Cure for the Common Breakup by Beth Kendrick

Author:Beth Kendrick
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Penguin Group US
Published: 2014-05-05T16:00:00+00:00

chapter 19

“It’s pain and suffering over there, I tell you.” Summer pounded the bar at the Whinery, rattling the ice in her water glass. “And no matter how hard I try, she won’t fire me!”

Jenna couldn’t suppress a smile. “Yes, it certainly does sound like hard labor.”

“It is! She makes me get up at the crack of dawn and play tennis. And golf. Golf!” Summer turned to Hollis, who was sipping iced tea and making sympathetic noises. “She forced me to play nine holes with her at the country club. And the whole time, she lectured me about my swing and my grip and my joints.”

“Here.” Hollis dug a child’s activity book out of her woven straw beach bag. “Some kid ripped half the pages out of this, so I can’t sell it. Try the word search—it’s oddly therapeutic.”

“Ooh, can I have one of the dot-to-dot pages?” Jenna peered over their shoulders. “I used to love those.”

“Help yourself.” Hollis passed the pages around. “I’ll take the maze.”

The three of them lapsed into silence for a moment and focused on their tasks. Though the awning shaded their seats, a slice of warm golden light filtered in through the window. Then Summer circled the word “MAD” and launched into a fresh rant.

“Let me tell you something about golf—it hurts! My entire upper body aches. I haven’t been that sore since Rocco—he was a personal trainer from Chicago with eight-pack abs and full-blown narcissism—talked me into going to a CrossFit class with him.” She rubbed the back of her neck.

“I hate to be the one to point this out,” said Hollis, “but Hattie Huntington is more than twice your age.”

“Yes, but she’s very spry. I thought we’d be spending all day playing canasta and taking naps.” Summer circled another word. “But no! It’s golf and tennis and swimming and sailing all the livelong day. Like . . . like prison camp with monogrammed polo shirts. And a butler to bring you lunch on the patio.”

Hollis pulled a pack of crayons from her bag and tossed it on the bar. “Sounds brutal.”

“Ugh. I’m all sassafras to her, and she pretends to be appalled, but I think she secretly likes it.” Summer grimaced. “I can’t keep going like this, you guys. For real. I’m going to have a heart attack and die.”

“On your fancy private beach with your butler.” Jenna pretended to wipe away a tear.

“Well, it doesn’t sound like prison when you say it like that.”

They were all laughing and topping off their iced teas when Dutch walked in. Although he wasn’t wearing a suit, he had the crisp shirt and tie thing going on, and Summer snapped to attention.

He took in the activity pages and the facial expressions and the iced tea before asking, very slowly, “What are you doing?”

“Connecting the dots,” Jenna said.

“Coloring a frog,” Hollis said.

“Making this word search my bitch,” Summer said.

Dutch glanced behind him. “Is this . . . am I missing something here?”

“It’s kind of soothing,” Summer told Dutch.

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