Obvious to Tricia and Maggie anyway, so when Serena offered to help, it was particularly awkward. “If you need any help, I’m available. I’m finding that being unemployed really frees up my time. I can pitch in.”

Tricia cringed. She knew comments like that got under Liza’s skin, the implication that mounting a show in a gallery was akin to volunteering at a school bake sale. Tricia had witnessed interactions like this before when she was out in Southport with her big sister—random encounters at the market, on the sidelines of one of Fitz’s games—and Liza’s friends would offer their unsolicited advice to her about publicity or which wine to serve at an opening. Some volunteered, as Serena had, to work an event if their husband was out of town and they had “a free night,” as if selling art was easy-peasy and they could do Liza’s job with little or no training. It made Liza crazy. Tricia almost felt sorry for Serena in that moment.

But Liza remembered what Raj had said about surviving the truth. Liza’s life today looked so different than Liza’s life last month. The truth was she had no father, no husband, and now this new sister. Could forming a relationship with Serena be the key to survival? “That is so kind of you.

Why don’t you put your number in my phone? I’ll be in touch. I’m trying to wrap my head around everything that needs to get done in the next day or two.”

It wasn’t accurate to say that Tricia gasped, but she did emit a strange sound as she watched Liza hand over her phone to Serena. What was happening here?

Maggie, also sensing a significant shift in attitude from Liza, chimed in,

“As long as you’re adding things to your calendar, put the Fourth down.”

She turned to Liza and Tricia. “I’m thinking we should have one last big blowout here at Willow Lane. Have a bunch of people over for a barbecue, watch the fireworks from the dock or maybe light off a few of our own. I feel like we owe that to the house. We can’t let Dad’s wake be the last party.

That’s maudlin.”

It was on the tip of Tricia’s tongue to object. She had had several calls this week with Cap about the threatening emails and calls from the publisher in search of the memoir; even Lois was getting antsy about the situation. Tricia knew time was better spent on memoir recovery than entertaining. And she felt like she was losing ground in keeping Serena at bay. Clearly, Liza and Maggie were growing more comfortable with the idea of Serena as a permanent fixture. She understood Maggie’s desire for a relationship. Serena was a shiny new toy and Maggie was never one to look away from those. But Liza? Liza had been in a fog these past few days, so uncharacteristic of her usual rapid-fire existence, and she’d been complaining about exhaustion and lack of sleep. Tricia didn’t think there was any rush to embrace Serena, but clearly her sisters did.

Still, a Fourth of July barbecue was the perfect excuse to invite Raj to something after dark. She’d been trying to give him his space in the evenings, but a party in the backyard on the Fourth was an automatic invite, right? “I’m in,” she said. “You know, I was forced to take a cooking class at some bogus firm retreat last fall, but at least I know how to make potato salad now. Not the mayonnaise kind. The fancy kind.”

“Liza, is that okay with you? I know you usually go to the club.”

“Not this year. I don’t have the energy. And Whit is flying straight to Maine from Durham to see the kids at camp.” Liza tucked that detail in so smoothly, no one questioned her about why he would go alone. “One thing, I’m happy to be a guest at your party as long as you do everything. Or anything, really. Do not commit to this and invite all these people, then disappear.”

Maggie was delighted with Liza ceding control. “I got it covered.”

“Do you do a lot of barbecuing now? I don’t really think of that as your thing,” asked Tricia. As far as any of them knew, Maggie had not grilled a single thing in her entire life. Then she added because she couldn’t resist,

“Maybe we can ask Tim to come back and do some cheffing. Oh, I’m sorry, line cooking.”

“Stop it. I’m sure he’s very busy,” Maggie fired back, though it wasn’t a bad idea. “And I barbecue. Darren and I grilled all the time in LA. Well, Darren did. I’m sure I can figure this out. Invite whoever you want. I’ll take care of the details. Serena, we hope you can make it.”

Serena was dying to ask about Tim and Darren, but didn’t feel like she’d earned that intimacy yet. She was quietly thrilled to be on this guest list. “I

have to make an appearance at the Winthrop party, but I’ll come after. I don’t cook, either,” Serena said, turning to Tricia, “but sangria is a specialty of mine.”

“Bring lots! Now, everybody has to leave because if I don’t get to work, the gallery owner is going to kill me. She has no mercy when it comes to missing deadlines.” Maggie hugged Serena once again, a public demonstration of her enviable open heart. “I’m so glad you came over. Text me. Let’s make a coffee date.”

Tricia had a sinking feeling, as if her sisters weren’t even trying to keep some distance from this relative stranger. Serena was the new puppy that everyone in the family wanted to play with except Tricia because she was prone to hives. She needed some fresh air. “I need to get back to work, too, so I’ll say goodbye here. Looks like we’ll see you in a few days,” Tricia said, bowing formally and heading back to the boathouse.

Liza and Maggie looked at each other and then Serena. “That’s Tricia on a good day,” Maggie explained. “So warm and fuzzy.”

The more time Serena spent with the sisters, the more dissimilar she found them to be. Same parents, different personalities. As an only child, she had this fantasy that sisters were multiple versions of the same person, sharing clothes and makeup. As an adult, she’d met enough sets of sisters to know that wasn’t true. Somehow, she was going to try to figure out these Sweeneys one sister at a time.

Liza walked Serena out to her car. There were a million things she was tempted to say. Like, I’ve never had a big sister before. Or, My husband is never coming home. And, I miss my parents so much even though I’m a grown-ass woman. But not yet. It wasn’t time yet. Maybe, one day soon.

Instead, she said, “I’ve been thinking. I could use an extra pair of hands and a few extra brain cells next week. I do feel a little overwhelmed. I haven’t gotten to editing the artists’ statements and getting out some press releases.

My regular PR person is on maternity leave. I know a press release is way below your usual assignments, but if you are truly interested, I would so appreciate your help.”

Serena guessed it was one of the few times in Liza’s adult life that she had asked for help. “Whatever you need.”

“Thank you. I’ll call you.” Serena closed the car door and Liza tapped on the window. It came down. “I’m glad you came by today. Come by

anytime.”

Tricia burst into the boathouse. “Hey, want to go sailing?” She needed to clear her head after what she had witnessed in the studio. An afternoon sail was the ticket.

Raj stood up from the desk and folded his arms over his chest. “That journalist is your sister.”

Tricia didn’t expect to be challenged, but she liked it. “Half-sister.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because I don’t really know you.” It hurt Tricia to say that, but it was true. She’d thought about telling him a dozen times over the last few days, but couldn’t find the opening sentence. “It’s not the most natural thing in the world to bring up.”

“But you had me sign an NDA, in any case.”

“We would have had you sign that regardless.”

Raj unfolded his arms and looked at her. “Did you think I’d judge you and your family?”

“One day, I lost my father and the next, this girl across the street shows up and she’s my sister. It’s disorienting to have the fabric of your family change overnight,” Tricia said by way of explanation. Raj moved closer to Tricia. She thought he might reach for her, but he stopped short of touching her. She panicked. “But I see that Liza had no issues with filling you in.”

Stepping back, Raj said, “She blurted it out after I noticed the physical resemblance between you and Serena. I think that’s her name.”

“Yes, that’s her name. I’ll tell you what I know, but not today, not now. I need a break.” Was Raj bewitched by Serena, too? She was on the verge of furious, but trying not to show her frustration. “Do you want to go sailing or not?”

“I don’t know how to sail.”

She loved it when men admitted to not knowing something. “I do. It’s a beautiful afternoon.” Tricia wanted to be alone with him. “Please come.”

Raj looked around at the mess in the boathouse, but the afternoon was beautiful. And so was Tricia. “All right, let’s play hooky.”

Yes, let’s play hooky, Tricia thought.

“You have a life preserver, right?”

“They’re called PFDs. Personal Flotation Devices. And yes, of course we have them. It’s the law,” Tricia said. “You do know how to swim, though?”