Page 16 of Summer After Summer

Her hands flutter. She’s wearing several chunky rings, and they click against one another at the movement. “Okay, yes, I did have my reservations. You kids were so young. I … I stand by what I said then, but …”

“Now that he’s rich and he bought this house, and my marriage is probably over, you think I should give him another chance?”

“I wouldn’t put it that bluntly.”

I pull my head back behind the screen and step out of the dress. It’s lovely and I’m going to keep it, but tonight has enough memories in it. I don’t need to be wearing one. “Why do you assume that there’s another chance left to give?”

“You don’t think so?”

I stare at the wall. There’s a large crack running up it, like a crooked mouth. “We didn’t leave things … I doubt he’ll even want to talk to me.”

“Why buy this house, then?”

I put my own clothes back on and step out, the dress folded over my arm. “I don’t know.”

“We don’t have to talk about it.”

“Good. Though, on a related topic, Charlotte mentioned something yesterday about us all getting a share of the sale. Do you know what she’s talking about?”

“Fred paid twenty-five for this place and the property around it. That’s more than enough to pay off what your father owes and set him up with an annuity that will pay for a house and his living expenses until he passes on. The rest will be divided equally between the three of you.”

My mouth is dry. “Twenty-five million?”

“That’s right.”

“I never thought it was worth that much.”

“The market’s been crazy these last few years. And old places like this, right on the beach with so much land—they almost never change hands. Your father agreed to settle five on each of you.”

I feel like the wind has been kicked out of me. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, of course. After Charlotte mentioned it as a possibility, I saw to the details myself. You know how your father is, and frankly, I didn’t trust Charlotte not to make some sweetheart deal for herself and leave you and Sophie out of it.”

“But … why?”

“Half of this place belonged to your mother by rights, once they got married, and your father most certainly does not need that much money. I made it clear it was what your mother would’ve wanted, and he agreed.”

I sit on the edge of the day bed, feeling weak. “I don’t know what to say.”

“You can thank your father. He’s the one who agreed to it.”

“Only because you told him to.”

“No,” Tracy says. “Your mother did.”

CHAPTER SIX

July 2003

When I go back to the beach the next day, Fred pushes Dave aside and insists on being the one to take my lounger and umbrella to another perfect spot. I avoid the smirk Dave aims my way and give a big smile to Fred instead.

“How’s this do you?” Fred says twenty feet from the water.

“Perfect.”

He sets the equipment up for me, and I hand him my towel to spread over it to give our fingers a chance to touch again. I thought about his hands a lot last night. How his skin felt against mine. How I wanted something more than those brief touches that was hard to describe.

“All set,” he says, patting the lounger.

---