They all laughed, and Emily delighted in the relaxed atmosphere. She needed this trip more than anything. While she couldn’t run from her problems forever, she could give herself a break and have some quality time with her best friends. They’d stood by her for everything since college and they’d stand by her now. She fastened her seatbelt as Blair leaned her thin forearm out the window. Then Sienna drove away.
Emily rubbed her empty ring finger where her engagement ring had been. She’d set it on the table and told Will to take it the night he’d shown up at their house to pack his things, not knowing she’d be there. She’d tried to get him to talk to her then, but he’d brushed her off, saying he “wasn’t ready.” How could he be ready to write her a breakup note but not ready to explain why? Her finger felt too light, not natural. A piece of her was missing, but the ring wasn’t even the half of it.
She turned around to watch her apartment fading into the distance, along with the future she’d planned. She was so thankful for Sienna and Blair. They were the only constants in her upended world. Even though they all had their own battles at the moment, they could bask in the sunshine, breathe in the salty air, and let their troubles fade away for a little while.
Emily forced the thoughts out of her mind and breathed in the summer air. The warm breeze whipped through the backseat, blowing the runaway strands from her ponytail against her face. She closed her eyes and let out a long breath, allowing relaxation to set in.
Seven hours,two coffees, a lunch on the road, and a handful of bathroom breaks later, they arrived in Santa Rosa Beach. Theboardwalk was humming with people, the shops’ bright wares drawing them in.
“I’m dying for the bathroom again,” Sienna said, parking and throwing open the door. She rushed ahead, running into a café with a striped awning and white bistro tables outside.
Blair laughed. “I can’t imagine what she’ll be like when she has the weight of a baby on her bladder.” She nodded toward the beach shop next door. “Let’s shop. She’ll find us.”
The bells on the door jingled as they went into the quaint seaside store. Emily ran her hand along the rainbow of pastel sweatshirts with beachy slogans printed on the front.
Blair pulled a yellow T-shirt from a nearby rack and held it up to herself. “Is this my color?”
“You could pull it off,” Emily replied, sliding on a new pair of sunglasses and inspecting her reflection in a small mirror. She returned them to the display.
Blair hung the shirt back on the rack, and they meandered through the shelves of trinkets—coffee mugs with “Santa Rosa Beach” in swirling font, picture frames full of sand, baskets of seashells and starfish, refrigerator magnets with slogans like “Vitamin Sea” and “Good Vibes Only.”
“Oh, books.” Emily paced over to the wall of reading material. She bent down and grabbed a brightly colored rom-com, flipping it over to inspect the description on the back. Deciding against it, she returned it to its spot and selected another.
Blair flipped through one of the magazines.
“Thank goodness,” Sienna said, breezing toward them. “I didn’t think I was going to make it. That last bottle of water did me in. What’s that?” She hooked a finger over the top of Emily’s book selection and pulled it down to view the cover. “Looks good.”
Emily handed it to her and then picked up another—this one, a biography about a famous sea captain.
“Y’all doing okay?” a young blonde said from the other side of a short shelf of folded beach towels as she fished out new stock from a basket beside her.
Emily nodded brightly.
“Let me know if I can help with anything.”
“Which of these local magazines do you recommend?” Blair asked the shopkeeper.
The girl pursed her lips as she eyed the wall. She draped a towel on the edge of the basket and came around to them. “If it were me, I’d get this one.” She took a magazine off the shelf and handed it to Blair. “We just got them in today. It has a new article about Patrick Owens I plan to read.” She leaned in dramatically, her eyes wide. “He’ssohot.”
“Who’s that?” Sienna asked.
“A local. He’s real mysterious. He’s opening a new restaurant, and we’ve had New York magazines asking the locals if we know anything about it. They couldn’t get him on the phone—he doesn’t talk to a lot of people. Sometimes I see him at the fish market, but he rarely speaks to anyone.”
Sienna made a face. “Gripping. Sounds like a real blast to read about.”
The girl laughed. “I didn’t sell it very well, did I?”
Sienna shook her head.
“No one could believe he actually sat for an interview—it’s been the buzz in town.” She grabbed a copy. “Now I’ve talked my own self into it.” She rolled up the magazine and folded it under her arm. “I swear I spend half my paycheck in the very store that pays me.”
“Thanks for your help,” Sienna said.
“No problem.” She set the magazine on top of a stack of towels and went back to folding.
“I’ll pass for now,” Blair said.
“How about you?” Sienna asked Emily. “Getting anything?”
