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Summer called Lucy as soon as she left the house.
“Do you know what time it is in Monte Carlo?”
“It was about six forty-five when Cody imploded our relationship.” Summer hit the highway going north to the San Jose airport.
Lucy paused for a second. “I’m sorry, what?”
Summer’s tears made it impossible to talk.
“Okay. You need to take a breath and tell me what happened.”
Summer could barely see or catch her breath. She turned off the main highway onto a side road that ran along huge produce fields. She stopped the car next to a sign that had the name of an artichoke producer. Sure enough, the dark green, sharp-leafed plants in the nearby field had fat artichokes topping them.
“You need to talk to me, Summer.” Lucy’s concern had turned to a desperate plea.
“My mother showed up.”
“Oh, well, that’s all you needed to say. What chaos and pain has she wrought this time?”
“The usual. She demanded I go home to Texas with her. She fought with my dad about what happened.”
“You mean what she did.”
“Yes. But then she stopped all the excuses, let her defenses down, and she apologized.”
“Like, a real one?” Lucy sounded as surprised as Summer had been.
“Yeah. I really felt it.”
“Well, that’s something. But it doesn’t tell me why Cody broke up with you. Not after you two seemed so solid after what happened with Natalie.”
“Well, that all got more complicated when Miranda asked me to leave.”
“What? Why? That wasn’t your fault.”
Summer filled Lucy in about her conversation with Miranda, the fight between her mom and dad, how Miranda had actually stood up for her during it, how things got out of control and everyone was yelling. And how Cody thought they all needed some space and time to work things out.
“What the fuck?” Lucy huffed. “Nothing can be solved if you’re not there.”
“Exactly.” Summer raked her fingers through her hair. “But Miranda, Natalie, and Cody were all ready to blame me for the strife when all I did was try to be included in their lives. I didn’t mean for any of this to happen.”
“Of course you didn’t. Do you really think Cody wants to end things? I really thought, based on everything you told me about him and your relationship, that he really loved you.”
He’d never said it. Then again, neither had she. But she’d felt it.
He’d made it so clear to her in the way he opened up to her, the things he said, the plans they’d made.
While she had been talking to Lucy, Cody had called her... and then the text messages started coming in.
CODY:Come home. Please. Please. Please.
CODY:I’m sorry.
CODY:I messed up.
CODY:I need to see you. There’s something I need to tell you.
CODY:Please come home.
