Chapter Six
Reed
Iwoke up feeling heartbroken, with a dull pain throbbing in my chest. I yanked the covers back over my head and thought about staying in bed for the entire day. I could hear my family moving around the house, talking and laughing together. I sighed, pulled back the blanket, and reluctantly climbed to my feet. I felt like I hadn’t slept much at all last night. Like I had dreams about Cole and what could have been. Why was it about him that I couldn’t seem to let go of? He obviously wasn’t romantically interested in me. He had already unknowingly broken my heart once. I needed to wrap a cage around it before it happened a second time. I sighed softly. Maybe I should get up and try to do something with my day that didn’t revolve around Cole. Like stretch my body. My calves felt awfully tight. When was the last time I had actually danced?
“Knock, knock.” Dad pushed open my bedroom door. “Are you feeling okay? You’re usually the first one up.”
I forced a smile. “Just tired.”
“Uh huh.” He popped a brow at me as he leaned against the door frame. “And does thattiredhave a name? Maybe Cole Whitaker?” He folded his arms across his chest.
I sighed. “What if Cole doesn’t feel the same way I do? What if he just wants to be my friend, and all of this, whatever we’re doing, is no big deal? What if Cole spends the summer with me, then goes back to Boston and disappears like a thief in the night?” I paused to catch my breath, my vision blurry with tears.“Dad, I won’t survive that again. The first time nearly ruined me.”
Dad moved to sit down next to me and wrapped his arms around me. He didn’t say anything as he held me. He squeezed me and rubbed his big palms against my back as he let me gather myself together. When we pulled apart, his brows were furrowed as love bloomed in his dark eyes.
“I love you. You know that, right?”
“Yes, of course. And I love you, too.” I sniffed and pulled back, brushing the wetness from my cheeks.
He smiled. “I saw the way Cole looked at you last night, son. Whatever he feels, it’s more than friendly. He might not know it yet, but he looked at you like you were the sun, and he was a flower bursting through the dirt, desperate for the light. Something is happening between the two of you, and I think that you should just ride it out. See where it goes. Some people take longer to realize things.”
“I don’t want to get hurt again.”
“Who says you’re going to get hurt?”
I flopped onto my back, and Dad joined me. It reminded me of when I was a kid and had nightmares about the boogeyman hiding in my closet. He used to stay with me until I fell asleep, safe with my father protecting me.
“How did you know that Mom was the one?” I asked.
“I didn’t.” Dad grinned when I turned my head to look at him. “I mean, I thought she was, but I had a lot of issues I had to work through before I realized I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. We were so different from one another. Jillian was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen in life. And I didn’t think I was worthy of her.”
I nudged him playfully. “But Mom loves you.”
“I know that now. But we were young. Trying to navigate life while trying to be together. It wasn’t always perfect. Not like itis now.” Dad’s eyes welled with tears. “Now we’re stronger than ever. Four kids, twenty-something years of marriage. We’re an institution, Reed.”
A soft laugh caused us both to look up. Mom was standing in the doorway. “We’re a forever thing, Hutch.”
Dad jumped up to wrap his arms around her. “That’s right, Jills.”
“Don’t let me interrupt the father-son bonding time.” Mom winked at me. “I just wanted to come and check on the two parts of my heart that were missing. Breakfast is going to get cold.” She tilted her head while she continued to watch me.
I stood up. “We were just coming down to eat.”
“If Silas hasn’t eaten it all yet.” Dad chuckled. “I swear, that kid is going to eat us out of house and home. He’s like a human vacuum cleaner.”
A loud laugh bubbled up inside me. I had missed this. My family. The people who loved me the most. And no matter what, they would always be there for me.
“Let me just wash up, and I’ll be right down.” I nodded at my parents. “Thanks, Dad.”
He simply gave me a nod back as he and Mom left me to get ready.
I SPENT THE REST OFthe morning and all afternoon with my family. First, we had breakfast, then I went outside with Silas and Mia to enjoy the sun and swim in the lake. I tried not to think too much about Cole. I had hoped to hear from him, but my phone remained silent, with only a few messages coming in from my friends from school to see if I was going to the party tomorrow night. And when I finally let myself look over in the direction of his home, I saw nothing. It was like he haddisappeared into thin air. Like I had just made him up in my mind to have something to do for the summer.
The sound of a car pulling up caused my hope to spike. Maybe it was Cole, and maybe he would see me and come over. I tried not to let my disappointment show when my oldest sister, Hazel, appeared on the dock, her hair pulled back in a high ponytail and a smirk on her face.
“Who killed your cat, Reedy?” she teased before she kicked off her shoes and sat down next to me.
I rolled my eyes. “It’s good to see you, Hazy.”