At the back of the house, Jodi leads me through the glass double doors and down onto a flagstone path that winds around a wall of brush, the sound of cicadas, katydids, and crickets pulsing through the night.
A wide flagstone patio sits ahead, globe lights strung back and forth over the long wooden table in its center, and more still wrapped in a spiraling pattern up the side of a huge tree that partially hangs over the far end of the table.
Twelve people could easily eat here, but there are only three high-backed wooden chairs, two of them occupied.
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“Well, hi there, Alice!” Margaret calls cheerily, pushing to her feet as, to her right, a rigid behemoth of a man essentially snaps to his.
Hayden doesn’t look surprised to see me, but he doesn’t look happy either.
I understand, of course—I’m not thrilled to find him here myself—but it still trips an old wire in me, a need not just to win him over but to root around until I find out what’s under his cold exterior.
I push my rising disappointment aside as I follow Jodi to the table.
Ultimately, I am still dining al fresco with the only remaining member of one of America’s most storied families—someone who has fascinated me since childhood.
“Good to see you both!” I say, reaching out to take Margaret’s hand. She holds my palm briefly between both of hers, her warm cookie scent engulfing me and her eyes as sparkly as ever. Which is to say, exceptionally.
“You too, sugar,” she says. “Thanks for coming on such short notice.”
“Thanks for having me,” I reply.
Her gaze tracks sideways to Jodi, and her smile falters.
Jodi heads her off. “The flowers are for me, so don’t you go getting any ideas.”
“And the wine’s for everyone,” I put in.
“Well, aren’t you sweet,” Margaret says, gently squeezing my forearm. “You remember Hayden, from yesterday.”
“Of course,” I say. “I’m a big fan.” I specify, unnecessarily, “Of his work.”
“That’s very kind of you,” Hayden says, before lowering himself stiffly back into his chair.
“Sit, sit,” Margaret says, waving toward the open chair across from Hayden. As I take a seat, she asks, “What would you like to drink? Jodi’s an excellent bartender.”
“Oh, I’m good with water,” I say.
This seems to displease both Margaret and Jodi.
“Don’t deny a gal a chance to show some Southern hospitality,” Margaret says. “At least have some sweet tea or something.”
I look toward Jodi. “Coffee?” I say. “Decaf if you have it, regular otherwise?”
She nods and disappears back down the path, leaving the three of us to settle awkwardly around the table.
“So!” Margaret folds her hands together and slides her elbows onto the table. “I’m betting you two are wondering what exactly is going on. Well, you anyway, Alice. I was just telling Hayden here what I’m thinking.”
Hayden here takes an extremely terse sip from his water glass, eschewing the dark cocktail also sitting in front of him.
“I am a little surprised,” I admit.
“I know, I know,” she says. “I tried to make a quick decision, believe me, but I kept thinking about what you said, Alice.”
“What I said?” I say.
“This only works if it’s with someone I completely trust.” She shrugs. “And seeing as how I’m not the most trusting gal, determining who that might be will take some time.”
I cast a glance toward Hayden. He’s staring at his water, as if he’s trying to make the glass shatter with only his brain.
With a quick clearing of my throat, I look back to Margaret. “That completely makes sense. We should spend a few more days getting to know each other before you commit—”
“A month,” she says.
“A month,” Hayden and I say in unison.
She smiles cheerily, but the expression flickers when she reads something in my face. “Now, don’t worry,” she cries. “I’ll pay you both for your time, of course. Jodi’s inside working on some paperwork for you two to sign.” I look to Hayden again, take in his frown and the tension in his brow.
“I’m still not sure I’m following,” I admit.
“It’s like this.” Margaret sips from her frosted martini glass before going on. “I’ll pay you both, for the month, and provide a reasonable housing stipend. Jodi can send first offers to you or your agents, as you prefer. I’ll negotiate within reason, and in the end, you’ll both be paid the same. You’ll sign NDAs, and I’ll meet with each of you throughout the month. At the end, you show me what you’ve got so far. I choose one of you to do the book with, and we go off and sell it to the highest bidder.”
“Ms. Ives,” Hayden begins.
“Margaret,” she says, with a wave of her hand. “Just Margaret. Or Irene. That’s what everyone around here knows me as. Swapped my first and last initials. Guess I should’ve waited until after the NDAs to cop to that.”
She winks at me again, and some of my unease about this arrangement fritters off, as if by magic.
“Don’t you think it would be easier to just—”
“Maybe,” Margaret cuts him off, smiling all the time. “But if you want something done right, you don’t go with easy. I’ve thought about it, and this is how I want to do it.”
“And what if one of us just bows out?” he asks.
She stiffens at this, the humor leaching from her eyes. “Well, I’m not just going to choose someone by default. I want options. So if one of you drops out—which is of course your prerogative—I’m still going to finish this monthlong trial with the other, before committing to anything. If I like what you’ve done, we’ll go from there.”
“So you’re saying,” Hayden bites out, “that we could both put a month of work into this, and you might not even decide to do the book?”
I’m surprised by how blunt he’s being, bordering on combative, but the gleam returns to Margaret’s eye and the corners of her naturally pink lips turn up. “That’s the deal.”
For the first time since I sat down, his eyes flash to me. “All right,” is all he says. Not a word more, but somehow his tone makes it evident what he means: Not, all right, I understand or all right, I’ll consider it, but all right. I’m in.
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Excerpted from Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry, published by Berkley, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House, LLC. Copyright © 2025. Audio excerpted with permission of Penguin Random House Audio from Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry, read by Julia Whelan. © Emily Henry ℗ 2025 Penguin Random House, LLC.
