“What’s Daphne doing this summer? Is she home from Paris?”
“Yeah, she just got back a few weeks ago.”
“Call her up. Get her down here. My treat.” Aunt Rue gives me a wink. “You’re far too young to live like an old bitty. I want you to have fun this summer while you’re here. Can’t sit around and wait for the house to sell, you know. That’s Taylor’s job.”
“I’ll give her a call.”
“All right, darling. I’m going to bed now.” Aunt Rue turns, limping the rest of the way to her room at the far end of the hall.
When I return to mine, I drop my towel and step into the warmest pajamas I can find before grabbing my phone and crawling under the covers.
I smell like mandarin verbena soap, but I swear I can still smell him.
I fire off a text to my twin sister, Daphne.
“ARE YOU UP?” I write.
Two minutes later she responds with a phone call.
“Of course I’m up,” she says. “It’s ten o’clock. What’s going on?”
“Got any plans this weekend?”
“You sound bored. Are you bored down there?”
“Kind of.” I sigh and slink back. “I mean, the weather is great, and Rue lets me borrow her car anytime I want to do anything, but showings are few and far between, and there aren’t a lot of people my age here. It’s not like when we were younger and we just made our own fun. It’s kind of lonely here now.”
“You want me to come stay for a while?”
“Will you?”
“I was already planning on it,” she says. “I owe Rue a visit anyway.”
“Good. How does Friday look for you?”
“This Friday?” Daphne laughs.
“And how long can you stay? I was thinking a month or two.”
She blows into the phone. “Sorry. Drying my nails. And no, I will not be staying a month or two. I can stay a week. Max. I’m starting a new job at some farmhouse café that just opened in town. They wanted me to start next week, but I can tell them I need another.”
“You went to art school and lived in Paris for a year and now you’re going to work at a farmhouse café? Are Mom and Dad pissed? I think they thought you’d be working at MoMA by now.”
“I’m painting murals for them.” Daphne clears her throat. “It’s just for the summer. They’re not open for business yet.”
“My bad.”
“Anyway, you book my tickets and send me the info, and I’ll be there. But I’m only staying a week.”
“You’re the best sister in the world.”
“Don’t tell Demi that.”
We giggle.
“I’d invite Demi down here, too, but she’s all wrapped up in Royal still,” I say.
“God, I know. They’re inseparable. I don’t think she could handle a week away from him. She’d be on the phone the whole time.”
“Or she’d just bring him along,” I say.
“It’s just like it was when they were in high school. Attached at the hip.”
“Yeah, but they’re so damn happy. I’m happy for her. Slightly jealous too.” I sigh. “Don’t tell her I said that though. I like giving her shit.”
“You have my word.” Daphne giggles. “We can make fun all we want, but they’re the lucky ones. They have it all.”
I roll to my side, my heart stopping in my chest when I see the outline of a man outside my window.
“Holy shit,” I yell-whisper.
“Jesus, Delilah, what’s wrong? Are you okay?”
I can’t breathe, so I need a minute. My hand clutches at my chest. When my eyes come into focus, I see exactly who it is.
Climbing out of bed, I stomp to the window and shoo him away before pulling the curtains closed.
By the time I sit back down, I hear a tap tap tap.
“You going to tell me what’s going on?” Daphne asks.
Exhaling into the phone, I say, “It’s just the guy next door.”
“The guy next door?”
“He wants to talk to me. He’s standing outside my window.”
“Delilah.” Daphne’s voice takes a scolding tone. “Did you hook up with someone and not tell me? And Christ, you’re in a retirement community. How old is he?!”
I laugh. “It’s not like that. He’s younger. And yeah. I have a lot to tell you when you get here.”
Tap tap tap.
He’s not going away.
And he’s probably going to wake up Rue.
“I have to take care of this,” I groan.
“Everything okay?”
“No. But it will be in two seconds after I get rid of this asshole.”