, her head lolling to one side as she turned to her friend standing behind the bar.

“Okay, what did I just say?”

“That you’ve come to your senses and decided not to abandon me for grad school next week?” Lizzy said, smiling brightly.

“Not even close. And today’s Monday, so technically I’m leaving this week. My first class is on Thursday.”

“Boo.” Lizzy’s chin fell into her hand.

Piper smiled. “Boston isn’t that far. You can come up to visit me whenever you want. Sasha’s apartment has a spare room.”

“And be a third wheel on your new domestic bliss?” Lizzy replied, mock-condemnation in her voice. “I wouldn’t dare.”

“So what are you going to do?”

“Console myself with a second basket of Tater Tots,” she replied, popping the last one from her current basket into her mouth.

Piper laughed and replaced the basket with a fresh one. Then an odd silence filled the space.

“You okay?” she finally asked.

Lizzy shrugged. “It’s going to be weird not having you around.”

“You survived when I was at Fordham for four years.”

“Yeah, but you were just in the city and came back home every weekend. This feels like you’re moving on and I’m just… here.”

Piper watched her, then said slowly, “Want some advice?”

“Not really,” Lizzy said, taking another sip of beer.

“You should start writing again. You’re such a good writer, Lizzy, and last year you were talking about graduate school. I know it’s been tough since the stroke, but your dad is doing so much better. And you’ve got Jane here to look out for him, and Kitty seems to be taking a serious interest in the bakery. You should start putting yourself first.”

“It’s not that simple.”

“Why not?”

Lizzy pushed her hair out of her face, trying to organize her thoughts. Piper still didn’t know about Columbia, the draft email just waiting to be sent. “Even if my dad is better, one small hiccup could force him to stay home. If I’m not here, that closes the bakery. That’s the family’s future in limbo, my parents’ mortgage in jeopardy… even that storm in June almost ruined us.”

Piper’s eyes lit up. “Wait! I have an idea!”

Lizzy’s brows knitted together. “What?”

“Your family should invest in HamptonFest!”

Oh God . “Piper—”

“No, this is brilliant, trust me. My dad already put in a load of money, and Tristan thinks that once the permits come through, we’ll get double the return in just a couple of years of doing the festival. Imagine what that would mean for your parents if you did that with the profits from the bakery.”

Lizzy sighed. “I don’t know…”

“What’s the issue?”

“Well… what about Tristan?”

Piper’s expression contorted with confusion. “What about him?”

Tread carefully , Lizzy thought to herself. Tread very carefully .

“It’s just… are you sure you can trust him? I mean, has anyone met these connections he supposedly has to help get HamptonFest off the ground? What do any of us really know about him?”

“Is this because he blew you off?”

“No,” Lizzy said, trying to keep her tone even. “But I’m not sure anyone has really looked into this guy, and—”

Piper sighed. “Lizzy, I know he ghosted you, and that sucks. But you need to stop using other people as an excuse.”

“That’s not what I’m doing!”

“Then what are you doing?”

Lizzy leaned forward, ready to let the whole sordid story spew out. But it wasn’t hers to tell. Besides, Hank had been planning HamptonFest for years and it had never come to fruition. If there was even a chance Tristan could finally make it happen, she couldn’t ruin it. So she snapped her mouth shut and just shook her head. “Nothing, apparently.”

Piper’s expression fell. “Lizzy—”

“It’s okay,” Lizzy replied, sliding off her stool. “I’m going to head home. Call me later.”

Lizzy darted through the crowd inside the Lodge and stepped out through the Irish Goodbye Door to find the line of luxury cars still stretched bumper-to-bumper along Montauk Highway. She followed the sidewalk as it snaked its way toward downtown, barely looking up from her Converse. She had done this walk so many times, she could probably do it blindfolded. Something she thought was a novelty, but right now felt like a life sentence.

At the Old Hook Windmill she turned left, passing the line of boutiques on her way down Main Street. She didn’t want to go home right now and deal with her mother bemoaning another summer wasted on a failed business, or Lydia complaining about her follower count. Or Jane not complaining at all. So she headed to work.

“Hey.”

The deep voice startled her and she stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. Tristan was in front of her, his tall frame leaning to one side, perfectly framed by a navy polo shirt and khakis. His hair was longer than it had been the last time she saw him, and he had it slicked back.

“What a coincidence,” he purred. “I was just thinking about you.”

The words were low and suggestive, but sounded hollow somehow. Like someone had turned on the lights in a dark room that had flaws in each corner.

She met his gaze. “Then you should have texted.”

He manufactured a wince. “I know. I’ve just been so crazy with work. Hounding the right people about these permits, making sure we reach out to the right contacts…”

He let the words fade, as if anticipating Lizzy’s acquiescence. She only stared back.

“Anyway,” he finally continued, “I’ve been busy.”

“Is that why you’re here?” she asked. “Because of work?”

He nodded. “That, and there were a few events over the weekend. Have you ever been to the White Party?”

“Nope,” she replied flatly.

“Well, it’s incredible. You should definitely grab an invite next year.” Then he cleared his throat. “I’m heading back into the city today but, if you’re around, I’m having a big party in a couple of weeks.”

Yeah, I know , she wanted to say. Lydia won’t stop talking about it . But instead she feigned ignorance. “Really?”

He nodded. “You should come.”

“I wish I could,” Lizzy said, her voice flat. “But I’ll be out of town with my sister. Girls’ trip.”

“Ah, that’s too bad,” he replied, as if it wasn’t really that bad at all. “Well, we should still grab a drink sometime.”

His head cocked to the side as a small smile ticked up the corners of his mouth. She knew that look. It was so obvious, she was embarrassed she hadn’t seen it before. It was the look of a man trying to appear charming and vulnerable even though it went against his very nature. A wolf in sheep’s clothing.

She offered her own sharp smile in return. “Have a safe trip back to the city, Tristan.”

Then she started down the street again, waiting until she walked into the bakery to take her phone out and block his number.

Her shift at the bakery the next day drifted by in a haze. Muscle memory was the only thing getting her through, while her mind tried to dissect this feeling monopolizing her thoughts, a feeling altogether foreign and unwelcome.

It wasn’t until just before closing, as she leaned over the counter finishing the last chapter of her latest book, The City of Shadow and Smoke , that she was shaken from her malaise. The main character, Lady Sonia Willowdean, learns that the king wasn’t really her enemy; he had been in love with her all along. Suddenly, he slides a ring on her finger and whisks her away from her solitary life to join him in his castle hidden within a chain of caves.

Then her phone pinged from her back pocket.

She pulled it out to see a text waiting from Jane.

JANE

Hey! Don’t kill me but I don’t think I’m going to be able to make that trip out east in a couple of weeks.

They just scheduled Back to School night for that Monday so I can’t take it off.

Lizzy dropped her phone back on the counter. She probably should have felt some sort of disappointment. Anger, annoyance, something . But all that flashed through Lizzy’s mind was surrender. Jane was moving on with her life. Piper was gone, too. Even The City of Shadow and Smoke ’s Lady Sonia was moving on to bigger and better things. Everyone was growing up and out and away. Everyone except her.

Was there a name for the feeling of anticipating loneliness? It wasn’t here yet, but she could see it there on the horizon, approaching steadily every day. What had begun as a plan to stay home for a few months to help save the bakery was now becoming her entire future. Soon her sisters would move on with their lives, her mom with another multilevel marketing scheme. And Lizzy would still be here, sneaking chapters of romance novels between batches of sour cherry muffins.

Then, another ping from her phone.

JANE

But you should still go! It’s all paid for! And you need a vacation. Please?

Lizzy let the text hang there for a moment. Then she let out a long breath and typed back:

LIZZY

You suck.

And then, a moment later:

LIZZY

Send me the info.