Page 3 of Acadia Falls

“Ha, right.” Maran smiled out at the water. “It’s cold up here, but it’s gorgeous. I’ll take Maine over the Hamptons any day.”

“You would?” This surprised me. Maran was a total city girl.

“I’m sick of New York,” she admitted. “When you look around a place like this—so clean and pure—you realize what a shit-hole Manhattan is, you know?”

“Yeah. That’s why Derek and I talked about San Diego, or maybe Austin…” I winced. “Anyway, I was thinking about something. Why don’t we stay up here for the summer?”

Maran blinked at me. “This summer?”

I shrugged. “My parents are leaving tomorrow. I already gave my notice at work—I’ve got no reason to go back.”

I’d quit my job in anticipation of traveling around the Greek Isles all summer as Mrs. Derek Jones, but that wasn’t happening. “I don’t want to go back,” I admitted. “Maybe not ever.”

That was the truth. All our friends—our entire old life—were in New York. That’s where Derek and I had started our life together. How and why would I ever return?

Maran gazed dreamily out at the water. “Staying up here for the summer would be amazing, wouldn’t it?” But unfortunately, she sounded as if it were a fantasy, not an actual option.

“I’m serious.” I frowned at my friend. “You can study for the bar exam up here—it’s desolate, but we have good internet. We can go running, hike in the park, and do yoga on the beach. We can drink wine on the porch every night. Let’s do it!”

I immediately warmed to the idea—I hadn’t summered in Maine since I was a kid, but I’d always loved it. Of course, I might have to vote Daisy off the island, but I’d deal with that later.

Maran shook her head. “I have my apartment. I’d have to break my lease, go back and get all my stuff⁠—”

“I’ll have our lawyers break your lease and pay the fee,” I said quickly, determined to make my crazy idea work. “And we can get your stuff moved out and put into storage near your mom’s. Done!” I snapped my fingers.

“Easy, moneyball,” she chided.

“I’m totally serious! You were already planning to take the summer off to study for the bar. When else will we have time to do something like this?”

She twisted her hands together. “I have to take the bar in August. I have so much studying to do, I have to take practice exams…”

I raised my right hand. “I will totally leave you alone. I promise! You can study anywhere. Why not here on the island?”

Maran bit her lip.

I looked at her, pleading. “I just got jilted the night before my wedding. I need this.” I was not above being manipulative, not at all.

Maran sighed. “I don’t think this is going to work. I need to study, and I’d probably need to pick up a part-time job to afford living here.”

“You have your stipend from the firm,” I reminded her. Maran was wicked smart—she’d already accepted an offer from a top law firm in Manhattan. “And you won’t have to pay rent. You don’t need a job.”

She shook her head. “There are other considerations. The Patron might be clouding your judgment.”

“Like what?” I pointed at the ocean and the mountains of Acadia National Park beyond. “Like the fact that it’s gorgeous here, and it’s the opposite of Manhattan? Which is what I need right now—the opposite of my old life.”

“It’s tiny here. And after what happened last night, with your wedding being called off…” She sighed again. “Do you really want to live in a fishbowl all summer?”

“Yes,” I said immediately. “Because I don’t care if the islanders pity me. I do care if I go back to New York and Maeve and Lillian and all those other bitches are, like, I told you so, and Derek’s a man-whore. That I cannot deal with. A local fisherman with two teeth to his name giving me a look? Bring it!”

Maran laughed. Then she squinted at the water, not saying anything for a minute.

“Please think about it?” I asked. Really, it was more like pleading. “Because I’ve decided—I’m staying.”

She raised her eyebrows. “Just like that?”

I nodded. “This is a huge house. There’s plenty of room for us to spread out; I won’t bother you while you’re studying, and the store in Pine Harbor delivers wine by the case. There’s a restaurant, and it’s totally good. We’re new to the scene and don’t have to hang out with anybody. Wouldn’t that be nice?” I motioned at the water and the green mountains beyond. “Fresh air, exercise, and no more bad relationships.”

Maran held up her water in a toast. “I’ll drink to that. Maybe it’s not such a crazy idea.”