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“Marcia,” Will interrupted her. “Marcia Conrad. Yeah.”
“Yeah?” Ella’s ears began to ring. Far out at sea, a boat’s sails flashed with the severity of the sun. “You know her?”
“Sure!” Will seemed energetic. “Marcia contacted me last year about the song being used in her upcoming film. I checked out her work and was really impressed. She has clearly paved the way for other women in literature and film.”
“Right…” Ella’s ears continued to scream.Was this actually happening?“The thing is…”
“In fact,” Will continued, “during our stopover in Los Angeles, Marcia came to the gig and asked to buy me a drink after.”
Ella’s stomach swirled, threatening to throw up the small cookies she’d eaten at the Nantucket Jubilee planning meeting. “Oh,” was all she managed to say.
“Yeah. She’s such a smart cookie,” Will continued, unprompted. “She said the film’s going to premiere in the next month or so. I can’t wait to see how she uses our song.”
Ella tried to find a way to explain to Will just how strange this was. Number one, Marcia Conrad had been Bernard Copperfield’s “mentee” and “potential mistress” there at The Copperfield House. (Just because her sisters and mother no longer believed that didn’t mean that Ella didn’t.) Number two, Marcia had left the island very soon before the accusations against Bernard Copperfield came to light. Number three, Marcia had purchased the painting of Alana that Alana herself had destroyed.
Number four, not only had Marcia asked for the rights to one of Ella’s songs; in fact, she’d actually gone on a date with Will. It was head spinning.
Was it possible that Alana, Julia, and Danny were correct?
Ella had been quiet too long. Will had begun to suspect something.
“Ella, what’s up?” His voice was dark.
“Um.” How could she explain?
“Ella, come on. Don’t you remember that you were the one who asked me to leave?” Will demanded. “You were the one who decided it was over.”
“That’s not totally fair,” Ella whispered.
“Ella, we’re both going to have to find ways to move on,” Will insisted. “We’re going to go on dates with people. We’re going to find new ways to love people.”
Ella felt outside of her body.Was Will, the love of her life, really saying this to her? This was a nightmare.
“I think I have to go,” Ella told him. If she didn’t, she would burst into tears.
“Ella, please.” Will’s voice had softened.
“No. It’s fine. Really.” Ella closed her eyes to allow tears to escape. “I hope you have a good time in Portland. Please, eat a Voodoo Doughnut for me. You know how I’ve craved them ever since our last trip.”
“I will.”
Ella hung up the phone, shoved it in her purse, and placed her face in the crook of her elbow as she leaned against the railing. There, she was allowed a brief moment of darkness, even as the autumn sun roared above her. There, she could feel the depths of her sorrow, knowing that Will was out there, open to dates with other women and whatever came next.
We’re going to go on dates with people. We’re going to find new ways to love people.
It was a nightmare. Illogically, Ella hadn’t imagined either of them ever falling in love again. After all, they’d been each other’s worlds since eighteen and nineteen. How could anyone else fit into that?
ChapterEleven
When Danny announced that he had gone out for the Nantucket High School Football Team, Ella nearly dropped her yogurt cup. She gaped at her lanky son, at the fingers that had never managed to piece together many guitar chords, and at the shoulders that seemed built for muscles that he’d just never bothered to grow. Perhaps that was due to city life. Now, he was in the natural world and ready to fill out and become a man.
“Yeah. I’m faster than most guys in gym class,” Danny explained as he set his calculus and biology textbooks on the kitchen table. “The gym teacher suggested I swing by football practice to talk to the football coach, who just so happens to be Aunt Alana’s boyfriend, Jeremy. He said he wants me to start going to practice starting tomorrow. It’s every day, though, which is insane.”
“What!” Ella sat at the edge of the kitchen chair and abandoned her yogurt cup. “You’re going to wear a football jersey? And the shoulder pads? And the cleats?” It was difficult to picture.
“Yeah. I’m pretty sure that’s what they all wear,” Danny said, rolling his eyes. “Anyway, that’s why I’m a little late.”
“Alana!” Ella howled like a dog.
