by Olivia West
“Kate, I don’t feel like being around people and going on vacation right now. I can’t pretend to be happy. I just can’t.”
“No, there’s no one there right now. The whole family is planning on heading up there next week, but right now, it’s totally empty. Why don’t you head up there and spend a few days by yourself and let the sun and surf heal your soul? Nothing beats the beach when it comes to making you feel better—you and I both know that to be true. We’ve sworn by that very motto for years, so there’s no way you can deny it.”
“Are you sure your parents wouldn’t mind?” Lindsey asked, the idea of getting away starting to appeal to her just the tiniest bit. At least it was something.
“Of course not! You are practically family—you know that they love you like their own daughter!”
“Have you told them about Patrick and me?”
“No, I haven’t said anything to anyone yet.”
“Okay, good. I’m not ready for everyone’s pity. I’m still really busy pitying myself.”
“So you’ll go? Please tell me you’ll go, and you’ll sit in the sun, and read and eat tons of chocolate and watch romantic comedies and drink lots of wine.”
“I’ll go, but I can only promise the drinking part—I’m not so sure about the rest.”
“Check in with me regularly, though, okay? I don’t want you passing out on the beach and getting third-degree sunburns due to sorrowful drunkenness.”
“I promise—I won’t do anything stupid that would involve public drunkenness or third-degree burns. I just need to hide from the world for a minute.”
“I wish I could go with you, but my couture show is this week and I can’t leave the city until it’s pulled off without a hitch. I’m going up next week with the family if you decide to stay a little longer,” Kate told her.
“I really want to be alone anyway,” she replied honestly.
Within a couple of hours, and with a lot of help from Kate, Lindsey was showered, dressed and packed for her impromptu trip to the Hamptons. In a bright pink racerback tank, white shorts and a straw sunhat covering most of her reddish-brown curls, hiding behind her oversized sunglasses, Lindsey looked much more chipper than she actually felt.
After finishing a bowl of granola and yogurt at Kate’s insistence, Lindsey settled into the back of the Welling family’s private car for the trip to the coast. Kate had called for the car, not wanting Lindsey to take the jitney bus to the coast in her fragile state.
“Thanks, Kate—I may be semi-hating you right now, but I know, at some point, I’ll look back and be happy that you made me put one foot in front of another even though I don’t want to do anything but lie in my bed, drink wine, and wallow in my sadness,” Lindsey said, peering up at her from the backseat window with her dark shades in place. She couldn’t even attempt to pretend to smile at that moment.
“No problem. Now, go forth and lie around, drink wine and wallow in the beautiful sun by the ocean,” Kate said with a wink, waving her off. “And try to find a man while you’re there—hot rebound sex would really do you a world of good!” Kate called out in jest as the car pulled away from the curb. She smiled sheepishly as two elderly women power-walked by at the exact moment the brazen words left her lips.
Lindsey slipped her headphones on and slumped in the seat, sighing sadly, glad that she no longer had to pretend that she had it somewhat together. Kate meant well, but she had no idea how Lindsey really felt. When Patrick had called off their engagement, Lindsey’s world had been turned upside down and she was still puzzled as to how she was going to start putting it back together again. The whole process overwhelmed her past the point of comprehension.
Normally, she was on top of things. She had it together, she never lost her cool, she planned everything down to the last tiny detail. But now, now she could hardly muster enough interest to get herself properly dressed for the day, much less try and figure out what to do now that her entire life plan was shattered into millions of pieces.
Maybe the trip to the Hamptons would help. She really didn’t care about vacationing all that much at the moment, but at least, she wouldn’t have to deal with the situation for a few days. She could put off the inevitable just a little while longer. Her stomach sank every time she pictured having to tell someone that she was no longer engaged—that all her plans were going down the drain. She wasn’t ready to face all of that yet. With so much whirling around inside of her mind, Lindsey closed her eyes, hoping she could sleep during the ride out to the coast. At least when she was asleep, she wasn’t thinking about all that she had to face. Sleep also afforded her a temporary reprieve from the raw aching of her wounded heart.
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About Olivia West
Olivia West is a bestselling romance author who is known for her captivating stories with interesting characters, unusual settings, adventurous plots and intriguing relationships. In each of her stories she tries to make readers see in their imagination a mental movie in which they can feel emotions of the characters and are curious about what will happen next.
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