Page 12 of The Summer that Changed Everything

“I think so. He told me he’s planning to stay for the whole summer.”

Shit!“What about... Didn’t you say he was in charge of the family business these days? If that’s the case, how can he be gone for so long?”

“Apparently, he has plenty of people to help him. Besides, he said business is slow this time of year.”

Lucy dropped her head into her hand. That wasn’t something she’d bargained for when she decided to return to North Hampton Beach. What was she going to do now?

She didn’t want to bump into Ford. She didn’t want to speak to him. She didn’t even want to think about him. Ever. Again.

“Lucy? You still there?” Dahlia asked when she fell silent.

Trying to shake off this latest blow, she pulled her mind out of the well of her own thoughts and quickly formulated an answer. “Sorry. I was just... distracted by a text that came in.” It wasn’t true, but it was a believable excuse, which was what she needed. “I’d better let you go. I have to get back to... to this other person.”

“No problem. I won’t keep you,” she said. “I just wanted to welcome you to North Hampton Beach and make sure you’re comfortable.”

“I appreciate that.” Dahlia had obviously turned into a kind adult, like her aunt.

Before Lucy could disconnect, however, Dahlia spoke again, “I also wanted to tell you that... that the word is out.”

“Theword?” she echoed, once again confused.

There was an uncomfortable silence before Dahlia clarified. “Everyone knows you’re in town this summer.”

“How?”she asked.

“I wanted to break the news ahead of time, so it wouldn’t come as such a shock. I thought it might help, that maybe everyone would treat you better for having been prepared. But I also want to warn you, just in case... just in case theyaren’tas nice as I’m hoping.”

Damn it. Why did Dahlia have to give her presence away so soon? Lucy had been hoping for a few days to acclimate before she had to contend with the hostility of the community.“Thanks for letting me know,” she said, trying to keep her voice as even as possible.

Dahlia still didn’t say goodbye. “They’re mad at me for renting to you.”

Lucy wanted to say,Thenmaybe you shouldn’t have told them. But she swallowed those words and curbed her tone. At least Sharon’s niece had been willing to let her have the cottage. Dahlia could easily have decided not to accommodate her. “I’m sorry. I’m not trying to make anyone’s life more difficult. Would you like me to find somewhere else to stay?” By now, there had to be people who’d bought homes in the area who were willing to rent to her and wouldn’t realize who she was—or care.

“No. Iwouldlike to ask you something, though.”

Tension knotted Lucy’s back and neck muscles. “What’s that?”

“What is it you want here? Why have you come back?”

Lucy couldn’t tell the truth. That would send the whole community into an uproar—not to mention put the person who really killed Aurora on high alert. “I was happy here, for a while,” she said. “I’ve missed it, wanted to see it again and have as much right to be here as anyone else.”

“You’re not out for any sort of revenge...”

“Against a family who has already lost a daughter? That would almost make me worse than my father.”

“Good to hear. Okay, then I hope the summer goes well for you. Call me if you have any trouble with anything at the house.”

“I will.”

“And if the gardener ever comes back to get those tools, let me know who it was and why he or she went to so much work,” she said with a laugh.

“You’ll be the first person I call.” The yard was certainly a mystery. Lucy didn’t quite understand why Dahlia couldn’t at least guess at who’d done it. But neither did she care. She had much bigger questions to answer.

“Did you hear that Lucy McBride is back?” Anna Stover shifted nervously, holding her phone to her ear while glancing over her shoulder at the patio where her husband was grilling hamburgers. She didn’t want him to overhear, didn’t want him to ask her who she was talking to or what she was talking about. He hated her brother with a passion, said he was a bad seed, and since Reggie couldn’t seem to keep himself out of jail for any length of time, he wasn’t welcome at their house any longer.

Reggiedidhave a terrible temper. Anna had always been extremely careful of how she behaved around him, and it didn’t make life any better that he seemed to be getting more volatile as he aged.

Still, she couldn’t help trying to see the best in him. He had his good points. He was handsome and funny, the first to defend those he loved and the life of the party, at least when he was in a good mood. But his drinking and drug use had grown worse after Lynnette, his wife of five years, took their little boy, Zander, and left him several months ago.

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