She turned at the sound of her name and saw Luke Duncan making his way toward her with long strides. It was no wonder Rachel had such a crush on him. His eyes were the brightest blue, the stubble on his jaw gold even in the fading light of the setting sun.
“I thought that was you,” he said, grinning.
A perfect, dimpled smile.
“It’s me,” she said.
“How was the dinner party?”
“What, do you have our whole itinerary memorized?”
He laughed. “No. I saw Rachel earlier. She told me you were all heading over to the East End.”
“Yeah. It was fine.”
“Not exactly a glowing review. Rumor has it Sandra Crowe is usually quite the hostess.”
“What’s your deal?” she said.
He cocked his head. “I didn’t realize I had a deal.”
“Well, you’re wasting your time flirting with me when Rachel is clearly interested.”
“Rachel? We’re friends. She’s—I mean, she’s a kid.”
“She’s twenty-two.”
“Exactly.”
Marin sighed. “Okay, well, then maybe you should stop leading her on.”
Luke ran his hand through his hair, wrinkling his brow in a way that was so adorable it almost cracked through Marin’s annoyance. Almost. “I’ve never been anything but friendly toward her.”
“Whatever, Luke. But FYI, this”—she waved her finger between the two of them—“is never going to happen.”
He laughed.
“Is this amusing to you?” she said.
“No. It’s just—I’m not hitting on you, Marin. Obviously, you’ve got a lot going for you. But I’m not looking for anything. I left enough complications behind in Rhode Island. Sometimes it’s just nice to talk to someone who’s close to my age and isn’t a gay man.”
Marin turned red.
“I’m sorry. I feel like an ass.”
“Don’t. I’m sure ninety-nine point nine percent of the men who talk to you are hitting on you. I just want to put your mind at rest that I’m not one of them. That probably goes for any of the other guys out here.”
She laughed. “Okay, then. But—you still shouldn’t lead my sister on.”
“Point taken. Friends?” he asked, holding out his hand.
“Friends,” she said, placing her hand in his. He pulled her into a quick hug. When she stepped back, still feeling more than a little silly about her assumption, she spotted Rachel a few yards or so behind Luke—too far away to hear their conversation, but close enough to see them embrace. Rachel looked stricken, and before Marin could wave her over, she turned and disappeared into the crowd.
Oh, for heaven’s sake. Marin couldn’t take any more drama.
She said a hasty good-bye to Luke and headed back to the house to go to sleep just as the sound of fireworks erupted behind her.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Marin woke up in a panic.
Last night, just before going to bed, she looked through her calendar to decide what weekend she’d leave in August. The calendar must have played on her subconscious overnight, setting off the alarm bell she’d somehow failed to notice in all of the drama of the past two months.
She’d missed her period. Two periods.
Her exhaustion took on new meaning. What if it wasn’t just the emotional strain after all? She dressed quickly, planning to go to Adams Pharmacy, the only drugstore in town as far as she could tell. She hoped it was open early.
“Marin!” Her mother poked her head into her room. “Amelia just told me at breakfast that you’re staying? I’m literally packing to go. When were you going to tell me?”
“Not now, Mom. I have to run out for a few minutes. Just—hang tight for a half an hour. I’ll be right back.”
She hurried down the stairs.
Outside, the day was bright and cloudless, warmer at early morning than it had been on most of the other days. She was sure Amelia was already beachcombing.
She turned right, toward the pharmacy. It wasn’t until she spotted the white clapboard building that she began to feel nervous. The place looked so old-fashioned, it felt unseemly to be searching for a pregnancy test. A blue plaque outside read ADAMS PHARMACY, ESTABLISHED 1869 BY DR. JOHN M. CROCKER. PURCHASED IN 1875 BY JOHN D. ADAMS. OLDEST BUSINESS IN CONTINUOUS OPERATION IN ONE LOCATION IN PROVINCETOWN.
She wondered, if in that long history, anyone had ever been more distraught than she felt in that moment walking through the door. She was going to bet not.
Marin, panicked, felt a wave of nausea. Or maybe that was the pregnancy. Stop it, she told herself. Think positive. Or, rather—not positive. Think negative! Negative test results.
The old-timey pharmacy limited her buying options. Instead of the dozen pregnancy-test varieties she would have had to choose from at CVS or Duane Reade, Adams had only one—First Response. One line, she wasn’t pregnant; two lines, she was pregnant. Simple enough.
She was so out of sorts she nearly shoved it into her handbag and just walked out, but she remembered to pay at the last minute. That’s when she literally bumped into Kelly.
“What are you doing here so early?” Kelly said, before noticing what Marin was holding. Kelly’s mouth formed a silent O.
“I don’t know yet, okay? Just please don’t say a word!”
Kelly raised a small white prescription bag. “One big secret deserves another.”
Blythe was beyond frustrated with her daughter.
One minute Marin couldn’t wait to leave Provincetown; the next she was suddenly staying for the entire summer. And she didn’t even have the courtesy to tell Blythe herself! She’d had to hear it from Amelia, who, when she realized Blythe didn’t know, could only look at her with pity. After weeks of punishing rudeness, this was adding insult to injury.
And where had she run off to this morning like the proverbial bat out of hell? Just wait, she’d said. As if Blythe had any choice. She would wait, if only to tell Marin that she could do what she wished with the rest of the summer, Blythe was leaving. She’d already checked the ferry schedule and booked a flight from Boston.
She paced impatiently in Marin’s bedroom.
“What are you doing in here?” Marin asked when she walked in, clutching her handbag to her chest as if expecting Blythe to snatch it away.
“Waiting—like you asked me to. But I’m leaving in an hour.”
“Just—sit, okay? Sit on the bed, and just…I’ll be right out.”
Marin ducked into the bathroom and closed the door. Blythe sighed, crossed her arms, and perched on the edge of Marin’s bed.
Marin emerged a few minutes later and sat next to her mother wordlessly.
“As I was saying, Marin. I’m leaving in an hour. You’ll be officially unburdened by my presence and can enjoy your summer.” She stood to leave.
Marin looked up at her, her big dark eyes wide with emotion.
“I’m pregnant.”