I open my mouth to retort, but before I can speak, a sharp pain in my shin gives me pause. I look up to see Rose staring at me, wide-eyed, an imperceptible shake to her head.
“No,” my mom mouths to me silently. “Don’t.”
“You make some interesting points, William. I appreciate the advice, but I think I’ll be okay. It’s what I love,” says Theo. “And isn’t that enough?”
Rose interrupts him before the conversation can continue. “That’s lovely, Theo. Anyhoo,” she says. “I have that gala the last weekend of July, and as the honoree, I get a few extra tickets! Theo, you should come and join our table.”
“I’d love to. If that’s okay with you, Lily?”
I nod so vigorously my earrings shake. It’ll be nice to have a friend there.
“I’m excited to hear this big speech,” says William. “I’m sure you’ll look stunning up there.”
“People will be too blinded by the beauty of her words to evaluate her looks,” I say. Rose gives me another kick. “But yes, you will, Mom.”
William adjusts the cuff of his jacket. “I’m sure that’s true. But I wish she didn’t have to work so hard.”
“What do you mean?” I ask. “She’s opening her own practice. Soon, she’ll be busier than ever. Mom, how did it go with the offer on the office space?”
I should’ve asked about it sooner, I realize, but everything has been so hectic.
“I didn’t place it,” Rose answers. “It’s a long story.”
“What? Why?”
Before my mom can respond, William is saying: “Therapists and teachers. I’m with a bunch of bleeding hearts here.”
He lets out an exaggerated chuckle and slaps his knee, like he’s auditioning for the role of a villain in an old Western. No one else laughs.
“Don’t worry, Lily, if my Rosebud sticks around long enough with me, she won’t have to work anymore at all. I’m thinking Palm Beach all winter. Your mom’s too good to be here full-time. She’s not really a ‘local.’ Time to cash in, sell the house, and get on with it,” he continues.
Sell the house? We’ve discussed the idea as a general concept over the years, so it shouldn’t come as a terrible surprise, but never before did my mom act on it. The cottage is Lottie. Saying goodbye to it would be like laying her to rest once and for all. And what would my mom do if she quit her job? She loves her career.
“Sounds like trading a job for a way shittier job,” I mumble.
“Lily!” Rose’s voice is sharp. “I have to go use the ladies’ room. Will you join me?”
The waitress has appeared to Theo’s left, a short woman with a choppy pixie cut. I recognize her as someone who comes back every season. “Hi, I’m Maddy and I’ll be your server tonight. Can I get you started with any drinks?”
“Yes,” all four of us say in complete synchronicity.
After we have ordered, Mom and I excuse ourselves, placing folded napkins in our seats.
In the back of the restaurant, Rose drags me into a single-person bathroom with seagrass wallpaper. A noise machine hums in the corner, imitating what is surely supposed to be the soothing sounds of an artificial beach—waves, a seagull cawing—but it’s too loud, unnatural. Everything smells of lavender soap and rosemary. The seagull on tape is squawking, the waves crashing like the sound of a tambourine.
“What the hell was that?”
“What do you mean?” I ask, a little too innocently.
Rose’s neck is red, the way it always gets when she’s either angry or embarrassed. “Why are you being so rude to William?”
“Did you hear what he said out there, insulting ‘locals’? He’s being a jerk.”
“You’re being childish and dramatic.”
“You’re being classist and spineless.” We are silent for a few long seconds. “Are you going to pee or not?” I ask after enough time has passed.
“You know that was just a ruse to get you alone,” Rose says, but she’s glancing at the white porcelain toilet. “Okay, fine. When in Rome, I suppose. Can you run some water for me?”
