It was nearly eight o’clock. After a toe-curling shower, I’d sat in the easy chair with my e-reader and finished one book, then started another.

Serenity. That was the word for it. A beautiful, serene world full of beautiful people.

From my window, I could make out the back of the property and the pond just beyond it. Max was out there, somewhere, and a few other boats dotted the water. The sky was deep blue, clear, and it seemed like I could see for miles. And it was all lovely. I wished I could take a picture that would accurately capture it all, but no camera could do that.

It was enough to sit and breathe it in, to know I was part of it for a little while before going back to the noise and congestion of the city. I loved it, of course, but I was starting to see the value of being able to get away sometimes.

A couple of hours later, when the thought of coffee was too much to resist, I contemplated going downstairs. After dressing in jeans, a fitted button-down, and cardigan—I’d done my fair share of research before packing, and that seemed to be a popular clothing combination—I went down to the kitchen. There, Millicent and Gretchen sat with their coffee. Fortunately, there was no sign of Lillian.

“Mimi, sweetheart, help yourself. Cora has the morning off, so we’re sort of pitching in to do things on our own. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Not at all,” I said.

Pouring a cup of coffee was hardly a hardship. And of course, it was the best coffee I'd ever tasted, because why wouldn't it be? Everything was perfect there.

The kitchen was stunning, a chef’s dream come true. Stainless steel appliances, a six-burner gas range, dual ovens, even a wood-fired oven built into the wall. I couldn’t imagine what they baked in there. Pizza? Bread? Either way, I’d happily taste test.

The ladies sat in what I guessed was the breakfast nook, a sunny spot in the back corner of the room which faced out in the direction my room did. Millicent waved me over. I wondered what Gretchen thought of that. How much did she know about me? If Lillian had told her, she hid it well. Either that or she thought her soon-to-be son-in-law was as big a piece of garbage as he actually was.

“The boys should be back soon from their little trip,” Millicent chuckled.

Gretchen’s nose wrinkled in distaste. “I simply can’t understand the allure of fishing.”

“I reacted the same way when Max told me he was going,” I confided. “I’m not much of an outdoorsy girl, I guess. Though I do like hiking.”

“Sure. It doesn’t involve slimy fish and worms.” The three of us grinned, and I thought I didn’t hate Gretchen as much as I’d assumed I would.

Until she opened her mouth again. “So exactly how long have you and Max been together? I heard you were already in another relationship until just recently.”

My blood turned to ice. Millicent, bless her heart, looked confused. Whether or not she actually was, I had no idea. I felt like a deer about to be run over by a semi with sweet, pretty Gretchen at the wheel. There I was, worrying about people taking Max and me for a fake when I should’ve been coming up with a rebuttal for a question about Josh. Finally, I managed to squeak out, “I wouldn’t call it a relationship. It was all under false pretenses.”

“Oh, was it?” She leaned her chin on her hand, all innocence.

“Yes, and I was deeply hurt when I found out the truth.” I stared at her, almost daring her to keep going. I didn’t want to embarrass Millicent by flinging my dirty laundry around, but I’d go there if Gretchen kept pushing.

She didn’t. Instead of running me down, she sat back in her chair. “Well, I’m sorry to hear that.”

“So was I.”

“How about some cake?” Millicent asked, smiling almost too brightly.

"None for me, thanks. I think I'll take a little walk."

I went out without my coat and was glad to find it unseasonably warm outside. I wouldn't have to suffer the cold while I sulked. I couldn't stay in there a minute longer, not with Judgy McJudgepants staring at me over the rim of her coffee cup. I should’ve known she would find some thinly-veiled way of bringing Josh into the conversation. Well, I wasn’t ill-bred enough to tell the whole sordid story, though that would’ve been just what Josh deserved.

I would never do it anyway. Lillian made my skin crawl and I wouldn’t have minded if she moved to Nepal and never came back, but it wasn’t her fault her boyfriend cheated. She was just a woman, like me.

I guessed I would’ve freaked out the way she did if the shoe was on the other foot, but I would have dropped Josh like a freaking scalding-hot potato if I’d found out what she did. Good luck to her. She wanted to stand by her man, even when he wasn’t much of a man.

There was a wooded area beyond the painstakingly manicured lawn, and I walked toward it. Maybe a little time around nature would make me feel less homicidal. Max was bound to come back soon, and nobody would be mean to me when he was around. They wouldn’t dare. He was one of them.

When I saw a figure emerging from the trees, my heart skipped a beat. It was Max coming to look for me. Too cold for outdoor sex, but it would be nice to walk with him.

But it wasn’t.