Page 36 of Our Secret Summer

“She said you made her feel better.” Connor looked Raffo straight in the eye—as though he knew something, which was impossible—and her stomach coiled itself in a knot.

“We talked a lot. And she made me feel better, too.”Argh.“I was painting again after two days there.”

Connor clapped his hands together. “Hallelujah.” His face split into the widest smile. “When can I see?”

“It’s not commercial work. I gave it to your mom for letting me stay at her house.” This part wasn’t so easy, because it involved omitting more truth—but Connor could never see the first painting Raffo made after she got her mojo back. “It was a picture of the lake house, so.”

“You gave my mom a painting?” Connor emitted something between a chuckle and a snort. “That should help with her money issues.”

“How have things been here?” Raffo had come straight to Connor’s house, where she would be staying. Her first order of business, now that she was back, would be to find a place of her own. “Have you seen you-know-who?”

“Only once or twice and just in passing. You know I’m firmly in your camp, Raff.”

“She’s still with my impossibly long-legged, blond replacement?”

“No one can replace you, but yes, I think so. I mean, I don’t really know. We’re not in touch.” Connor gave her a look. “Instead of talking about the evil ex, let’s talk about Chicago and Over The Rainbow.”

“Fuck yeah.” Raffo pointed at Connor. “You’re the man, Con.”

“Your one and only—man, I mean.” He walked into the kitchen. “I have a bottle on ice to celebrate.”

Raffo fetched the glasses and then clinked rims with her best friend who had made all this happen for her. She sipped from her champagne and let the happiness course through her. It was a straightforward kind of happiness that didn’t involve any ambivalence—or lying to people she loved—and that she could enjoy for a full one hundred percent. So she did and, while she was at it, pushed any lingering thoughts of Dylan all the way to the outskirts of her brain.

“By the way,” Connor said. “We’re not done celebrating. We’re having a party on Saturday. You’re the guest of honor,bitch.”

Raffo could only hope that Connor hadn’t planned on inviting his mother—but why would he?

Raffo’s champagne glass had been refilled too often, her pleasant buzz sliding dangerously toward drunk. She could easily tell because, as the evening progressed, and more people arrived at the party, she wished one of themwasDylan. But this was not the kind of party you invited your mother to, no matter how close you were.

Murray was in town, and she watched him and Connor dance together. Murray was seven years older than Connor, nothing compared to the age gap between her and Dylan. Not that it mattered. Fuck. Raffo had been back for five days now and she’d been happily caught up in the whirlwind of settling back in and picking up her life again. She’d already inspected a potential new home but when it turned out to be on the border of WeHo, Raffo had decided she didn’t want to tempt fate. What if she ran into Dylan at the local coffee shop? No thank you, please.

She refocused on Murray and Connor and on how seeing them together made her happy. Connor’s house was packed with all their friends—minus Mia, who was no longer considered a friend.

Raffo joined Connor and Murray on the makeshift dance floor and let herself be swallowed up by the love of her friends. She could enjoy this again now. Connor, who liked to throw a party for every possible occasion, had tried to wrangle Raffo into having one for her birthday a few weeks before sending her to Big Bear, but Raffo didn’t want a party then. There was nothing to celebrate because Mia had left her, and she could no longer paint, and she couldn’t even bring herself to go back to the house where they’d lived together for six years. The house they’d bought, renovated, and decorated together. The house that was such a symbol of their love, of their beautiful relationship, that Mia, nonetheless, had thrown away like a piece of stale, old bread.

Returning to her and Mia’s house would have to be the next step. But for now, Raffo was staying at Connor’s place in Silver Lake. It didn’t come with a lake attached and a gorgeous woman who cooked all her meals—and made her come like crazy every night—but it had her best friend in it and, oh, it had been so good to be reunited with Connor.

Tonight, Raffo wanted to celebrate. She was back and ready for whatever life had in store for her next—most probably a vicious hangover in the morning.

CHAPTER 26

“Oh, fuck, Tiff,” Dylan said to her best friend, because she had to tell someone. She was afraid of falling to pieces if she didn’t. “Promise me that this will stay between us. Neither Connor, nor Joe can ever find out about this.” Tiffany was Dylan’s ex-sister-in-law but still very current confidante. She was the only person in the world that Dylan had confided in about her bad investment and, in case of an emergency, her stay in Big Bear instead of Europe. Even though Tiffany was Connor’s aunt, Dylan trusted that her secret was safe with her. Tiffany had kept many secrets for her over the decades they’d known each other, and vice versa.

“I wish I’d known you were going to tell me secrets. I would have made the tea stronger.” Tiffany was a recovering alcoholic who was twenty-five years sober.

“Connor sent Raffo to Big Bear because her girlfriend broke up with her and she couldn’t paint anymore and she just needed a break from everything,” Dylan blurted out.

“And Connor didn’t know you were there,” Tiff said.

“No, so Raffo arrives.” Dylan skipped the part where Raffo walked in on her sleeping topless. “Expecting to find the house empty, except it’s not. I’m in hiding. And I have to convince her not to tell Con, who she’s incredibly close to, but… that’s not what I want to tell you.” Dylan wished she had something stronger than tea, although she also knew—from Tiffany—that booze was rarely the answer to anything. She took a deep breath, realizing there was no way she could say this without sounding ridiculous and like a horrible almost-sixty-year-old cliché. “I fell in love with her,” Dylan whispered. “I fell in love with Raffo.” Her voice became more powerful as she repeated it. “She is one of the most amazing people I’ve ever spent time with.”

“I’m sorry, but… what?” Tiffany’s brow was a nest of wrinkles. “You fell in love with Raffo Shah? Connor’s friend and protégée?”

How Raffo would balk at being called Connor’s protégée, but that wasn’t the point here.

“I know how it sounds. I know it’s absurd. But it’s also the truth.” Dylan, who had missed her son so much, could barely bring herself to call him for fear she would crack and tell him. Or, even worse, that he would mention Raffo and Dylan would burst into tears. “I’m so in love with her and we’re meant to have distance between us, and LA might be big, but we’re in the same city, and she’s living with Connor at the moment, and it’s driving me completely insane.”

“Back up a little, please. What happened? You say you’re in love with her, but… does she know? Does she have feelings for you? Did you… I don’t know. Tell me.”

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