The Summer Girlfriend (Heart Beach, #1)(42)

Mercy’s comment annoyed Noelle, but Jeremiah took it in stride, still sporting his easy, if manufactured, smile. Noelle didn’t know why Jeremiah didn’t work for Smith’s Sweets. Like his beef with Percy, it didn’t seem like information that she’d need in order to do her job. She was curious, of course, but she wasn’t about to pass judgment on his choice, like Mercy. She rethreaded her fingers through his and gave his hand a light squeeze.

“You’ll be attending the gala in a few weeks, won’t you?” Mercy asked. “I remember how much your grandfather loved the gala. You look more and more like him each year. It’s uncanny.”

Jeremiah’s hand tensed in Noelle’s. His first sign of true discomfort.





Chapter Twelve




Jeremiah immediately began looking for a way out of this conversation.

“Ah, yeah,” he said, feeling his smile finally crack. “I hear that a lot.”

The polite conversation and schmoozing, he could do. He’d been doing it for the past two hours. It was surface-level talk that required him only to smile, listen, and respond. But talking about Pop wasn’t an easy, superficial topic. It was inevitable, really, that someone would mention his grandfather today. Now that he thought about it, he was surprised that it had taken this long. He should have better prepared himself.

“Your grandfather loved to dance at the galas,” Mercy continued. She smiled as she looked at Noelle. “Did you ever see his grandfather dance?”

“Um, no.” Noelle’s fingers remained threaded through Jeremiah’s. “He passed away before I met Jeremiah.”

“Oh, right, of course,” Mercy said. “He was one of a kind. A sweet and giving man. He used to—”

“I’m sorry, Ms. Webster,” Jeremiah said. “I hate to interrupt, but I forgot that I need to talk to my mom about something. It was good to see you again. Enjoy the rest of the party.”

He began to pull Noelle away, and she went with him easily.

“Oh yes, lovely speaking with you, Jeremiah!” Mercy said. “And lovely to meet you, Nolie! Come by the boutique! We have feather sunglasses in a variety of colors!”

“It’s Noelle,” Jeremiah called over his shoulder.

How could Mercy ask someone to spend money at her store and call them the wrong name in the same breath?

“Thank you,” Noelle whispered.

Jeremiah nodded, feeling slightly embarrassed about his sudden need to abandon the scene. Maybe he would have been able to deal with hearing Ms. Webster’s story about Pop if they weren’t here in Heart Beach. If they weren’t surrounded by Pop’s memory, along with Jeremiah’s ever-present fear that he wasn’t doing Pop’s memory any justice.

As he and Noelle moved through the crowd, people tried to stop him to talk, but he kept up the same excuse that he needed to find Celeste. In reality, Celeste was in social butterfly hostess mode, and Jeremiah probably wouldn’t get a chance to speak to her again until after the party ended. But saying that he needed to find her was an excuse that no one would question. He just needed a break from all the conversation. Holding hands with Noelle felt like the only thing anchoring him in place.

He led her around to the side of the house where there were no guests milling around. The music was less loud here. He leaned back against the house and took a moment to hear himself think. He’d once thrived in big social settings, but he’d spent the past two years quietly trying to work on himself. This party was more jarring than he’d expected.

Noelle silently stood in front of him, watching. Waiting. He wondered if she’d ask if he was okay. He half hoped that she would, half hoped that she wouldn’t.

“Mercy’s sunglasses were kind of ridiculous,” she said. “I wonder what it says about me that she thinks I’d want to buy them.”

Jeremiah laughed softly. “I think it’s more so that she wants someone who looks like you to be seen wearing her stuff.”

Noelle smiled as she shook her head. “I’d love to be a fly on the wall at her boutique to see who shops there.”

“I’ve been to her boutique before. You’ll suffocate from the perfume spray before you can see who else is inside.”

Noelle laughed, and the heavy mental cloud hovering above him began to dissipate at the sound of her giggle.

“How are you doing?” he asked, lightly touching her arm before dropping his hand to his side. “Are you having fun?”

“I am,” she said. “And as far as how I’m doing, I guess I should ask you that. Am I being a good girlfriend?”

He was about to tell her that she was doing an amazing job, but then he heard someone call his name.

“Jeremiah, yo, I’ve been looking for you all afternoon!”

Jeremiah instinctively fixed his face into a smile, but his smile froze once he turned and saw who had discovered him. Theo Cruz, his old friend. The same friend he’d been partying with the night before Pop died. Last he’d heard, Theo lived in DC now, but his family still had a house in Heart Beach.

“Theo, what’s up?” Jeremiah said. He swallowed hard and forced his smile to stay in place. Seeing Theo was a stark reminder of the choices he wished he could remake.

“Nothing much. Just spending time with the fam for the weekend,” Theo said, walking closer. He wore a white button-up and white shorts. He lightly punched Jeremiah in the shoulder. “I was in the city back in November, by the way. I hit you up, but you didn’t respond.”