Page 72 of Sunset Tides
“He’s fine.”
“That’s good.” Lucy paused, then clapped her hands together. “Hey, do you want to go and egg Rob’s office?”
A smile danced onto Lillian’s lips. “What? Why?”
Lucy looked at her watch. It was late, so he might not be there. But there was a chance. “To teach him a lesson.”
Lillian stared at her for a moment. “You just want to see him again, don’t you?”
“No!” Lucy froze. She knew she’d answered too quickly.
“You don’t have to lie to me.”
“I’m not lying to you,” Lucy said.
“Or…” Lillian smiled. “To yourself.”
Rude. Lillian was being so rude today. What had gotten into her? “That’s not what’s happening.”
“Oh Lucy, come on. It’s obvious you still like him. Why don’t you just talk to him? Figure out what happened.”
“I don’t like him,” Lucy insisted. “I’m just worried about him.”
“For you, worrying and liking are the same thing.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It’s not bad. You just worry about the people you care about.”
Lucy scoffed. “So now I care about him? This has escalated.”
Lillian laughed, picking at the garlic bread on the table. “It’s like what you do with Mom. You love her so much that you convinced yourself she was going to die.”
“I mean, sheisgoing to die. We all are.”
“Yes, but you were convinced she was sick, even though she wasn’t.”
Lucy frowned. There was still no way to be sure Claire wasn’t sick. Sure, she had been fine for a few weeks, but what did that mean? Her illness could still be lurking beneath the surface. “That has nothing to do with Rob.”
Lillian put a hand on top of Lucy’s. “I know. It has to do with Mom and Dad.”
“Here we go!” Lucy said. “You’re trying to analyze me like Rob did.”
Lillian’s eyes lit up. “What did he say? Is that why you’re so angry with him?”
“No, I’m angry because he tried to steal the hotel out from under us and lied to my face.”
“Ah, right. What else did he say to you?”
Lucy let out a huff and repeated the words that had been echoing in her head for the past few days: she couldn’t put down roots, and all she did was run away and look for distractions.
When she was finished, Lillian stared at her, saying nothing.
“What?” Lucy asked. “Don’t tell me you agree with him.”
“I mean…do you not? It’s not really a secret that you change your mind a lot,” Lillian said delicately.
“Well that’s – when I change my mind – it’s because I don’t – ”
