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“Why didn’t you tell me then?” Aria asked.
“At that point, I figured your life was out of my hands,” Bethany breathed. “But I regret it. Not too many years after that, you grew to hate Kenny so much that you abandoned Savannah and you abandoned your family. And now, you’re here and on your own.”
This was the first time Bethany had referred to Aria’s apartment.
“But Judah is worried about you,” Bethany continued very quietly. “He said you’d come to Savannah and that you’d maybe figured some stuff out. He wants you to go back to school, honey. He believes in your talent so much. He says…” Bethany paused, searching for the right words. “He says you’re a combination of his talents and mine, with your unique spin. After he said that, I couldn’t stop crying. It felt wonderful to be remembered for a talent I’d once thought I had.”
It had gotten late. Outside, fireworks began to explode in the night sky over Martha’s Vineyard, and, through the open windows, you could hear the raucous Vineyard revelers, all celebrating summer and all the magic it had brought.
“Can you stay tonight?” Aria asked her mother.
Bethany’s eyes brightened, but her expression was both pained and shocked. She clearly hadn’t expected Aria to be open to her story and accepting of her past.
“I can stay,” Bethany said softly.
And at that moment, Aria wanted to burrow her face against her mother’s shoulder and tell her how much she loved her and wished Bethany had shown this side of herself throughout her childhood.
It was a revelation to learn that Aria and her mother were more alike than she’d thought. But more than that, Aria now knew that Kenny Baldwin was not her father. Judah Heskew was. She wasn’t sure what to do with that information. Not yet.
ChapterTwenty
As Bethany slept in Aria’s bed that night, Aria stood quietly at the counter, her mind whirring. The fireworks had quit, and a strange quiet had settled over the island. What her mother had just told her had completely torn her apart. But with a funny jump, she reached for her phone, remembering yet another thing that had happened in the past few hours: She’d told Cole that she was in love with him.
Cole had texted back just one thing.
COLE: I love you, too.
Aria’s heart shattered. Exhilarated and overwhelmed, she raced for the door and stepped into the heat of the July night, her eyes to the stars. It seemed impossible that she could be this happy, and it seemed impossible that such goodness could exist.
The next morning, Aria and Bethany showered, dressed, and grabbed a coffee from a downtown Edgartown coffee shop. Afterward, Aria drove them out to Carmella’s seaside cottage. When Aria had described the old place to Bethany, she’d been intrigued and asked to see it. “Maybe I can help you decide how to refurbish it. If you don’t mind my input.” Aria was thrilled.
At the cottage, Aria watched as her mother paced through the living room, the bedroom, the kitchen, and the exterior porch. Her eyes spun thoughtfully. Occasionally, she reached out to knock her fist against a piece of wood or a cabinet, then muttered to herself. It was difficult for Aria to remember that Bethany hadn’t dealt with architecture at all for decades. With every movement she made, she seemed more like a natural.
“We need to hire some contractors,” Bethany said out on the porch, her voice resolute. “Does your friend Carmella have someone she trusts?”
“I can ask,” Aria said, watching as her mother typed notes to herself on her phone about the future of the seaside cottage. Just peering over her shoulder, Aria realized her mother’s ideas were more specific than hers. “I can’t believe you haven’t done this in years.”
Bethany nodded her head exactly once, then slid her phone into her purse. “I’m starving,” she announced. “Are you?”
Aria took her mother to the sailing bar where she normally worked, where they ordered BLTs and French fries and chatted easily.
“I worked at a place sort of like this in Savannah,” Bethany said. “It was hard to make ends meet and do my coursework, but I managed it. Judah used to come in all the time and bother me.” She laughed, then took a bite of BLT. This was the first time in years that Aria had seen her mother eat carbs.
As they finished their lunch, Cole walked through the door, tanned and smiling. Aria had written him briefly to say that her mother had made a spontaneous visit that ultimately changed her life forever. Cole was intrigued.
Bethany’s eyes widened as Cole approached. He was the young man who’d been on the sailboat with them last autumn— the young man Kenny had detested and forbade Aria from speaking to. She stood, shook Cole’s hand, and said, “Aria tells me you’ve been a big help to her this year.”
“It was nothing,” Cole said.
“It was everything,” Bethany assured him, gesturing for Cole to sit at their table. As they dropped into their chairs, she leaned across the table and said, “I don’t know how to tell you this, Cole. But I’ve made a number of mistakes in my life— and Aria seems to have been able to see all the way through them.”
“I don’t know about that,” Aria said.
Bethany winced as Cole shifted his gaze from Aria back to Bethany. Aria’s cheeks burned with embarrassment. This was the first time she and Cole had seen one another since the “I love you” incident. Under the table, he placed his hand on her thigh, and she took it. She thought she might faint.
“Aria and I are together,” Cole said simply. “She’s the best thing that’s happened to me in years. I hope I’ve offered her at least a little bit of support during this confusing time.”
Bethany’s face brightened. After a long pause, she said, “Aria, I knew you weren’t happy with Ben.”
