later that afternoon and he saw Andrew smiling and texting, so he asked Tina who Andrew was dating and she said no one, but she wished he were texting her with that smile.” That made us both laugh, as Tina was at least seventy. I motioned for him to continue. “So then Tina asked her daughter Margot if she knew who Andrew was dating, and when Margot asked her little cousin Roger, he said that he had seen Andrew at Hook, Line, and Sinker with one Ms. Gray Howard.”
“Damn,” Diana said.
“You should be in the FBI,” I added.
Julian gasped. “So it is true! I want to eat whipped cream off his abs.”
“So do I!” I said, laughing. “I’ll keep you posted.”
“And that, my dear, is why we’re summer soul mates.”
“Speaking of soul mates,” I whispered, glancing toward Marcy and Stafford, who were still chatting, “what’s the deal with Stafford?”
“None of the rumors are true,” he said. “Alice is trying to blackmail him.” He paused dramatically. “From rehab.”
“Hmm. Blackmail. Not a bad plan. What you got on Greg?”
We laughed again. “You have everything on Greg you’d ever need all on your own.”
“And yet I’m losing this damn divorce.” I finally turned and said, “Julian, I want to introduce you to Trey.”
Julian pulled his sunglasses up onto his head as Trey stood up. “Oh my Lord, we finally meet in the flesh. All I have heard about from this one is Trey this and Trey that.”
Trey laughed and held out his hand. “Nice to meet you,” he said.
Julian looked at me, confused. “Wait. He’s straight?”
I sighed. “Is this some sort of new cultural norm I’ve missed out on? Like I have to inform everyone now if someone is straight?”
“He wears his hair like that because he’s a Yankee and says ‘girl’ because he’s up Gray’s butt,” Diana said. “Now you’re all caught up.”
“And this is Diana,” I said, laughing.
“And who is Diana?” Julian asked.
“Oh, um…” I didn’t know what to say.
She interjected, “I’m her maid.”
“She is my savior,” I retorted.
A voice from behind me said, “Jesus, Gray. Are you so high-maintenance now that you have to take your maid with you to the pool?” I turned to see our “friend” Alexander (don’t you dare call him Alex), who was cocky as hell and didn’t care who he pissed off.
I could feel myself reddening with embarrassment. I glared at him. “We are all having a morning break, Alex.” I’d evened the score now.
“Maybe you could quit being so rude,” Julian added.
Alexander just shrugged and continued to the bar, where he pulled out a stool and sat down.
I mouthed I’m sorry to Diana. She rolled her eyes. As Stafford turned to throw one of the kids in the water, Marcy looked at me and made a slicing motion with her finger across her throat.
“Really?” I said when she reached me a couple minutes later. “None of those rumors are true.”
“He has full custody,” Marcy said as if she were saying, “raging herpes.”
“Ugh,” Julian said. “Nobody’s got time for that.”
“I thought you didn’t care about the kids,” I said.
“Yeah,” she said. “Every other weekend I don’t. But raising a one-, three-, and five-year-old on my own? Please.”
“Agreed,” Julian said. “Hey, what about Alexander?”
“He brings his own wineglass to the bar,” Marcy groaned.
“Ohhhh,” Julian said. “I was under the impression that you were marrying for money. If you’re looking for love, I have a few prospects in mind.” Then he waved at a woman entering through the gate and was calling, “That bag!” as he walked away.
“He’s too much,” Marcy said. “But he really does mean well.”
“Does he?” Diana asked.
We all laughed, and I felt myself relax. She didn’t seem mad about the earlier slight.
The waiter came up, and I said, “We need to order lots of food.”
“Oh, oh! Onion rings!” Trey said.
“And lots of rosé,” Marcy added.
“Haven’t you people ever heard of beer?” Diana asked.
“And evidently Diana will have some sort of beer,” I said.
We were all smiling and happy. Yes, there was work to be done, but that’s why God invented laptops. I missed my boy, so many thousands of miles away. But if I couldn’t be with him, I realized, there was nowhere I would rather be right now than right here, lounging poolside, with my favorite people, all summer long.
* * *
Later that night, I tossed my phone on the outdoor couch beside me, finally giving up. Andrew wasn’t going to call. He just wasn’t. I had ruined my summer fling. I