Page 36 of The Vineyard Bride

“I can only assume so,” Lola tried.“Although who knows what happened after their stint on the Vineyard a few weeks back.Maybe our entire three-woman friendship has exploded.Maybe if today doesn’t work, it’s a sign that I really need to move on.”

The coffee shop that Jenny worked part-time at was called The Boston Bean.Lola had spent countless Sundays at the corner table, her glasses over the bridge of her nose and a half-eaten scone on a plate as she’d typed article after article.Jenny had always given her refills of coffee, extra snacks, and a listening ear when Lola got lost in the chaos of her head.All that had been years ago by then.Lola’s heart craved the intimacy of that friendship.She craved a home she no longer had.

Lola and Audrey stepped into the coffee shop to find Jenny in the throes of a Sunday rush.Lola and Audrey sat their hungover bodies at the same corner booth Lola had always called her own, waiting until the line diminished.When it finally did, Jenny came to their table with two lattes and two scones, sat them in the center of the table, and said, “It’s good to see my Lola back in her booth.”

Lola’s chest felt tight.“Jenny.It’s so good to see you.”She lifted up to hug her, dropping her chin on Jenny’s shoulder.

Jenny held the silence for a moment, clearly feeling complicated about Lola’s spontaneous meeting.When she stepped from the hug, she sniffed and said, “To what do I owe this pleasure?”

“Mom was given a certificate of excellence in journalism last night,” Audrey explained as she tore through the edge of her scone.

“Wow.That must have been amazing.”Jenny’s eyes widened.“I can’t imagine what that must have felt like, Lola.So well-deserved after so many years of hard work.”

Lola’s cheeks burned.“I know that I have both you and Valerie to thank for that.You were there for me in everything I did.And I’m starting to feel that my running off to the island was more of an abandonment than I realized at the time.I was caught up in the drama of my family coming back together again, and I forgot to honor the family I’d built here.”

Jenny dropped her eyes to the table.“Thank you for saying that.You know that Valerie and I’s families aren’t out here on the east coast.We’ve tried our best to support one another, but...”

Jenny turned to greet three new customers as they entered, moving behind the counter to prepare their coffees and platters of snacks.Lola and Audrey continued to nibble at their scones distractedly.

When Jenny returned, Lola placed a hand over hers and said, “I’m just so sorry that I haven’t been here.I’ll never forgive myself.”

Jenny’s cheeks lost their coloring.“We’ll always love you, Lola.We want to be in your life.That’s all.”

Lola sipped her latte as she drummed up the courage to ask the next thing.

“I haven’t been able to get a hold of Valerie,” she continued.

Jenny’s eyes grew shadowed.“Yeah.I don’t know if she wants to talk to you.”

“And I get that.I just wish I could talk to her and explain my side.I wish we could open up about what’s going on in each other’s lives.But just now, I tried to stop by her place, and some other guy is living there?”

“You stopped by?”Jenny’s eyes bugged out.

“She wouldn’t answer me.I thought it was the easiest way,” Lola admitted.“But then some stranger opened the door and said he’s subleasing from her and that he wouldn’t tell me where she is.”

Jenny’s hands searched around the pocket of her apron distractedly.“I don’t know if she wants me to tell you this.But you know what?I’m worried about her, too.”

“What do you mean?”

“Money’s always been tight for Val,” Jenny continued.“Like, remember when you and I were just scraping through in our twenties?That’s how Valerie has lived her entire life.I think it must be exhausting for her.Like she never feels good enough or smart enough or rich enough to survive.”

Audrey pressed her hand against her cheek.“So, she couldn’t afford the apartment anymore?”

“She crashed with friends for a while,” Jenny affirmed.“She was with my boyfriend and me for about two weeks, but it got to be too much.I hated that I had to ask her to leave, but she understood.Now...”

Her eyes dropped toward the ground.Lola’s heart surged with fear.Now?What the heck did ‘now’ mean?

“Remember that guy she met on the Vineyard?”Jenny continued.

“What?”Lola demanded.

“You know.That guy she met at the wine bar in Edgartown.Harry something,” Audrey said.

“That’s right.”Lola half-remembered the image of Valerie in conversation with the Sheridans and Montgomerys, relating this beautiful moment when a decent man had bought her a drink.“You think she’s with him?”

Jenny scrunched her nose.“The thing is, Valerie refused to leave the Vineyard after your bachelorette party.”

Lola’s jaw dropped.“Are you kidding?She’s been on the island the entire time?”

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