“You’d get to have my bedroom?”
Summer sniffled louder.
“What, then? My stereo? My car?”
“It’s not funny, Marquez.”
“You’re as bad as Diver. He was all weepy too. Jeez, one little teeny fainting spell. Is your whole family this emotional?”
Summer wasn’t smiling. “Okay,” Marquez relented, “I promise I’ll be good, okay? Really, I promise.”
“And you’ll go to that counseling group?”
“You are going to make someone a really obnoxious mother someday. You will be the mother of all mothers.”
“Marquez.”
“I don’t see what good it’ll do. They’ll all be sitting in a circle having…you know, feelings.”
“It won’t kill you to try it, Marquez.”
“There may be hugging involved.”
Summer wasn’t budging.
“God, all right. One time. And in return you promise to shut up about this?”
“I promise.” Summer was beaming. “One more thing. I told Diver I’d be sure you had lunch.”
“Sure, fine. Whatever.”
“And one more thing.”
“Do you understand the phrase ‘pushing your luck’?”
Summer hesitated. “The doctor asked if maybe you’d been taking something.”
“Something?” Marquez echoed sarcastically.
“Um, pills. You know.” Summer looked embarrassed in that sweet midwestern way she had.
“Diver already asked me that, Summer. The answer’s no. I mean, please.”
“Okay.” Summer didn’t look entirely convinced.
Marquez took a deep breath. She couldn’t take all this nosing into her life. She felt as though she were suffocating. They didn’t understand that she had it under control. But the more they poked at her, the less control she’d have.
Still, if she fought too hard, they’d be all over her even worse than they were already. Between Diver and Summer, she’d feel as though she had a twenty-four-hour guard.
Better to humor them. Get them off her case.
“Buy the ring, then we’ll eat something,” she said wearily. “I’ll be outside. I need some air.”
“You’re okay?” Summer’s hand was on her shoulder.
Marquez shook it off. “I just need some air. That’s all. Just some air.”
“This isn’t exactly what I had in mind when I said lunch,” Summer said half an hour later as they sat down on the beach.
“Chili dogs?” Marquez plucked off a piece of bun. “It’s classic beach food. Besides, I had a craving.”
“Well, that’s a good sign, I guess.”
They stretched out on the fine white sand, letting the waves tease their bare feet. It was late afternoon, and the crowds had thinned to a few die-hard sunbathers and some surfers trying to ride the halfhearted waves. The air still shimmered with heat. The sky was a pale, washed-out blue.
“I wish we had our suits on,” Summer said.
“Speak for yourself,” Marquez replied. She was wearing a pair of long, baggy shorts and one of Diver’s big T-shirts, but even in her camouflage clothes she knew she looked like a beached whale. She cast a glance at Summer, who had on a crop top and khaki shorts. She was one of those naturally, unfairly thin girls who could eat anything without gaining an ounce. Summer was irrefutable evidence that life was not fair.
“So,” Summer said, changing the subject, “you think Seth will believe the ring?” She held out her hand, displaying the little pretend diamond. “I wish it fit better. It’s kind of big.”
“Tell Seth you lost weight.” Marquez shook her head. “I don’t get why you don’t just admit to him that you lost it.”
“I will. If I don’t find it, I will. But it’s only been a few days, and it could still turn up in the apartment somewhere.” Summer took a bite of her chili dog, then wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. “And you know Seth. He’s so sensitive. He’ll think it means something, my losing the ring. Besides, he and I will have enough to discuss.”
“Austin, you mean.”
Summer lay back on the sand with a sigh. “Austin.”
Marquez watched a seagull bobbing on the waves. Once again she tried to remember the phone call the previous night. Seth had called, she was pretty sure of that. She’d been exercising. She’d been a little out of it, winded, fuzzy. He’d asked her…at least she thought he’d asked her…if Summer was with Austin.
What had she told him? Had she told him the truth?
Why couldn’t she remember? Was it the pills? Maybe it was because she’d hit her head so hard.
Why would she have told him the truth? It wasn’t Marquez’s style to butt in where she didn’t belong. She would have said something vague, some half-truth, wouldn’t she?
“Yeah, Seth. She’s with Austin.” She could almost hear herself saying it.
Marquez glanced at Summer. Her eyes were closed.
Quickly Marquez tore off a hunk of her chili dog and buried it in the sand. Some seagull was going to dine well that night.
“Summer, why do you think Seth is coming back?” Marquez asked. “His internship’s for another month, right? And it must cost a fortune to get a ticket on short notice.”
“He said Diana was fronting him some money.” Summer rolled onto her side. “I’ll tell you the truth. He sounded funny on the phone. Sort of…cold.”
“You don’t suppose Diana told him about Austin?”
“I asked her not to. But you know, it’s not like there’s anything to tell, really. I told Austin I want him out of my life. And I can’t help it if he chooses to live in the same town I live in.”
“Still, it’s not like you mentioned it to Seth. He’ll be freaked when he finds out. After all, you fell for Austin over spring break.”
“I know. I blew it. I was just trying to keep things simple, and the more I tried, the more complicated things got. I should have told Seth the truth right from the start.”
“Hey, everything will be fine. That ring could easily pass for one costing twice as much.” Marquez laughed. “Which is to say fifteen bucks and some change.”
“Too bad I don’t have a job. Maybe I could have afforded a better fake stone. Oh, well. I’ve got another interview coming up.”
“As what?”
“As…” Summer hesitated. “As, um, a companion.”
“Dogs are companions, Summer. Being a companion is not a job for a person.”
Summer tossed some sand on Marquez’s leg. “It involves running errands for some nice young guy who’s recovering from a car accident. At least I hope he’s nice. I’m just about out of job options.”
“There’s always Jitters.”
“Not with Austin there.”
“What about that clerk job at Flipper for Freaks?”
“The Dolphin Interactive Therapy Institute,” Summer corrected. “They never called me back. Could be they noticed I can’t type, take dictation, or operate a copy machine. Or make coffee without a recipe book.”
“How about your sunny disposition? Besides, I’ll bet that with intensive training you could master the coffee.”
“It’s probably just as well. That’s sort of Diana’s thing. She’s been volunteering there a long time, and you know how she is. She has her own private world she doesn’t want anyone intruding on.”
Marquez sneaked another wad of chili dog under the sand. “Diana and volunteering. It’s hard to say those words in the same breath. It’s like Satan and bake sale. It just doesn’t quite work.”
“I think Diana has a sweeter side we just don’t get to see.”
“Visible only with the aid of an electron microscope.”
Summer laughed. “Like there’s this box of letters she’s got in our room. Did you see it? Full of old stuff, postcards from my aunt Mallory, that sort of thing. Would you ever in a million years have dreamed Diana would save letters from her mother?”
Marquez blinked.
Letters. The box of letters. She’d dropped it when she was cleaning up Diana’s room. The letters had scattered all over. When she was picking them up, she’d seen it—a letter from Diana to Seth, never sent. A love letter.
“Marquez? You okay?”
“Yeah. I’ve just got sun-stun.”
“Me too.”
She could tell Summer. Maybe it was her duty. If Diana and Seth had been together over New Year’s…
If Diana was still in love with Seth…
If Marquez had told Seth that Summer and Austin were together the night before…
If, if, if. Her head was spinning. What if she was wrong? She hated getting involved in other people’s messes. She hated the way people poked into hers.
It was perfectly possible that Seth would show up the next day and everything would be fine. Besides, if Marquez needed to confront anyone about all this, it was probably Diana.
Now there was a happy thought.
She shoved the last of her chili dog under the sand.
“I’m stuffed,” Summer said.
“Me too.”
“I’m glad you ate. I feel like I did my duty.”
“Mission accomplished,” Marquez said softly. She smoothed the sand with her hand.
She’d wait and see what happened with Summer and Seth. Sometimes the best thing to do was just bury your problems.
8
Diamonds Aren’t Forever
Through the plane window Diana watched the familiar line of islands unfurl, a string of green pearls in a blindingly bright blue ocean. It was a sight that always comforted her, but that day she was too jumpy to care.
She laced her fingers through Seth’s. He didn’t react, didn’t tighten his grip. But he didn’t pull away either. He was in neutral, noncommittal. He’d been that way since talking to Summer.
She knew the signs. She’d pulled the same act with far too many guys—being cool, unreachable. Seth was holding back, and it made her angry. But she couldn’t push. She would just have to watch this movie unfold and hope it had a happy ending. For her, anyway.
“Seth?”
He looked at her, not quite smiling.
“What are you going to say when you see Summer?”
He pulled his hand away. “I’m really not sure, Diana. I guess I’ll just give her a chance to tell me her side of the story.”
Her side. That was not a good sign. It meant he was weakening. It meant he wanted to find a way to forgive Summer.
“What could she possibly say in her defense?”
“I don’t know,” Seth snapped. “I just want—” He looked away. “I want to know that she really doesn’t love me anymore. I want to hear it.”
Again Diana took his hand. She could say it now. The way she’d tried to say it in her letters. It wouldn’t be so hard just to whisper the words, would it? “I love you, Seth.” Would that be so hard?
“I—” The rest got caught in her throat.
“What?”
“I just wanted to say I’m glad I can be here for you. And I’m glad we had the last couple of days together. It was good, wasn’t it?”
He gave a terse nod.
“Don’t let yourself get hurt any more, Seth. Just remember that you’ve been through this before with Summer. She already told you once it was over with Austin. You can’t trust her.”
This time Seth squeezed her hand. He held on so tightly that it hurt, but at least it was something.
In her mind she tried out the words again.
I love you, Seth.
She wondered if she’d ever have the nerve to say it out loud.
Seth saw her lying there by the side of the pool, asleep. She had on the two-piece bathing suit she’d bought for spring break, the one he’d helped her pick out. He’d sneaked into the dressing room and stolen a glance over the door, then a kiss.
Seth walked along the cement pathway toward the sparkling blue-tiled pool. No one else was around, although he had a sneaking suspicion that Diana and Marquez were spying on him from the third-floor balcony.
Summer’s body glistened with oil. Her hair, spilling over the side of the lounge chair, caught the late afternoon sun like spun gold.
He paused and wiped his brow. It was humid in southern Florida, much hotter than in California. Already he’d forgotten what summer heat in the Keys was like.
He tried to summon up the rage he’d felt for the past two days. The feeling of betrayal—gut-wrenching, absolute betrayal—he’d felt when Diana had shown him the photo of Summer and Austin. Worse still, the emotion he’d felt at the moment when she’d shown him Summer’s ring.
He’d shopped every jewelry store in Eau Claire before deciding on that ring. It wasn’t the fanciest or anywhere near the biggest. But it had seemed to him, when he’d found it in the little jewelry store downtown, to be perfectly Summer. Simple, sparkling, clear, honest.
He had known instantly that it was the diamond that belonged on her finger.
It had cost a hell of a lot more than he’d planned on. He’d worked double shifts at Subway, shoveled mountains of snow, even picked up a paper route from a friend.
But it had been worth it just to see the expression on her beautiful face that night at the prom.
If he closed his eyes, he could see Diana’s hand holding the ring, the symbol of his vanity and stupidity. How could he ever have believed Summer would be his forever? How could he have been fool enough to trust her after the way she’d betrayed him with Austin over spring break?
Another picture came unbidden to him: a picture of Diana, hair tangled, face flushed, lips swollen from his kisses.
But that was not what this was about.
This was about Summer and her betrayal.
This was about the ring she no longer wore.
He was only inches from her now. To his annoyance, his eyes filled with tears. He looked weak, coming back to Florida. He was signaling that he wasn’t ready to give her up, and already that was revealing way too much.
He knelt beside her. How many times had he kissed those lips? Even in his anger he wanted to kiss her again. Just one more time.
She stirred. Her eyes opened.
“Seth?” she whispered.
She sat up and put her arms around his neck. She smelled of coconut oil. Her skin was hot and damp.
She was going to kiss him, but he couldn’t let that happen. If she did, he might forget why he was there and who was right and who was wrong.
He grabbed her hands to push her away.
And then he felt it. On her finger, where it belonged.
His ring.
9
Black Widows and Avenging Angels
“Sit,” Marquez commanded.
With a deep sigh Diana dropped into a chair at a window table. Jitters was quiet, with just a few customers sipping lattes while they read the afternoon paper. The front door was wide open, allowing in the humid air along with a host of flies. The tall palms lining the cobblestone street cast long shadows, shrouding the window in shade.
Marquez took a chair across from her. Her arms were folded over her chest. Her dark eyes were narrow slits. She looked like a simmering pot in serious danger of boiling over.
No matter. Diana was about to go nuclear herself.
Just a few minutes earlier Seth had kissed Summer. Diana had seen it with her own prying eyes.
After all he knew, how could he kiss Summer?
Diana stared out the window. Two lifeguards in red beach patrol swim trunks passed by, probably heading home for the day. A few steps behind them was a young couple. The guy was toting a beach umbrella and a cooler. The girl had her hand on his bare back. She stood on tiptoe to whisper something in his ear.
Diana thought of Seth, of the way his tight, muscular back had felt beneath her hands. The way his mouth had felt, skimming kisses along her neck.
She shook off the thought and turned back to Marquez. “So what is it you want to talk about?” she demanded. “Is there
some reason we couldn’t have done this upstairs in the privacy of our own apartment? I mean, I just got home, Marquez.”
“We can’t do this in the privacy of our own apartment because when we were up there you insisted on hanging over the balcony so you could eavesdrop on Summer and Seth.”
“She was kissing him.”
“In case you’ve forgotten, they’re engaged.”
“In case you’ve forgotten,” Diana shot back, “Summer’s been getting hot and heavy with Austin ever since Seth went to California—” She stopped herself. She was nearly shouting, and Blythe was on her way over to take their order.
“Hey, guys. Back already, Diana? How was California?”
“Like Florida, only three hours earlier.”
“Seth came back to see Summer,” Marquez added.
“Cool. I’m anxious to meet the love of her life.”
Diana rolled her eyes. “I’ll have an iced coffee, Blythe. And one of those low-fat muffins.”
“Marquez?” Blythe asked.
Marquez shook her head. “I already ate.”
“It’s on me,” Diana said, softening her tone a little.
“No, thank you,” Marquez said pointedly.
“How’s your head, by the way?” Blythe asked. “You really had us scared the other night.”
“Just a couple of stitches, no biggie.”
“Sure you don’t want a muffin? If I had your figure, I’d be scarfing ’em by the ton.”
“Really, Blythe, I’m fine.”
Diana waited till Blythe was gone, then said, “I’m sorry about what happened to you, Marquez.”
“And oh, by the way, you told me so, right?”
“No, actually, I wasn’t thinking that at all.”
Marquez rolled her eyes. “One one thousand, two one thousand—”
“What exactly are you doing, Marquez?”
“Counting the moments until you give me The Lecture. You know, the one I’ve already had from Diver and Summer about taking care of myself. How water isn’t one of the five basic food groups, et cetera, et cetera, blah, blah, blah. That lecture.”
Diana smiled gently. “No. No lecture.” She saw the challenge in Marquez’s eyes: I dare you to try to fix me. I dare you to take away my pain.