this summer, as usual.”
“What did she say?”
“She seemed happy to hear it. She’d like to see you if you have time. I told her of course you’d have time for an old friend.”
“Mom,” Harper said, “you didn’t tell her anything about...” Harper hesitated, groping for the words.
“Your sex life?” her mother guessed. “Oh, sure, Harper, we discussed it at length. For hours and hours. And then she told me all about hers. We stayed up until three in the morning drinking Lemon Drops and talking about lesbian sex.”
“Mom, I just meant did you tell her I was gay.”
“No, I didn’t. You can tell her yourself when you see her this summer.”
Harper thought about how interesting and strange it would be to see Peggy after all of these years. It sounded like Peggy was looking forward to it, which was encouraging. Harper had never been sure, after how they ended their friendship. It didn’t have to be a big deal, of course. Everyone has unrequited longings from their youth, but Harper had harbored some substantial guilt over the years for how she turned away from Peggy so abruptly and completely.
Her trips back to the Cape each summer were rejuvenating. They weren’t just about visiting her family, although that was the primary reason, of course. They were also a chance to reconnect with her childhood, her simpler self. There was nothing more evocative of that for Harper than the sea.
She now lived within easy reach of the Pacific Ocean, which she treasured, but the East Coast and West Coast had entirely different personalities. You couldn’t experience Cape Cod by going to Santa Barbara, for instance. You could experience a little of it, though, by going to Mendocino, so she was drawn there regularly. Mendocino had a flavor of those old Atlantic fishing villages about it—cold mists, the plaintive groan of lighthouses. The farther north you traveled along the California coastline, the more it felt like the “real” sea, the sea that had been imprinted on her as a child.
When she had told Chelsea of her love for Mendocino, she mentioned that her brother had a vacation home there, rarely used. They had discussed going there together, a happy prospect that would never be realized. At the time, Harper couldn’t have imagined anything better than playing house with Chelsea by the sea. Or playing house anywhere with her, really.
There had been so much promise in those three months, so briefly savored. It had been like sitting down to a plentiful feast and tasting one heavenly morsel and then having the entire table snatched away, leaving nothing but the aroma. She had felt famished ever since.
After saying goodbye to her mother, Harper remembered the voice mail indicator. She dialed in and listened to the message. Her heart lost a beat as she recognized the hesitant voice. Emotion coursed through her body like a flash flood through a desert wash.
“Hi, Harper. This is Chelsea. Sorry I missed you. Could you call me...please? My cell phone number has changed. It’s 6094362. Anyway, I’d really like to talk to you. I hope you feel the same.” There was a momentary hesitation, during which Harper realized she was holding her breath. She let it out as Chelsea repeated herself in an earnest near-whisper. “Please call.”
Chapter 6
SUMMER, FOUR YEARS AGO
As usual, Harper was eating too much. Her mother seemed to have no idea how to entertain her adult children other than by feeding them. Their father commented frequently on the explosions of food that came out of the kitchen, so different from their usual bowl of Cheerios for breakfast or bologna sandwich for lunch. It was obvious to Harper that when her parents were alone, their lives were much more spartan. They were the sort of couple who enjoyed one another’s presence amid persistent stretches of silent accord. Even with a house full of visitors, her father might go for hours without uttering more than a “yup.”
Since Harper and Danny
“What did she say?”
“She seemed happy to hear it. She’d like to see you if you have time. I told her of course you’d have time for an old friend.”
“Mom,” Harper said, “you didn’t tell her anything about...” Harper hesitated, groping for the words.
“Your sex life?” her mother guessed. “Oh, sure, Harper, we discussed it at length. For hours and hours. And then she told me all about hers. We stayed up until three in the morning drinking Lemon Drops and talking about lesbian sex.”
“Mom, I just meant did you tell her I was gay.”
“No, I didn’t. You can tell her yourself when you see her this summer.”
Harper thought about how interesting and strange it would be to see Peggy after all of these years. It sounded like Peggy was looking forward to it, which was encouraging. Harper had never been sure, after how they ended their friendship. It didn’t have to be a big deal, of course. Everyone has unrequited longings from their youth, but Harper had harbored some substantial guilt over the years for how she turned away from Peggy so abruptly and completely.
Her trips back to the Cape each summer were rejuvenating. They weren’t just about visiting her family, although that was the primary reason, of course. They were also a chance to reconnect with her childhood, her simpler self. There was nothing more evocative of that for Harper than the sea.
She now lived within easy reach of the Pacific Ocean, which she treasured, but the East Coast and West Coast had entirely different personalities. You couldn’t experience Cape Cod by going to Santa Barbara, for instance. You could experience a little of it, though, by going to Mendocino, so she was drawn there regularly. Mendocino had a flavor of those old Atlantic fishing villages about it—cold mists, the plaintive groan of lighthouses. The farther north you traveled along the California coastline, the more it felt like the “real” sea, the sea that had been imprinted on her as a child.
When she had told Chelsea of her love for Mendocino, she mentioned that her brother had a vacation home there, rarely used. They had discussed going there together, a happy prospect that would never be realized. At the time, Harper couldn’t have imagined anything better than playing house with Chelsea by the sea. Or playing house anywhere with her, really.
There had been so much promise in those three months, so briefly savored. It had been like sitting down to a plentiful feast and tasting one heavenly morsel and then having the entire table snatched away, leaving nothing but the aroma. She had felt famished ever since.
After saying goodbye to her mother, Harper remembered the voice mail indicator. She dialed in and listened to the message. Her heart lost a beat as she recognized the hesitant voice. Emotion coursed through her body like a flash flood through a desert wash.
“Hi, Harper. This is Chelsea. Sorry I missed you. Could you call me...please? My cell phone number has changed. It’s 6094362. Anyway, I’d really like to talk to you. I hope you feel the same.” There was a momentary hesitation, during which Harper realized she was holding her breath. She let it out as Chelsea repeated herself in an earnest near-whisper. “Please call.”
Chapter 6
SUMMER, FOUR YEARS AGO
As usual, Harper was eating too much. Her mother seemed to have no idea how to entertain her adult children other than by feeding them. Their father commented frequently on the explosions of food that came out of the kitchen, so different from their usual bowl of Cheerios for breakfast or bologna sandwich for lunch. It was obvious to Harper that when her parents were alone, their lives were much more spartan. They were the sort of couple who enjoyed one another’s presence amid persistent stretches of silent accord. Even with a house full of visitors, her father might go for hours without uttering more than a “yup.”
Since Harper and Danny
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