The au pairs skinny-dipping (26 page)

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"I missed you this summer, you know," he finally said. He exhaled. "I guess I missed--I
miss--
the old Mara."

"I do too," Mara said, her throat tightening as she sat down on the side of his bed, deflated. The old Mara. The Mara before the earring scandal, the Garrett Reynolds debacle, the Perry sisters' nick name. She didn't know who the old Mara was anymore. She certainly wasn't just some small-town girl from Sturbridge anymore, but she wasn't a Hamptons swan, either.

"Ryan, I feel awful. I've been terrible. I just... I just. . ." Her eyes filled with tears, and when they fell, she couldn't stop them. "I just got carried away, and all I wanted was to be with you. I don't even know why I was with Garrett all the time. I just wanted to make you jealous."

"Well, it worked." He laughed, sitting down next to her.

"I kind of think he was only with me to make you jealous too," Mara said. "When he broke up with me, he said it'd all been worth it for 'the Perry factor,' whatever that meant."

Ryan shook his head. "He's been like that since we were kids. He stole my first girlfriend, back in sixth grade. Sophomore year, I took this girl to the winter ball and he took her home." He shrugged. "He's a douche."

Mara squeezed his knee sympathetically and smiled at Ryan's summation of Garrett's personality. He
was
a douche.

"You know, I really lost it when you broke up with me," Ryan said. "I should have said something, I should have come down to Sturbridge. Tried to get you to change your

mind ..."

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"I just never thought a guy like you could be my boyfriend," she admitted. "I thought if I broke up with you first, I could make it easier on myself."

They hadn't been looking at each other when they were talking, preferring to confess to the fire, but finally, Mara turned to face Ryan. She pushed his bangs off his forehead.

"I did so many things this summer that I regret," she sighed. "I've been so awful to Eliza and Jacqui. And I was so rude to my sister when she was here."

"Eliza and Jacqui and your sister will all forgive you," he said reassuringly. "It's all going to be all right."

"No, everyone hates--" But before she could finish, he was kissing her. And she was kissing him back. It was so sweet it was almost painful.

He pulled her toward him, his fingers lost in her hair, and she wrapped her arms around him. They kept kissing and kissing and kissing, without stopping to breathe, as if the only thing that mattered was pouring their souls into each other through their kisses. She shivered, and he pulled his bathrobe open, wrapping it around her, too.

Mara closed her eyes, elated and anxious. There was no one else for her, and no one else for him. He was everything she'd ever wanted, and even though she was still anxious that she'd made a mess of a million things, she let her body melt into his. It was as if they were made for each other, and their bodies were telling each other what their hearts had been feeling for a long, long time.

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so that's why william was so out of control

THE NEXT MORNING, THE FLOOD HAD RECEDED AND

sanitation workers were beginning to clear the highways of fallen trees and branches. Kit drove Jacqui back to the Perry house, the Navigator plowing through the deep, muddy waters. The winds had died down, and it had finally stopped raining. The storm had moved north, but the Hamptons were devastated. Several homes on cliff side bluffs were completely destroyed, and as Kit pulled up to the Perrys' driveway, they noticed that the Reynolds Castle--what was left of it, anyway--had taken a severe beating.

"Yikes," Kit said, his eyes dancing. "I hope they had insurance."

"It was such an eyesore, it's a blessing," Jacqui said.

She felt more nervous looking at the Perry house. It was almost time to face the music, and she was
so
fired. But as she was gathering her resolve, getting ready to pack up her things and head unceremoniously back to Brazil, a junky old taxi pulled into

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the other side of the circular driveway. Philippe opened the trunk and stacked his suitcases inside.

He was leaving? Jacqui hadn't realized he wasn't staying for the whole summer, but then again, she hadn't realized a lot of things about him. She looked at the beautiful boy and felt stupid, but not heartbroken. Philippe gave her a mild wave.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

He shrugged and put on his sunglasses.
"Au revoir, ma cherie."
He shook a cigarette out of his pack before climbing into the back of the taxi.

Laurie came barging out of the house. "And don't come back! You're lucky we're not pressing charges! If it weren't for your aunt, you'd be in a lot of trouble, young man!"

Dr. Abraham pushed past Laurie, carrying his battered plaid suitcases. "Hold on, boy! I need a ride to the train as well!" Dr. Abraham gave Laurie a sheepish nod and followed Philippe into the car.

Jacqui walked up the waterlogged steps. The Perry house seemed to have survived intact. "What happened?" she asked Anna, who was watching everything from the foyer.

The frosted blonde looked Jacqui up and down. "Don't you know?" she asked suspiciously.

"Know what?" Jacqui asked, mystified.

"But vou called Philiooe last nieht..." Anna said.

Jacqui blushed. "I ... I was stuck out on Route 27. The Prius ran out of gas and I was trapped outside in the hurricane.

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I tried the main house, but the lines were down," she explained.

Anna's face visibly relaxed upon hearing Jacqui's explanation. "So you really didn't know?" she asked again.

"Know
what?

"Philippe is a drug dealer," Laurie interjected, breathlessly recounting how Anna had found out that Philippe and Dr. Abraham were selling Ritalin, Adderrall, Valium, and Ambien to customers in the greater Hamptons area.

So
that
was why his cell was always ringing. Apparently, Philippe had started nicking William's prescriptions to fill some orders, and when the doctor had found out what Philippe was doing, instead of reporting it, he'd supplied Philippe with more scrips and gotten a cut of the deal. The hurricane had made a lot of people nervous, and Philippe had made a lot of deliveries that week. Anna had discovered the truth when she'd caught him stuffing William's pills in his backpack, when she'd been running around the house looking for
her
meds. And
that
was why Anna had said, "Philippe isn't open for business," when Jacqui had called.

Anna didn't want a scandal and had chosen to send Philippe away and fire the doctor rather than take any legal action. She found the whole thing more unseemly than criminal. She didn't want her name in the papers. At least, not for this sort of reason.

Anna dismissed Laurie and then touched Jacqui's arm conspiratorially. "By the way, congratulations on keeping away from him all summer." Anna winked. "I know how charming he can be."

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Even though Jacqui hadn't entirely stayed away from Philippe, she didn't think there was any reason to mention that now. Maybe Philippe hadn't been with Anna--the emergency call from the Perry house the night at the motel could have just as likely have been Dr. Abraham. Jacqui would probably never know for sure, but she also didn't care.

"Anyway, Jacqui darling, I just wanted to remind you that we'll need you to be back in New York by late August. I'll send a ticket to your address in Brazil--will that be all right?" Anna asked.

"Does that mean I get the job?" Jacqui practically squealed.

"Of course." Anna nodded. "And my friend at Stuyvesant said we'd be able to get you in, no problem. We're not sending William to Eton after all, since he failed the entrance test. And after everything that's happened with Philippe, I don't think his aunt--our usual nanny--will be coming back. So we're definitely going to need someone to help with the kids."

Jacqui laughed. After all that, she was getting everything she'd wanted. And, looking at Kit, who was helping Ryan clear the wreckage of fallen limbs, she realized that maybe she had ended up with even more than she deserved.

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summer ends early, but the next one

isn't too far behind

THAT AFTERNOON, ANNA ANNOUNCED THAT THE

Perrys were going to go back to New York early. There were a couple of weeks left before Labor Day, but staying around to clean up the house and yard was not Anna's idea of a good time. The girls were still going to get paid for the whole summer as had been agreed, but after that evening, their services would no longer be required.

Since the kitchen was unusable due to water damage, Jacqui proposed a full-blown Brazilian
churrascaria
--grilled steaks, sausages, chicken, and lamb, to celebrate surviving the hurricane. Now that the storm had passed, the sky was bright and clear and the air was warm. It was the perfect night for a barbecue. Jacqui even made a pitcher of caipirinhas, a Brazilian version of the mojito, that she knew her friends would like.

She invited Eliza to come over and join the fun, and although Eliza was a little hesitant at first, she agreed. She had a lot to say to Mara, and it was finally time. She and Jeremy arrived at dusk,

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his trusty old pickup truck carefully maneuvering over the bumpy roads and around the fallen trees. They walked over to the patio, where the smell of sizzling meat wafted deliciously in the air. The kids were running around, sword fighting with the fallen branches.

Eliza saw Mara and Jacqui manning the grill. Mara was fresh-faced and glowing. For the first time that summer, she was wearing her own clothes--a plain white T-shirt and a pair of Gap cargos.

"Hola, chicas,"
Eliza said, in her best imitation of Jacqui.

Mara looked up at the sound of Elizas voice. Eliza was wearing her Sally Hershberger jeans and the discount Missoni top. Jacqui had covered her fauxhawk with the Pucci scarf. Mara was glad her friends each had a souvenir from the Mitzi closet.

"Let's talk, Mar," Eliza said bravely, when she got a little closer.

Mara nodded. "Yeah, that'd be good."

"You, too, Jac," Eliza said. "All of us. It's been too long."

The three of them ambled to the beach in silence, Jacqui walking between Mara and Eliza, hoping she could be the peanut butter to stick the three of them back together. They watched the seagulls glide gently over the waves and the ocean glitter under the setting sun. The hurricane had stirred up the ocean floor, and the beach was littered with broken seashells and assorted debris.

Finally, Eliza turned to Mara. "I'm really sorry. For everything. I really hope ... I mean, I hope you know I would never do anything

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to hurt you," she said, her voice cracking. "I know you and Ryan are meant to be, and I made a mistake, and I'm really sorry. I wish I'd told you about Palm Beach earlier--I tried, but not hard enough. ..."

" 'Liza, don't. Please don't cry," Mara said. "I was so awful to you at the fashion show, and I accused you of taking those stupid earrings. I'm so embarrassed. It's my fault too."

"No, really, it's me," Eliza said, wiping at her face with her whole palm. She reached down and blew her nose on the bottom of her gorgeous Missoni shirt. It was such an un-Eliza move that Mara and Jacqui had to laugh.

Mara nodded. "I trust you," she said simply. And, looking in her heart, she found that it was true. She really did trust Eliza. People made mistakes. She understood that now. And as happy as she was to be with Ryan again, her friendship with Eliza was just as important. You only met a few kindred spirits in your life, and you had to hold on to the ones you were lucky enough to find.

Eliza's eyes filled with tears again. In a hoarse voice, she said, "I hope you guys know you're the best friends I've ever had."

Jacqui slung an arm around each of their shoulders, and the three of them hugged each other tightly. Mara started to sob too, and without entirely totally knowing why, Jacqui did as well. They'd been so lonely without each other.

"Hey, look ..." Jacqui said, pointing to some trash that had washed up on the beach. "Doesn't that look like our bottle?"

Mara almost couldn't believe it, but it was the same rum

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bottle they'd hidden their message in at the start of the summer. What were the chances?

Eliza pulled the cork open and fished out the label. On top of the scrap was their note:
Hello from Mara Waters, Eliza Thompson, and Jacarei Velasco in the Hamptons. We're having the summer of our lives. If you find our bottle, please write your name and a note and toss it back into the ocean.

Scrawled on the bottom of the page was the following:

Hello from Nova Scotia, Canada, from Sandra Shepherd, Alana King, and Margritte Lyon. We found your bottle floating in White Point Beach. We're having an amazing summer, too!

Jacqui, Eliza, and Mara laughed. It was like a little miracle.

"Nova Scotia! God, that's far away," Eliza said.

"The hurricane probably pushed it farther," Jacqui surmised. "Or brought it back."

"I wonder if they're like us," Mara mused, touching her neck. The Mikimoto pearl necklace. Mitzi had said it was hers to keep at the start of the summer. It was the only real gift from the designers. Mara thought of a certain tall redheaded sister of hers who would love it.

"Next summer--we'll be back!" Eliza declared. "Next summer-- I know this sounds so cheesy, but I promise--it'll be the best summer yet. It'll be the summer of our lives."

Jacqui and Mara smiled indulgently. They were all thinking of the Internet ad that had gotten the three of them together in the first place. Would they au pair for the Perrys again? It was hard to