Page 14 of Waves of Time

“I can’t imagine a better way to spend your summer,” Hilary said, her voice catching.

“Frank just got divorced, as well,” Rodrick explained. “And needed a break from the chaos of his life in New York. I keep telling him to come west, but he insists the east coast is his home.”

“I can’t imagine living anywhere else. Can you?” Frank asked Hilary pointedly.

“I’ve hardly left Nantucket, to be honest with you,” Hilary said. “I went to college for a while, but I came back immediately.”

“I imagine living in Nantucket is a kind of addiction,” Frank joked. “Once you start living there, you can’t imagine living anywhere else.”

“I’ve never been,” Rodrick said.

“Don’t go,” Frank joked. “As I said, you won’t be able to leave.”

Everyone laughed good-naturedly, and Hilary and Aria took this moment to lock eyes. Aria’s expression was difficult to read, but Hilary guessed she was thinking the same thing: that this was strange but interesting, a good time.

“Frank, you really should get in contact with Hilary,” Rodrick said, then leaned forward to speak quieter to Hilary, as though it was a secret. “The place he bought has beautiful bones, just beautiful. But the interior is atrocious. Worse than mine. And his wife got everything in the divorce.”

“You have to work on your whispering skills, Rodrick,” Frank joked.

Hilary laughed. “I would be happy to take a look at it. I assume you’re on the coast somewhere?”

“Not far from Siasconset,” Frank said.

“My sister lives out there,” Hilary said. “The Jessabelle House?”

“I think I’ve seen it on the bluffs,” Frank said. “But who knows? I’m still a newbie on the island. And I need some time to take it all in and meet the right people.”

Frank’s gaze was so intense that Hilary had to drop it. “I have a business card,” Hilary said, her hands shaking as she reached for her wallet to remove one. “Why don’t you give me a call when you’re back on the island and ready for help?”

Frank took the card and studied it. “The Coleman name is quite famous around Nantucket.”

“We’ve been around for generations,” Hilary said. “With no plans of moving away.”

“That’s the sign of a good family,” Frank said. “Loyalty.”

“I think so,” Hilary agreed, then eyed Aria, suddenly apprehensive. “My daughter and I have a lot to discuss about your apartment, Rodrick. Maybe we can reconvene in a couple of days and discuss a strategy? We’ll probably fly home in four or five days but come back very soon to begin the process.”

“Absolutely,” Rodrick said. “It pleases me that you understand my vision so well.”

Aria and Hilary gathered their things and said goodbye to both Frank and Rodrick, then stepped into the elevator and dropped to the first floor. Throughout, Hilary’s heart pounded, and she felt wordless. It was only when they reached the street outside that she hissed, “That went very, very well.”

Aria laughed. “Rodrick seems so out there, but in the best way.”

“He’s given us plenty of room to play around with the design,” Hilary said.

They continued to walk for a moment, both stewing in private thoughts.

“Do you think you’ll take a job for that Frank guy?” Aria asked.

“Why not? He seems…” Hilary paused, unable to come up with the appropriate description.

“Scary?” Aria tried.

Hilary laughed. “Do you think so? Maybe men like him always come off as more arrogant than they actually are. They always feel like they need to prove themselves. Maybe your father comes off that way to people who don’t know him.”

“Dad’s a nerd deep down,” Aria said, an authority on the subject, as she was his daughter.

“Don’t tell him that,” Hilary said. “It’ll break his heart!”