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Katie’s eyes had begun to tear, and Ariel’s heart ached. “Don't worry, we'll figure it out."
Katie nodded, but Ariel could tell she was still worried. "And what about Connor? What's he going to do now? I mean, what if his dadalsotold him not to date me? Will he just listen tothat?He hasn’t returned any, and I meanany,of my texts today. I should have known something was up."
"I don't know," Ariel admitted, worried she was sounding like a broken record with all the non-answers she was spouting. Sometimes, it was hard not having the magic solution to everything. She wanted to be able to fix it anytime something remotely bothered Katie, but it just wasn’t in her power. "But I told him that he's always welcome here, and that we'll support him no matter what. I don’t think he’d listen if Richard—Mayor Stanton—told him not to date you. I mean, that would be a very awkward situation, and we’ll have to cross that bridge later, which Ireally hopewe never have to. I think he just needs some time to figure things out."
Katie sighed and leaned back against the pillows. "This is all so messed up. I cannot believe his dad would do something like this."
"I know, it's not fair," Ariel said, rubbing Katie's knee soothingly. "But we'll get through it together, okay?”
Katie managed a weak smile. "I hope you're right, Mom."
"I am," Ariel said confidently. "I always am, didn’t you know that? I have all the answers, and I am always correct. I know how to handle any situation." She made a silly face at Katie, who laughed. “And Miles hasn’t texted me today, either.”
“And that Emily lady?”
Ariel sighed. “She is still a guest here. I’m not sure what’s going on there, but”—she hesitated, wondering if she should admit to Katie about tailing Emily to town—“Aunt Charlie and I followed her to the marina today.”
“Mom!” Katie admonished. Then, after a pause, she asked, “What did she do?”
“Absolutely nothing. Didn’t even talk to Miles. He wasn’t there, and she just left. So we saw and learned nada.”
Katie shook her head. “Will you ask her to leave?”
“No, she’s perfectly polite—just being secretive about her connection to Miles. For all we know, she has no idea that Miles and I are an item. The whole thing is just weird.”
“This whole summer is starting off weird,” Katie agreed, swiping at her eyes. “Can we stay in here for another few minutes?”
Ariel gave Katie a soft, reassuring smile. “You stay in here until dinner service. Take my TV, stream whatever you want. I’ll bring you up a snack, and then I have to get back to the bathroom and clean up that disaster.”
“You just showered!” Katie said. “You’re going to clean all that mess?”
“I’m guessing Darcy took care of the worst of it. I’m going to put on those up-to-the-elbows pink gloves and just finish up.”
And with that, she hugged her daughter tightly. Katie returned the hug, sniffling. Ariel made sure the remote was on the nightstand and left the room, giving Katie some space to process everything that had just been said.
As she moved down the hall, Ariel checked her own messages—still nothing from Miles. If it wasn’t so painful and confusing to be stuck in limbo, Ariel might have laughed at the fact that both she and her teen daughter were having the same trouble—incommunicado boyfriends.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Ariel had been dreading the moment Emily would come back to Leeside. Ideally, Emily would have come back around dinner service at the Seaside, when Ariel was busy and there wouldn’t be any chance for one-on-one encounters. But that luck hadn’t held.
Though Ariel had hoped it wouldn’t happen so soon, there Emily was, as if on cue, appearing in the middle of Ariel’s bathroom clean up like some kind of bad omen.
“Hi there!” Emily said with a cheerful smile, looking around the half-demolished room. “I thought I’d come up and see what you’re working on.”
Ariel gave her a forced smile. “Oh, just some bathroom renovations. Nothing too exciting.”
Not as exciting as your trip to the marina today,she wanted to say.Why were you looking for Miles? What are you doing at Leeside?
“Bathroom renovations? I love it when people take on DIY projects. It’s so rewarding.”
Ariel raised an eyebrow and bent to shovel a wet dustpan full of wallpaper scraps into a trash bag. She was grateful that Darcy had done her a solid and taken care of her rodent mummy from the tub. Bless him. “Really? I usually find it fun, but today, I find it more frustrating than anything.”
“Well, I’m sure you’re doing a great job,” Emily said, still grinning. “But I have to say, I’m more interested in you than your renovations.”
Ariel suppressed a sigh.Here it comes,she thought. She hadn’t quite expected that Emily would be so forthright. Ariel steeled herself for a confrontation.
“You seem so much more cosmopolitan than Endless Harbor. Tell me,” Emily said, leaning in from the doorway. “What’s your story? How did you end up running this B and B?”
