The Hamptons had a way of making bad decisions look beautiful.
Maybe it was the ocean.
Maybe it was the champagne.
Maybe it was the fact that nobody here ever had to worry about what came next.
For everyone else, summer meant three months of freedom.
For the people aboard the M/Y Riva, summer meant something entirely different.
It meant three months of being rich, reckless, and completely unsupervised.
The 310-foot Vanderbilt superyacht sat just beyond the East Hampton shoreline, glowing beneath the last traces of sunset.
Seven decks.
An infinity pool overlooking the Atlantic.
Multiple lounges.
A cinema.
A spa.
A gym nobody had ever actually used.
A glass elevator.
A helipad.
A private beach club built into the lower deck.
And enough bedrooms for twenty-two people to disappear into separate corners of the yacht whenever they were tired of pretending to like each other.
Tonight, nobody was tired.
Not yet.
The party had started hours ago.
And Céleste Vanderbilt was standing in front of her bedroom mirror, trying to convince herself that she was ready.
Her reflection looked perfect.
Black silk dress.
Diamond earrings.
Perfectly curled hair.
Glossy lips.
Not a single visible crack.
She picked up her phone.
Sabrina: "Where are you?"
Céleste smiled.
Céleste: "Getting ready."
Sabrina: "You've been getting ready for an hour."
Céleste: "And?"
Sabrina: "And I know you. You're hiding."
Céleste rolled her eyes.
Céleste: "I'm coming."
She put her phone down.
Her smile disappeared.
Four months.
Four months since Damon.
Four months since she'd ruined the relationship she'd thought would last forever.
Four months since he'd finally looked at her and admitted that he couldn't keep doing this.
She remembered the exact expression on his face.
Not anger.
Not hatred.
Just exhaustion.
Disappointment.
And somehow, that had hurt more.
Céleste had promised herself she'd change.
She had tried.
God, she'd tried.
YOU ARE READING
The Summer We Ruined
Non-FictionTwenty-two kids. One summer. Nothing left to lose. They have the money, the cars, the yachts, the summer houses, and enough secrets to destroy each other. For them, summer isn't about relaxing. It's about private islands, midnight yacht parties, ill...
