“No. I’m hoping it goes okay. She was excited to have a sleepover with the twins.”
I smiled. “They’re so cute with her.”
“She tells me she’s going to marry a different twin every week.” He sighed and lifted a hand to brush some runaway strands of my hair out of his face and onto my shoulder, his fingers sweeping ever so softly against my neck. My breath caught at the gesture, but I didn’t let on.
“Which twin is it this week?”
“Well, it was Wyatt, but he surprised her with a garter snake the other day, and so she punched him and told him she was now marrying Luke.”
I laughed. “Girls can be so fickle.”
A contemplative silence came over us at that. I wondered if he was thinking about Miranda. Because I sure was. I turned my face to see Jake, who avoided my eyes, suspiciously oblivious. But I knew a few more things about Jake now. Things I’d always known about him but let slip. The way he holds his cards so close to his chest. He’d forced me to face some demons this summer; it was only fair he did the same.
“Jake.”
“I’m busy.”
“No, you’re not.”
“I’m busy scouting out the area. Checking for wild animals.”
“Liar. You know this place like the back of your hand.”
He sighed. “What?”
“You know what. What happened with you and Miranda?”
We sat quiet for a moment before he said, “What didn’t happen with her? I’m like a bad country song.”
“Bad?”
“The ones with all the sad stories? Those were inspired by my married life.”
“The songs with stories are the best ones.”
“You like the songs where a wife just up and leaves?”
“Well, I actually prefer songs with a dog in there somewhere.”
“She wouldn’t let me get a dog.”
Instantly, my mind was transported back to being at Jake’s house growing up and the hours we spent teaching his dog, Rodeo, tricks. Jake loved him. After his dad left, Jake needed Rodeo. I hoped I never saw Miranda again.
“Do you miss her?”
Jake scoffed. “No.”
Before I could say anything, he added, “And I know that sounds like I’m pretending I don’t miss her when I really do, but I am so far removed from missing her it’s not even funny. I’m mostly just mad at myself for the whole thing. But I definitely do not miss her.”
His words were clipped. There was a bite of anger in his tone, but it was more than that. Hurt and defiance dripped from his words. It was the way his jaw clenched and he refused to look at me, even when I turned my face to look at him. It was the way his chest rose and fell with each indignant breath.
“How did you start dating her? She didn’t seem like your type.”
“She wasn’t.”
“Why’d you marry her, then?”
“I thought I loved her.”