LILY ARRANGED CUSHIONS ON A striped love seat and wiped her hands on her dress. It was mid afternoon, and she had been working at Lily Bristol all day. Tomorrow was the grand opening, and she was so excited.
The showroom had a beamed ceiling and rounded plaster walls. There were linens she’d discovered at an outdoor market in San Pantaleo and woven rugs from Olbia. And the colors! Turquoise towels were stacked on an antique dresser, and magenta cushions were strewn over a daybed.
She noticed a new text on her phone and smiled. Ricky had dropped her off at Hotel Cervo this morning. He’d already sent a dozen texts, and a bouquet of tulips had arrived with a note asking her to dinner.
They still had so much to work out: how they would keep in touch, and when they would see each other. But they could Skype and send messages. And it only took eight hours to fly from Sardinia to New York.
She caught her reflection in the window and laughed. Her eyes sparkled, and a smile lit up her face. She wanted to bottle the feeling and sell it at the cash register next to the tins of almonds.
A bell tinkled over the door, and Lily looked up. Oliver stood at the entrance, clutching a shopping bag.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“I brought you a gift for the grand opening.” He handed her the bag. “It’s a statue of Vesta, the Roman goddess of the home.”
“You didn’t have to do that.” She took out the statue. “Thank you, it’s lovely.”
“I always bring you a gift when you open a new store.” He glanced around the space. “Everything looks fantastic.”
“I’m terrified the caterer will run out of ravioli or I didn’t buy enough champagne.” She paused. “But I do like it. I’m so glad I decided to open a store on the Emerald Coast.”
“Do you remember when you opened Lily Bristol San Francisco?” he asked. “You were worried that no one would come because there was a Forty-niners playoff game. But we couldn’t fit all the people in the store and ran out of mimosas in the first hour.”
“Grand openings are always exhilarating.” She sighed. “So much can go wrong, and then I’m relieved when everything turns out.”
“This is going to be your most successful store yet,” he declared.
Lily glanced at her watch and remembered she was meeting Ricky in a few hours. “I still have a lot to do. Thank you for the gift, but I have to go.”
“That’s not the only reason I came,” Oliver began. “I want to talk to you about something.”
“If you want more advice on your wedding, now isn’t the time.” She moved through the store. “You and Angela can come to the opening.”
“It’s not about Angela and me.” He paused. “It’s about Ricky.”
“Don’t tell me you were spying when Ricky dropped me off at the hotel this morning!” Her eyes flashed. “Honestly, Oliver, I can sleep wherever I like. I’d appreciate it if you stay out of my love life.”
“You spent the night at Ricky’s?” he gasped.
“Yes, Oliver. I’m not a postdivorce virgin anymore.” She flushed. “Now can I get back to work? I’m sure Angela is waiting for you to work on the guest list.”
“Angela and I aren’t getting married,” he said.
Lily stopped and turned back in surprise.
“But you were so excited about proposing to her.”
“I was going to marry her because she was pregnant,” he began. “That wasn’t the only reason; she didn’t force me to do it. I admire her and thought I was falling in love with her.” He shuffled his feet. “But she wasn’t pregnant. She lied to me.”
“Oh, Oliver, that’s awful. I don’t understand.” Lily perched on a stool. “Angela is so focused on her career. She’s not the type of woman who would fake a pregnancy to get a man.”
“She didn’t do it for herself.” He looked up. “Ricky asked her to.”
“What did you say?” Lily gasped.
“Ricky and Angela ran into each other at the pharmacist. She thought she was pregnant but it turned out to be a stomachache. Ricky said he needed a favor. He was afraid I still have feelings for you. He was worried that you might not let yourself fall in love with him. He asked Angela to pretend to be pregnant so he wouldn’t lose you.”
“That’s absurd.” Lily jumped up. “Why would Ricky think you still have feelings for me?”
“We all had dinner at the Yacht Club, and I saved you from eating the tiramisu,” he explained. “He thought I was still in love with you.”
“That was hardly a declaration of love. If someone’s choking and you perform the Heimlich maneuver, it doesn’t mean you want to marry them.”
“Ricky thought so.” He shrugged. “He didn’t want the competition.”
“That’s a charming fantasy, but I don’t believe a word of it.” She straightened a pile of napkins.
“You have to believe it,” he insisted. “Why would Angela make it up?”
“Angela lied about being pregnant,” she reminded him. “She could lie about anything. That’s the problem with online dating. People make up so many things, they forget how to tell the truth.”
“Angela and I didn’t meet online, we met at a restaurant opening.” He fumed. “And you just said she didn’t need a man. I’m hardly some marketing genius who can help her career. And I might be good-looking, but I’m no Brad Pitt.”
Lily studied Oliver’s dark hair and blue eyes and smiled. There were new lines on his forehead, but he still looked like the boy she’d met at the train station in Naples.
“Ricky would never do such a thing. We’re having dinner tonight and we’re going to talk about our future. He’s hardworking and sincere and…”
She suddenly thought about Ricky hiding his proposal to Poppy and felt slightly dizzy.
“Are you all right?” Oliver asked.
“I’ve been working too hard. I just need a glass of water.”
“I know that look.” He poured a glass of water from a pitcher. “It’s like when they killed off your favorite character on Scandal. There’s something you’re not telling me about Ricky.”
“Ricky did shade the truth about something, but it’s not important.”
“The truth is always important,” he urged. “What happened?”
“He said he’s never been in love before,” she said. “But then I found out he had been engaged and didn’t tell me. I asked him about it, and he said she was American. It turned out she wasn’t in love with him. She only agreed to marry him to make her boyfriend jealous. He was too ashamed to mention it.”
“You mean he lied to you,” Oliver said.
“It was a little white lie,” she said, and her eyes narrowed. “I know what you’re doing! Angela jilted you, and you don’t want me to be happy. You made all this up so I would break up with Ricky.”
“Why would I do that?” he demanded.
“Because you can’t stand the thought of me being happy,” she answered. “Well, I am happy, Oliver. That’s not going to change. If you’ll excuse me, I have a dozen things to do.”
“You’ve got it all wrong.” He walked to the door and turned around. “But I guess you’ll have to find out for yourself.”
* * *
The door slammed, and Lily leaned against the glass. Would Oliver really lie to her? He had never hurt her intentionally. But he couldn’t be telling the truth; it was too terrible to think about.
She tried to thread the story together, like one of Louisa’s daisy chains. It was possible Angela was lying, but she couldn’t see why. With Angela’s brains and figure, she could have any man she wanted.
Ricky was warm and caring, and he was truly in love with her. She had never been more certain of anything. But he had lied about Poppy. What if there was some truth to what Oliver said?
If only she could talk to Poppy, she could find out if Ricky had been telling the truth about their engagement. But she didn’t even know Poppy’s last name. She could hardly scroll through Ricky’s contacts or search his emails.
She suddenly remembered the woman she’d met on Christoff’s yacht who had known Ricky for years. All those people moved in the same circles. Their lives consisted of flitting between the Greek Islands and the South of France. Maybe Marjorie knew something about Ricky and Poppy.
Lily smoothed her hair and rubbed her lips with lipstick. She grabbed her purse and hurried out the door.
* * *
Lily leaned against the railing of Christoff’s yacht and sighed. She had searched the shuffleboard court and movie theater. She’d interrupted a chess tournament, but she couldn’t find Marjorie.
She was about to leave when she saw a woman in a blue bathing suit. Her eyes were closed and there was a magazine folded on her stomach.
“Do you remember me?” Lily hurried across the deck. “We met a few days ago.”
Marjorie opened her eyes and sat up.
“Of course! The brunette who was with Ricky,” she exclaimed. “I haven’t seen him at all. You must be keeping each other busy.”
“I wonder if I could talk to you.” Lily glanced around at couples lounging in deck chairs. “It’s quite personal.”
“It sounds more interesting than the squash game I was invited to,” Marjorie replied. “Why don’t we go into my stateroom?”
* * *
Lily perched on a cream sofa and fiddled with her earrings. The room had a walnut desk and king-sized bed and a window seat scattered with cushions. A sideboard was set with platters of soft cheeses and slices of orange.
“Christoff’s yacht is heavenly. It will be a shame when the summer is over.” Marjorie handed Lily a glass of papaya juice. “Now tell me what’s wrong, it must have something to do with Ricky.”
“We’ve gotten quite serious about each other,” Lily admitted. “I didn’t mean for it to happen. I’m only here to open Lily Bristol. But he’s falling in love with me, and I feel the same.”
“Then what’s the problem?” Marjorie asked. “Ricky is one of the most eligible bachelors on the Emerald Coast.”
“I discovered he’d been engaged and didn’t mention it,” Lily said. “Her name was Poppy, and they met last summer. I wonder if you knew her.”
“Of course I know Poppy!” Marjorie exclaimed. “Her home base is New York, but she spends most of her time cruising around the Aegean. I remember seeing them together, but I never imagined they were engaged.”
“Then you don’t know why they broke up.” Lily’s shoulders sagged. If Marjorie couldn’t help her, she didn’t know what she’d do.
“It couldn’t have been too traumatic. Poppy got married in April. I attended her wedding. It was in a garden in Kent, and it rained. The whole thing had to be moved inside.”
“She got married?” Lily felt a warmth spread through her chest. Ricky was telling the truth! Poppy had only gotten engaged to him to make her fiancé jealous.
“Apparently it was a whirlwind courtship,” Marjorie continued. “She met Anthony on a chairlift in Gstaad and got married three months later.”
“O-oh, I-I see,” Lily stammered. “Thank you for telling me. You’ve been a great help.”
“I haven’t been a help at all.” Marjorie frowned. “You look like I just told you I had to put your dog to sleep.”
“Ricky said Poppy only agreed to marry him to make her boyfriend jealous. As soon as Ricky’s ring was on her finger, he showed up and asked her to marry him. Poppy called off the engagement and went back to her boyfriend.”
“That is a different story,” Marjorie agreed. “Why don’t you ask Poppy? I have her number in my contacts.”
“I can’t call a woman I’ve never met.” Lily shook her head.
“Of course you can,” Marjorie said. “When you’re in love, you have to fight for what you want. And if you’re going to get hurt, it’s best to know now.”
Lily remembered driving up to Ricky’s villa with the wind blowing her hair. He’d squeezed her hand and said he was falling in love with her.
“I suppose you’re right.” She nodded.
“I’ll send Poppy a message and tell her you’ll call.” Marjorie ate a slice of orange and tossed the peel on the plate. “You think love gets easier when you’re cruising the Mediterranean, but it never does. Women have to help each other. Who else do we have?”
* * *
Lily stood in front of her dresser and brushed her cheeks with powder. She smoothed her hair and wished Oliver had never entered Lily Bristol. She had been so looking forward to eating suckling pig with eggplant. Now there was a knot in her stomach, and she could barely swallow.
What if she didn’t call Poppy? They’d sip a gold liqueur and discuss when Ricky could come to New York. He would touch her cheek, and she would feel so happy.
But Marjorie was right; if Ricky had lied, she had to know now. She punched Poppy’s number into her phone and pressed send.
“Hello.” A female voice came over the line. “Who’s calling?”
“This is Lily Bristol.” Lily suddenly felt like a teenager making a prank call at a slumber party.
“Marjorie said you would call, but she didn’t tell me what it was about,” Poppy answered. “I’m on a yacht in Ibiza, and reception is terrible. I hope you can hear me.”
“I can hear you perfectly,” Lily said. “I’m calling about Ricky Pirelli.”
“That’s a name I didn’t expect to hear again.” Poppy laughed.
“Ricky and I are involved, and I discovered he was engaged to you last summer. I wondered if you could tell me why it didn’t work out.”
“You mean why Ricky and I didn’t get married?” Poppy asked.
“Yes.” Lily flushed. “I hope I’m not being too personal.”
“If you’d called a few months ago, I would have hung up,” Poppy said. “I was so hurt, I thought I’d never recover. But I met Anthony, and now I feel so lucky.”
“Recover from what?” Lily asked.
“From Ricky dumping me on our wedding day.”
“What did you say?” Lily sunk onto the sofa and stared out the window. The sun melted over the horizon, and the sea was a muted purple.
“I met Ricky at a party on the yacht. God, he was gorgeous, with those dark eyes and chiseled cheeks.” She paused. “We played tennis and swam and went horseback riding. Then all of a sudden, he got serious. We took a day trip to the village of Arzachena. We were browsing in the outdoor market, and he stopped in front of a jewelry stall. He bought a glass ring and said he couldn’t bear to be apart. Then he got down on his knee and asked me to marry him.
“I thought he was joking, but he said he had never been more serious. The whole scene was so exotic: pastel-colored villas and hills bursting with wildflowers. I never wanted to leave. I said yes, and everyone cheered, and he slipped the ring on my finger.
“We realized I couldn’t wear a glass ring; it would never fly in our circles. Ricky insisted we pick out an engagement ring together; he didn’t want to get it wrong. And it was gorgeous! A square sapphire flanked by diamonds.
“I suggested we fly to Manhattan to meet my parents and hold the wedding the following summer. Everyone would have been so disappointed if there wasn’t a reception with an orchestra and a twelve-tier wedding cake.
“But he couldn’t leave his store. And he was afraid if I went back to New York alone, the whole thing would fizzle. He wanted to have a civil ceremony and host a party next spring.
“I thought that was thrilling. What could be more romantic than a secret ceremony performed by a justice of the peace? I bought a short white dress, and he wore a white suit, and we met at an office off the piazzetta. Then I had to show him my passport, and Ricky called the whole thing off.”
“Your passport?” Lily repeated.
“I’m based in New York, but my father is British and my mother is from Venezuela. I don’t have an American passport.”
“I don’t understand,” Lily replied. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“Ricky always dreamed of opening a clothing store on Fifth Avenue. He needed a green card,” she explained. “He had to marry someone with an American passport.”
Lily remembered Marjorie saying Ricky adored everything about America, and felt a pain in her chest. She clutched the phone and gasped.
“He just said he didn’t want to marry you?”
“He was more diplomatic than that.” Poppy paused. “He said he realized how important my family was and he had gone about it all wrong. He suggested he visit New York at Christmas and meet my parents. I might have believed him, but the next day he left for Rome. He said his uncle was ill, and he had to take care of him.”
“And after that?” Lily whispered.
“I never heard from him again.” Poppy sighed. “I was so angry, I wished I’d kept the ring. It was my idea for him to hold on to it. I didn’t want to show up at my parents’ apartment wearing an engagement ring from a man they hadn’t met.” She stopped. “But Anthony is perfect, and we’re going to spend part of the year in England. Not the summers, of course, it rains so much, it would be like living in India.”
“I’m glad everything turned out,” Lily said, and clutched the side of the dresser. “You’ve been very helpful.”
“Ricky is a lot of fun and a wonderful kisser. I hope you’ll be happy,” Poppy replied. “You’re everything he dreamed of.”
“What do you mean?” Lily asked.
“Marjorie said you’re from New York,” she said. “You’re exactly what he wanted.”
Lily hung up and walked to the dresser. She took the ruby pendant out of the box and snapped it around her neck. Then she sank onto the sofa and burst into tears.
* * *
Lily sat at an outdoor table at Il Pescatore and moved peaches with vanilla ice cream around her plate. The sky was thick with stars, and the air smelled of hibiscus and juniper.
She had wanted to talk to Ricky before dinner, but he was already seated at the table. Then the maître d’ brought a complimentary bottle of pinot noir, and the chef came out to greet them, and she had to join him.
Ricky ordered scorpion fish and fregola pasta, and they talked about his store and Lily Bristol’s grand opening. Lily ate sautéed cockerel, and her chest tightened. It was all so perfect, with the boats lapping against the shore and the sound of tinkling glasses.
“You’re very quiet.” Ricky ate pears with white chocolate. “You must be tired from preparing for the grand opening. We should have an early night.”
“Oliver came into the store this morning.” Lily fiddled with her spoon.
“Your ex-husband came to see you?” Ricky asked.
“He wanted to see the store.” She paused. “He told me yesterday he was going to propose to Angela.”
“Does he always share such intimate details about his life?” Ricky inquired.
“Well, she would be Louisa’s stepmother. He was very excited,” she answered. “But this morning, he said they’re not getting married after all. Angela said she was pregnant, but he discovered she lied to him.”
“That’s shocking! But it’s better he find out now.” Ricky concentrated on his dessert. “That would be a terrible way to start a marriage.”
“He asked Angela why she lied, and she said you put her up to it.” Lily looked up, and her eyes were huge. “You were afraid Oliver was still in love with me and didn’t want the competition.”
“That’s absurd!” Ricky frowned. “I haven’t wanted to say anything, but Oliver seems a little unbalanced. Obviously, Angela jilted him, and he was trying to come between us.”
“That’s what I thought. I told him he just didn’t want me to be happy…”
“You see, we agree on everything.” Ricky beamed. “I hope he didn’t upset you. Let’s take our glasses of Mirto and walk along the beach. There is nothing more soothing than the sand between your toes.”
“But then I remembered about your engagement to Poppy.” Lily kept talking. “I thought if I could find out if you told the truth, I’d be more confident that Oliver was lying.
“So I went to Christoff’s yacht and saw a woman I met a few days ago, Marjorie. Marjorie said she attended Poppy’s wedding in April.”
“Poppy got married?” Ricky looked confused. “That’s wonderful news. I’m glad she and her fiancé worked it out.”
“Except it didn’t match what you told me. Marjorie said it was a whirlwind courtship; Poppy and her husband met in Gstaad and got married three months later. She suggested I call Poppy and find out the truth.”
“Lily,” Ricky stopped her. “You don’t have to go to such measures. I should have told you I was engaged to Poppy, but I was embarrassed. In Sardinia, males are taught to hide their failures.”
“It wasn’t any trouble getting hold of Poppy. She was on a yacht in Ibiza. She said you suggested having a civil ceremony because you didn’t want her to go back to America without you.” She paused. “But when she presented her passport, you stopped the wedding. You wanted to marry her for the same reason you said you are in love with me. All you wanted was a green card.”
“Everyone makes up stories after a relationship ends,” he implored. “You haven’t even met Poppy. How can you believe her? Perhaps she was angry at her new husband and wanted to cause trouble.”
“All I wanted was someone to explore the Emerald Coast with. You didn’t even have to kiss me.” Her eyes glistened. “Then you said you were falling in love with me, and I started to feel the same. How could you lie to me? It’s the cruelest thing in the world.”
Ricky swallowed the Mirto and placed his glass on the tablecloth. He leaned forward and took her hand.
“You have it all wrong, I am in love with you. You are bright and beautiful, and we share the same goals,” he began. “I ran into Angela at the pharmacist and noticed she was buying a pregnancy test. I merely suggested that it would be a pleasant surprise if she were pregnant. I was worried that Oliver still had feelings for you. At the Yacht Club, he behaved like a lovesick figure in a Shakespeare play. But I would never tell Angela to lie about a pregnancy.
“And what happened with Poppy last summer was completely different. You don’t understand what it’s like growing up on the Emerald Coast. I own a designer boutique, but I’m no different from Petro the newsagent, who sells the Sunday Times and Violet Crumble bars. I might get invited on fancy yachts, but they never leave the port. And I could as easily afford one of the Bentleys parked outside my store as a trip to the moon.
“At night, I would read American newspapers and watch American television. You could be successful doing anything: becoming an athlete or a hairdresser or owning a chain of stores. Americans don’t care what village you come from, or how many languages you speak, or what schools you attended.
“When I finally got the chance to go to New York, it was better than I dreamed: boulevards wider than Porto Cervo and every kind of shop! I took the escalator to the top of Ralph Lauren, Fifth Avenue, and thought I could have that. Four floors of exclusive fashions on the most important street in the world.
“I came back to the Emerald Coast and met Poppy by accident. We had fun, and she was very pretty, why shouldn’t I marry her?” He paused. “Then I found out she didn’t have an American passport and got cold feet. I wouldn’t even be able to work in New York.
“I stopped the wedding because I needed time to think. Poppy left, and the affair just fizzled.” His eyes dimmed. “You have to believe me. I don’t care where we live or what we do, I just want to be with you.”
“I don’t understand.” Lily frowned. “Enzo said you were educated abroad and well-traveled.”
“I went to a Catholic boys’ school in Sicily,” Ricky admitted. “And before last summer, I’d never been farther than Rome. But we’ll explore the world together. And you can show me San Francisco. I’ve always wanted to see the Golden Gate Bridge.”
“Please stop.” Her head ached, and she’d never felt so tired. “Oliver and I met when we were twenty-two, and we were so in love. All we wanted was to be happy. Then he told one small lie, and it was like a tapeworm we couldn’t get rid of. I could never be with someone who didn’t tell the truth. I’ve had a lovely time, but I should go.” She pushed back her chair. “I’ll return the pendant in the morning.”
“Keep the pendant.” He walked around the table. His fingers caressed her neck, and she shivered. “Maybe after you sleep on it, you’ll change your mind.”
“I won’t change my mind.” She gathered her purse. “Good-bye, Ricky. Thank you for showing me the Emerald Coast.”
* * *
Lily left the restaurant and hurried along the rocks. How could Ricky lie to her about everything? She’d let herself fall in love and now her heart was breaking.
She took off her sandals and walked along the shore. She remembered running on the beach in Portugal with Oliver on their honeymoon. She pictured building sand castles in Connecticut with Louisa. Ricky said the sand was soothing between your toes, but tonight he was wrong. She perched on a pile of driftwood and let the tears roll down her cheeks.
* * *
Lily spread preserves on whole-wheat toast and dusted her omelet with salt. It was the morning after her date with Ricky, and today was the grand opening of Lily Bristol. She stirred sugar into a cup of coffee and walked to the balcony. The sea was like a tapestry, and it was going to be a spectacular day.
After dinner with Ricky, she’d come back to the suite and taken a long bath. She told herself she had one night to cry, and she curled up with a box of tissues and a book she’d bought at the hotel gift shop.
She had been wrong to date so quickly; she had only just gotten divorced. But you couldn’t predict or prevent falling in love. The most she could do was concentrate on something else: the grand opening of Lily Bristol and going home to Louisa tomorrow.
There was a knock on the door, and she hoped it was Enzo. She couldn’t deliver the pendant to Ricky; she would have Enzo do it. After all, he was her butler.
She opened the door, and Oliver stood in the hallway. He wore khakis, and his arms were folded over his chest.
“You took my breakfast. I can smell the cheese omelet from the hall.” He entered her suite.
“What are you talking about?” she asked. “Room service left the tray outside my door half an hour ago.”
“I ordered an omelet an hour ago, and it never arrived.” He glanced at the tray. “And you hate grilled tomatoes.”
Lily noticed the side plate of grilled tomatoes and frowned. Had she forgotten to hang the room service menu on the door last night?
“The tray may have been closer to your suite, but I thought they made a mistake,” she conceded. “I always order a cheese omelet when I travel.”
“So do I,” he reminded her. “I’m the one who told you it’s hard to ruin eggs and cheese. It’s the safest thing on the menu.”
“I guess you’re right.” She handed him the plate. “Here, you can have it.”
Oliver put it back on the table. “You look a little peaked. Why don’t we share it?”
“There’s only one plate. How will you take it to your room?”
“I’ll eat it here.” He pulled out a chair and placed a napkin in his lap. “Do you mind pouring me a cup of coffee? And I’d like a piece of toast with butter.”
“Help yourself.” Lily walked to the dresser. “I need to get ready. I have to be at Lily Bristol in an hour.”
“You were just about to have breakfast,” he urged. “And it’s not healthy to eat standing up. You tell Louisa that all the time.”
“All right, Oliver, I’ll have breakfast with you.” Lily sat at the table. “I don’t want any pepper on my side of the omelet.”
Oliver cut the omelet in half and pushed hers to the side of the plate.
“We’re both out of sorts.” He ate a bite of eggs. “If Louisa behaved like this in the morning, we’d tell her to go back upstairs.”
“You know how I get before an opening.” She smoothed her hair. “I can never sleep.”
“Then you shouldn’t be drinking coffee,” he insisted. “Call room service and order chamomile tea.”
“I don’t need you telling me what to do.” She pushed back her chair. “I’m not hungry after all. You can finish the omelet.”
“Lily, wait,” Oliver pleaded. “I’m in a terrible mood, and I’m taking it out on you. Angela left last night.”
“I’m sorry.” Lily sat back down. “But that must be what you wanted.”
“What I wanted was for her not to lie to me in the first place,” he sighed. “I can’t complain. She settled her half of the bill and left me a coupon for a dozen free roses. I’ll never use them. I’m done with dating.”
“Of course you’re going to date.” She laughed. “You don’t like being alone.”
“I’ll take a class at the New School and work on a book of restaurant reviews.”
“Why don’t you take Louisa to Vermont for a week,” she suggested. “You can see the leaves change and buy fresh maple syrup.”
“You just want the house to yourself so Ricky can stay over.” He eyed her carefully. “I don’t mind if you introduce him to Louisa, but I’d prefer that he doesn’t spend the night. We don’t want to set a bad example.”
“Ricky isn’t coming to America.” She brushed crumbs from her dress. “I told him I don’t want to see him again.”
“That is news.” He looked up. “I hope I didn’t have anything to do with it.”
“Of course you had something to do with it!” Her cheeks flamed. “I decided I had to find out whether Ricky told the truth about his engagement. It turns out he wanted to marry Poppy for the same reason he said he was in love with me.” She traced the rim of her cup. “He dreamed of owning a clothing store on Fifth Avenue.”
“I don’t understand.” He frowned.
“He needed to marry someone with an American passport so he could get a green card,” she explained. “Of course, he said I got it all wrong, and he was in love with me. But how could I believe him?”
“I’m terribly sorry. I was certain Angela was telling the truth about Ricky,” Oliver said. “I had to tell you. I didn’t want you to get hurt.”
“I can’t think about it now,” she said quickly. “I have so much to do. Ricky said he was going to help at the grand opening, and I gave Dolores the day off. It’s exhausting doing everything myself. But tonight I’m going to curl up with a bowl of soup, and tomorrow I’ll get on the plane. I’ve never been so excited about folding Louisa’s laundry.”
Oliver put down his cup. “I’ll help you at Lily Bristol, if you do something for me.”
“Do what for you, Oliver?” she asked.
“Come to the opening of Nero’s tonight,” he urged. “I hate reviewing restaurants by myself. I get full before the entrée. And it’s supposed to be the sexiest restaurant on the Emerald Coast. I don’t want to be the only man without a date.”
“I’m not going to be your date.” She shook her head.
“I didn’t mean it like that,” he said. “It’s just awkward to eat alone. Please, we’ve come all this way. We don’t want to spend our last day on the Emerald Coast by ourselves.”
It would be fun to go to the opening of Nero’s. And why should she spend her last night on the Emerald Coast alone? She would have plenty of nights by herself when she returned to Connecticut.
“All right, Oliver.” She stood up. “I’ll go with you. Now I really have to hurry. I’ll meet you at Lily Bristol in an hour.”
Oliver ate the last bite of omelet and stood up. He walked to the door and turned around.
“Wear that dress you wore at the Yacht Club,” he said. “You looked like Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”
“You watch too many classic movies.” She laughed. “I’ll see you later.”
* * *
Lily slipped on her pumps and glanced at her phone. There was a text from her store manager in San Francisco, wishing her good luck. Even her mother had sent an email saying she was proud of her.
She put on a wide-brimmed hat and grabbed her purse. She would think about Ricky later. She was on her way to the opening of Lily Bristol Sardinia, and it was going to be a great success.