Girls of Summer by Nancy Thayer

Author:Nancy Thayer [Thayer, Nancy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2020-05-26T00:00:00+00:00

sixteen

As they strolled down the brick sidewalks of Main Street, Theo said he thought the town hadn’t changed much.

“Are you kidding? A lot has changed,” Juliet said.

“Huh?”

“Congdon’s Pharmacy is gone. Arno’s is gone. Tonkin’s.”

They turned down Federal. Theo said, “The Catholic church is still here. Hey, and the post office and library.”

Across from the brick town buildings stood a white clapboard structure that had once been a home, then a series of offices. The Mooney Building. Now it had a patio out back and steps led down to a bright café.

“The Corner Table Café,” Juliet told him. “It has it all. Healthy food and Wi-Fi.”

Theo laughed. “Checking out the crowd included?”

She ignored him. He followed her to the refrigerated cabinet stretching along one wall. Juliet was right, the food looked fresh and delicious. Theo chose a container of mac and cheese and one of lasagna.

“Please,” Juliet said. “Could you eat a salad? Maybe some roasted broccoli?”

Theo stacked the container of roasted broccoli on top of the others. Juliet had salmon on arugula. At the register, she took out her credit card. Theo reached out for some cookies.

Juliet said, “You don’t want those.”

“Give me a break,” Theo snapped.

She looked exasperated. “Those are gluten free. The ones you want are at the left.”

“Oh, right. Thanks,” Theo muttered.

They settled in at a corner table. The café wasn’t crowded but it was busy. Theo’s food had been heated up in handsome black bowls. They had real utensils, not bendy plastic ones, and free carbonated water. Theo dug in.

“Juliet!”

Theo, still chewing, stared up at the voice. Beth was walking their way. Unlike Juliet, who looked like any Silicon Valley techie with her cropped hair and black clothes, Beth was classy, silky blond hair waving over her shoulders, white shirt, tan skirt, sandals. He swallowed his food without tasting it.

“Beth.” He actually stood up, the way he’d been taught to do when a woman approached a table. He hadn’t done that in a long time.

“Hi, Theo.” Leaning over, she kissed him on the cheek. “You’re back on the island again. And you’re here, too, Juliet!”

“I am.” Juliet forced a smile. “Maybe for a while. We just got here.”

“Want to join us?” Theo asked.

“Sure,” Beth said. She set her laptop on the bench. “I’ll get some lunch and be right back.”

Juliet murmured, “Theo. You’re drooling.”

“Am not.” Still, just in case, he ran his hand over his chin. “She didn’t look like that in high school.”

Juliet rolled her eyes. “Men are so easy.”

Theo concentrated on eating before Beth returned. He didn’t want her to see him masticating away on the damned broccoli like a horse.

Theo had taken the bench side and Juliet was in a chair across from him. Beth pulled out a chair next to Juliet and sat down, arranging her bowl of salad and couscous, her knife and fork, and her glass of water on the table, and her napkin in her lap.

“Theo, it’s wonderful to see you!” Beth said. “Are you back for good?”

“No, I kind of came home to recover.

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