Page 22 of The Art Of Starting Over

Devorah wanted to throw up. Chad was a liar, and he’d ruined every happy memory she had. The affair was right there in front of her face, but she’d been too blind and trusting to see everything. Sheforced the nausea down and focused on the fact that she and Maren were together.

The sensation of Maren’s fingers running through her hair, mixed with the soft sounds of the hairdryer, almost lulled her to sleep. Her eyes snapped open when everything stopped.

“Can I put a little makeup on?”

“Sure. Do you want me to do it for you?”

Maren nodded. They switched places, and Devorah put some blush on Maren’s cheeks, added a light dusting of eye shadow on her lids, and coated her lips in a soft baby-pink gloss. She told her daughter to blot and aimed the tissue at her lips.

“You’re really so beautiful, you’ll probably never need makeup.”

“Like you?”

“Yeah.” Devorah smiled softly. “I never really wore much until college.”

“Mr. Raze says he knows you.”

“I’m not surprised. Oyster Bay is a small place. Everyone knows everyone. You’ll figure it out soon enough, especially since you’re Crow’s granddaughter.”

“Do I have to try out for the Pearl of the Bay pageant?”

“Pearl of the Ocean.” Devy rested her hip against the sink and shook her head as she appraised her daughter. She looked a lot like Devy had at that age but was much wiser. “You have a lot of years before you have to even think about the pageant. It all starts when you’re in the ninth grade. Unless it’s changed.”

“Will we still be here?”

Devy’s shoulders lifted. “I don’t know, Maren. Probably not. We’re just here ...” Dev trailed off and then added, “Come on, we should go.” She went back to the bedroom, slipped into some shoes, and looked around her room for her purse. When she didn’t see it on her dresser or the pile of crap on the chair, she lifted the blankets off her unmade bed.

“Where in the hell is it?”

“What are looking for?”

“My purse. Did you take it?” She dropped to the ground to look under the bed.

“I saw it downstairs,” Maren said as she headed toward the door. “I believe on the table.”

Devorah couldn’t recall leaving it down there, but she also couldn’t remember bringing it upstairs or taking it out of her car.

Downstairs, she followed Maren to the dining room, where Devorah found her purse. “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.”

She smirked at her daughter. “Come on, let’s go see Uncle Colt.”

The walk from Crow’s house to the Lazy Lamb took a whole five minutes. Devy held the door and motioned for her daughter to go in first. As soon as Maren stepped in, Colt let out a very loud welcome.

“My niece is finally in my bar!”

“Pub,” Devy said. “You told me it was a pub.”

“Same thing to me.” Colt came around the bar and pulled Maren into a bear hug, lifting her off the ground and swinging her around. After he put her down, he went to his sister. Devy braced herself for the same level of attention, but Colt simply brought her into his fold and hugged her tightly. “If you had called, I would’ve come and got you,” he whispered in her ear.

Devorah knew this, which was why she hadn’t called her brother. If she had, Colt not only would have come to get her and Maren, but he also would’ve made sure that Chad knew how badly he’d messed up.

“Uncle Colt, can I go behind the bar?” Maren asked, getting his attention.

Colt turned and shook his head. “No, ma’am. Come on, let’s sit down and order food. I’m starving.” He draped his arm over Devy’s shoulders and guided her to a table. “This one works.”

As they sat down, Devorah looked around, remembering the Lazy Lamb from when she was a teen. Not much had changed, except Colt owned the place now. The seating area was still a mix of tables or booths, and thankfully the vinyl on the booth wasn’t cracked or peeling. The wallswere still adorned with an array of Oyster Bay memorabilia, from photographs of all the high school teams to various bowling, dart-throwing, and fishing competitions. Of course, somewhere on the walls were Devy’s photos from being Pearl of the Ocean four years running. She couldn’t wait for Maren to find those.

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