Page 79 of A Novel Summer
“It’s hard for visitors to find places to stay, too. A new hotel’s notbadfor the town.”
“Who’s going to serve food and sell clothes and coffee to all the tourists filling yet another hotel?”
She shrugged, and he understood she didn’t care. It wasn’t her problem. And he realized her decision to turn Land’s End into Hendrik’s, to stay in town, had nothing to do with investing in their future together. It had purely been a business decision—and possibly not even her own.
“I’m going to pass on dinner,” he said.
She appraised him coolly. “I understand.”
No, she didn’t. And clearly, she never did.
Backyard Movie Night was a fundraiser for the Provincetown Film Society. Two dozen people gathered on the lawn of the historic Mary Heaton Vorse house to watch the early-’90s filmThe Prince of Tides. Hunter bought tickets at the beginning of the summer and planned to go with Colleen and Doug. Instead, she brought Duke and Max.
The air was herbal and salty, a scent that brought Hunter back to her earliest memories of the Cape. All around her, people chatted and unpacked picnic baskets and a contented hum filled the air. Hunter could barely sit still. All she could think about was Shelby, and the look on her face when she’d confessed about Anders.
“I wish I’d been here back in the day,” Duke said. “This house used to be the center ofit all. Any night of the week, you might find yourself rubbing elbows with Eugene O’Neill or Sinclair Lewis...”
Hunter wasn’t following him; she was lost in her own thoughts. When she wasn’t ruminating over Shelby, she was thinking about a call she received from Ezra that morning: Paragon had a job opening for an assistant. He gave her the contact information for the HR person she needed to email. “But jump on it,” he’d said. “The gig isn’t even posted yet.”
“It’s very cool of you to think of me,” she’d said. “But I told you I’m only looking for jobs in Boston.”
“This isParagon,” he said. She knew he was right. Still, twenty-four hours later, she hadn’t emailed her résumé. Hunter felt like a poser wearing her vintage Blondie T-shirt. She had no right to wear images of rock rebels when she herself played life so safe.
“You really should read the novel after you see the movie tonight,” Duke said.“There’s no one like Pat Conroy.”
Hunter, as a rule, did prefer to read the book before seeing the movie. But the author they were talking about had never been on her radar.
A deeply tanned guy around her age wearing a shark-patterned golf shirt handed out snack trays of artisanal crackers, apple wedges, Stilton, and mini-wine bottles. The sun started to set, but it wasn’t dark enough yet to begin the film. She was impatient for the distraction from the Paragon dilemma.
Why was she so intimidated by New York City? She knew plenty of people from school who’d ended up there and were successful. Just look at Shelby. The thing was, all her life in Boston, whatever room she was in, people assumed she was only there because she was a Dillworth. If she moved to New York and failed, she’d be proving them right.
“You guys?” she said, interrupting their debate over whether Pat Conroy’s best novel wasThe Great SantiniorThe Lords of Discipline. She told them about the Paragon job opening, and they were quick to weigh in.
“It would be madness not to apply,” Duke said. Max agreed, and said he’d be happy to be a reference for her. They made it sound so simple. Maybe it was.
Mia Lombardo wandered over from where she’d been sitting with her parents. Hunter hadn’t seen her since the flood shuttered Land’s End.
“How’s Colleen?” she said. “I messaged her, but I haven’t heard back. And I really miss the store. But I haven’t told her that. Obviously.”
Hunter’s phone rang. She’d meant to silence it, but was glad she hadn’t when Shelby’s name appeared on the screen. They hadn’t been in touch at all since the conversation at the Four Seasons. Hunter shuddered to think about it.
“Hey,” Hunter said, pressing the phone closer to her ear.
“Do you have a minute?” Shelby said. She sounded casual. Almost as if Hunter hadn’t slept with her boyfriend. Or maybe that was just wishful thinking.
“Sure! Yes. Of course. It’s just a little loud here—”
“Did Colleen tell you she’s upset with me? About the book?”
“Yeah. But for the record, I don’t agree with her. And I know how that sounds coming from me of all people—”
“I’m not trying to convince you I’m right or that Colleen’s wrong. I just want to fix this.”
Hunter liked the sound of that. A lot. “I amsoglad to hear that. Is there something I can do to—”
“Can I stay at your place tonight? I just got off the ferry.”
“You’re here now?” Hunter thought it would be a long time before she saw Shelby again. “Sure. Of course. I’ll meet you at the house to let you in. Give me ten minutes.”
