Chapter 14: Chapter 14

Ian

Stretched out on Rick's couch after an insane attempt to go golfing, I stewed. The outing hadn't been the distraction I'd been hoping for. "Have you talked to Summer this week? Did she tell you what that asshat Peter said?"

Rick eyed me as if to say, finally you start talking. "Peter from the hobby store? The guy who's crushed on her since third grade? No. But it must be interesting if you're mentioning it."

I looked over at him, irritation making my temples pound. "I thought you and Summer had this little psychic friends network going."

"It's not like that and you know it. I sense things about her, is all. She doesn't dig Peter anyway."

I stood. Paced. Made a tight fist until I lost circulation. It felt better than my knotted gut. "Peter asked her if she wouldn't go out with him because I was in love with her."

"Observant of Peter to notice."

My glare could have melted the arctic. "Funny." I could give a rat's ass what spewed from Peter's mouth. "It was Summer's reaction that concerns me."

"And what was her reaction?"

I still wasn't entirely sure. She'd looked at me like she'd hoped it was true and then promptly freaked out when I'd not responded. As if the idea was entirely preposterous, me desiring her. In her defense, I'd never even hinted.

Rick scratched his jaw. "You need to tell her how you feel."

"What?" I spun around on him. "Are you drunk?" Rick was the sole person in my life who knew my true feelings about Summer. He'd hung out with me when I'd sulked, listened to me brood, had given me an outlet to channel my frustrations. He'd never, not once, suggested I tell her. He knew as well as I did how epically stupid that would be. There was a laundry list of why-nots.

Rick folded his hands in his lap as if waiting patiently for me to blow a gasket. "She's in a different place in her life now. So are you. Are you going to sit back and watch her with every other guy but you until she finally settles on one?"

Direct hit. None of the guys she'd been with had been a threat. She'd felt nothing for them. They never lasted. Except Matt. And he was in town, right this very second. I sat on the couch and put my head in my hands.

I'd kissed Summer once, a year after I'd first noticed romantic feelings for her. She'd come over to my house in a huff about the jock she'd been dating. I'll never know what had gotten into me, or where I'd mustered the courage, but I'd kissed her. Swift and hard. After pulling away, I had waited for her to say something. Anything. Instead, she'd laughed. Laughed. She never brought it up again and I never tried again.

"You don't know how she'll react until you say something."

I was pretty certain I knew how she'd respond. She'd either laugh like I was screwing around or she'd flip out. I would bet my left nut she, in no way, reciprocated my feelings. If, just once through the years, she'd given me any indication, a blip of a hint that she saw me as someone other than her friend, I might've made a move. A spark of recognition. A parting of her lips. But no. Thus, here we were. Me, lusting for what I could never have, and her, oblivious.

Rick took a swig of beer from his bottle. "Matt's in town. We both know why. And if Summer doesn't shut down or bolt when he takes it to the next level, you won't get her. You won't get the girl."

A knife wound to the gut with a battery acid chaser. I groaned, fisting my hands in my hair. "I just never saw her going there, actually settling down. This is Summer, you know? The hopeless romantic who wants to live in an old movie, but flees the minute her relationships threaten to get serious." She wanted a family, kids, but kept drawing herself up short anytime she got close to that possibility.

Rising, I resumed my pacing. "Does she love him, you think?"

Rick swallowed. "I don't think it matters."

Worst part? That was the God's honest truth. Matt was one of the few people in her comfort zone, and though she'd be settling with him, she would do it to not be alone anymore.

Dee barreled through the front door, Summer laughing on her heels.

She seemed happy, considering she'd been upset the night before. Christ, her eyes. When she smiled like she meant it, when it wasn't out of politeness or something forced, she could bring down satellites. She stole my breath. Her battle with depression had the fear of God nipping at my heels for years. But this...this was all her. The real her she almost never let out of the box.

Dee held up a very small yellow bikini and grinned wickedly. "It'll look good on our girl here, yeah?"

Fuck me dead. The images. Oh, the images.

I shot Summer a look. The pressure in my skull and unadulterated punch of lust in my gut must have showed estimably on my face, because she whipped her head back in reaction. Hell. She suspected. There was no doubt. Understanding hardened her gaze. Surprise parted her lips. It only took her ten years and me freezing up when she'd asked for the truth to get us here.

Now what? Panic shredded my insides.

She bowed her head and blushed. Blushed. I wondered if the adorable pink tinge to her cheeks was from the purchase or the awkward awareness between us that seemed to grow overnight. She typically dressed for comfort, not trends. Certainly not anything too revealing. A bikini wasn't her thing.

Shit. The visual came again.

"Matt will go nuts, don't you think? Now that he's moving to Charlotte and they're officially a couple, we needed to get her something to spark, you know-" Dee winked.

And...lights out. That's all, folks. Air? Gone. Heart? Stopped. Hope? Withered to dust.

The glare Summer gave Dee should have killed her mid-sentence.

Dee shrugged. "What? It's not a secret. You would have told them."

Summer rolled her eyes in response.

I exchanged a holy-shit look with Rick, unable to speak. After a long, awkward moment, my gaze landed back on Summer. "Congratulations," I croaked. "He better take good care of you." Damn if my heart didn't just crack in two. Out. I needed out of here. "I have to go."

Summer reached for me as I passed her. "I need to talk to you."

It took every ounce of will in my body to put on my go-to smile when all I wanted to do was crawl in a hole. I kissed her on the cheek. "I have to check on the store. I'll see you later."

Fifteen minutes later, I marched through the entry of my small shop and threw the door open, banging it against the wall with a resounding thud. The sound was only a quarter as loud as my heartbeat.

Matt was moving to Charlotte. His relationship with Summer was no longer casual. In the not too distant future, he'd propose to her, she'd say yes, and they'd have a litter of perfect, blond babies. Exactly what she'd always wanted. A family. To belong.

I growled, knowing I'd done this to myself. Whether she'd suspected I'd wanted more than friendship before didn't matter. I hadn't told her, hadn't made it clear. Though I was damn certain she was beginning to figure it out, she'd still taken that step with Matt.

Shit. We used to talk about these things, about everything. When we'd discussed the matter the past few days, almost is if in passing, she'd given me no indication she'd take the leap with him if Matt asked. I had to wonder if she was grabbing contentment with both hands or running from me.

Julie, one of my employees, stared blankly at me from behind the counter. Our personalities clashed well. She was calm, efficient, and only lifted an eyebrow when I barked at her. Her presence allowed me to work from home in my woodshop rather than focus on selling.

I sighed. "I'm sorry. Bad day." I carefully closed the door.

She smiled, obviously used to and not amused by my moods.

I glanced around the store. Opening it had been Summer's idea when the retail shop went on the market. I never would regret it. Bookshelves cased the back wall from end to end, filling the place with an old, musty fragrance. The walls were painted a deep, rich blue. Also Summer's idea. She'd thought the color would immediately calm customers, and it did. She'd designed the logo, too. The shop floor held all my hand-crafted pieces. Rocking chairs, desks, shelves, a few tables. I did custom orders also, but that was rare. My website had pictures of what was available. Most purchases came from tourists or online.

We weren't raking in the numbers, but I had a comfortable pocketbook. A cushion from my grandfather's estate when he'd passed away made up for slow periods.

I glanced at Julie. "Were we busy today?"

"Not really."

I nodded. Customers tended to come in waves. "Are you sure you'll be okay while I'm gone on vacation?"

She smiled again, placating. "I'll be fine. I have the number if anything goes wrong and you gave me the schedule for the other part-timers a month ago."

Julie had been with me four years. I'd closed up shop in the past while I'd vacationed, but she'd talked me into staying open this year.

I headed back toward my office, deciding to do the totals from last week. Typically, Rick did them for me, but I needed the distraction.

After an hour, I rubbed my eyes, glad we were doing more than breaking even. From June through August we tended to make the most profit. The draw of tourists and vacationers pulled the sales. We'd hit another jump around Christmas.

Julie walked in and set the change drawer down on my desk. "Do you need me to close up?"

"No, I'll do it. Thanks."

"I'll see you tomorrow then." She smiled and walked out.

I leaned back in my chair, scrubbing my hands over my hair. My gaze raked over the painting Summer made for me the other day. It seemed fitting to put it in my office, but now there wasn't even an escape here. Sighing, I got up and locked the store, shutting off lights along the way.

From my pocket, my cell rang. I debated ignoring it, but answered without checking the ID. "Yeah."

"Is that any way to talk to your mother?" Her smooth voice was laced with amusement.

I smiled. "Hi, Mama. Sorry, bad day."

"Hmm. How are things? Summer okay? The store?"

"Things are fine. The store is doing well. We're in the black."

There was a pause as if she was waiting for me to elaborate. "And Summer? How is my sweet girl?"

"Fine." I frowned. Summer was peachy. Me, on the other hand, had ulcers on my ulcers.

I couldn't see the smile on Mom's face, but I could hear it in her voice. "Okay then, honey. We're leaving tomorrow morning for Tennessee. I left you kids some food and the house is as clean as I'm willing to get it. So, you'll be all right?"

She was referring to Seasmoke, where her and Dad lived now that they'd retired. They were driving to Memphis to visit Mom's sister while we were in Myrtle next week. "Of course, Mama."

"Drive carefully," she warned. "I love you."

I dropped into my office chair. "I love you, too. Hi to Dad."

"Tell my surrogate daughter I say the same to her."

Meaning Summer. I shook my head. "Will do."

With a long sigh, I hung up and noticed the rain had started pouring while I was on the phone. Which meant, more than likely, Summer would come over tonight. She always did when it rained.

On the way to my car, parked out front, I bumped solidly into Tim Avery. "I'm sorry. I didn't see you." I pulled Summer's attorney under the awning over the front door. "You okay?"

"Fine, fine." He waved me off. "I saw your back light on and thought I'd come by to get your parents' number. I might need it for the hearing."

I wondered if the man had hit his head when we'd collided. "What hearing?"

"They scheduled the preliminary hearing for the property tomorrow. I may not need your parents for that, but if it goes to a trial-"

Prickles of warning skittered up my spine. "What in the hell are you talking about?"

Tim's eyes widened and his shoulders squared. "Summer didn't tell you. Oh, gosh. I assumed-It's just you two are close. I thought-"

My stomach sank like lead. "You thought Summer told me what?"

His lips twisted as if considering whether to divulge. Everyone in Wylie knew Summer and I were joined at the hip, our bond stronger than blood. Tim nodded, probably assuming Summer would tell me the info on her own anyway. "Her mother is trying to take possession of the house. Tom never changed the deed. We have a hearing on-"

Her...mother? The one who'd abandoned Summer before she could walk? That mother? I had no idea she'd even come back to town, never mind the house.

Christ. No.

I blinked through the rain, shock morphing into dread. Tim was still rambling, but I didn't hear anything else. I bolted to the car, dialed Summer's number, and roared down 49 toward home.

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