This Summer

I grab my phone from the charger and turn it on. Dad has a strict “phone off” rule at night. He knew Lily’s habits of staying out late and calling or texting me in the early hours of the morning. I hadn’t protested at all, I liked sleep as much as he did.

I tuck the phone into my pocket and grab my purse on the way out of the room. Halfway down the hall the phone explodes with nearly a dozen texts. I scroll through them as I descend the stairs. Lily had gone out the night before with the new kid at her non-summer job at a coffee shop on the local campus. Apparently a college guy who stayed on campus over the summer. I knew more about him from those texts than I wanted to that early in the morning. Or ever. But the one that makes me pause in the kitchen doorway is from Carter. Just three words.

I miss you.

My heart squeezes. The timestamp was 1:48 AM.

“Is something wrong?” Mom asks.

I look up at her. She’s leaning against the counter blowing into her steaming mug of coffee.

I shove my phone into my purse. “Nope. Just Lily.”

Mom shakes her head, smiling. “I just hope she’s careful.”

“She is, Mom,” I groan. As much as Mom loves Lily, some of the things Lily did were not mom-approved and I could almost hear the gears in her head spinning, wondering if her daughter would ever be that careless. But she had to know better. I never broke curfew and never had a date with anyone except Carter who had been a perfect gentleman in front of my parents. Thinking of him made his text message pop into my mind again. In a way I was grateful that he took the job at the pool. I’d only have to see him for an hour a day which would be enough space for us. And hopefully he would get over our relationship soon enough. It should have bothered me that I was over it quicker than he was, but for some reason it didn’t. I guess there was something to be said about being the dumper instead of the dumped.

I pour myself a cup of coffee and splash a bit of milk into the mug before settling down at the table. Mom rubs the sleep from her eyes as I grab the box of cereal from the table. This is her idea of “starting breakfast”. She’s great at baking but Dad is the real cook in the house. But this morning he’s going in extra early, so no fluffy pancakes for us. Hard footfalls descend the stairs. I already know it’s Dad by the way he gracefully flies down them.

He’s dressed up this morning, well, if khaki pants and a similar shirt to mine is dressed up. He’s normally in jeans and a t-shirt. He swipes a kiss on Mom’s head and she mumbles sleepily.

He plucks an apple from the bowl on the counter and peels off the sticker before washing it in the sink. He’s wiping the fruit with a paper towel when he turns to me. “Are you still mad?”

The first spoonful of the cereal hovers in front of me. “About what?”

He takes a bite of the apple, his thick eyebrows raised. “I see you’ve had time to adjust to the situation.”

I ponder this while polishing off the spoonful of cereal. “I was blindsided a bit, thank you very much. But it’s fine. It’s a job right? We have to be professional.”

He grins. “There’s my girl.” He turns to the clock on the microwave. “I’ll see you soon.”

He fluffs my hair before leaving the room. “Love my ladies!” he calls from the door.

I look at Mom who is still pretty zoned out. I finish half the bowl before my stomach starts to knot. I hate to lie to Dad but I made a promise to myself not to let Will get to me. My phone chimes.

Another text from Lily: Driveway

I down the rest of the coffee and scoop up my bowl placing it in the sink. Mom is particular about who loads the dishwasher. Only her. Not that we ever complained. I kiss her on the cheek and leave the kitchen. “Ethan!” I call up the stairs.

“What?” he groans from his bedroom. He takes after Mom as another late-riser.

“I’m leaving with Lily. Will is walking over in about a half hour if you wanted to go with him.”

“Mm-yeah,” his voice is softer now, hovering over sleep again.

“Don’t be late!”

“Yeah.”

I grab my purse and open the front door. The temperature has warmed significantly and I can already feel the stickiness in the air. Lily’s head is tipped back on the head rest as I flop into the passenger seat. The cool air conditioning feels fantastic and I turn the vent toward me.

Lily jumps as if she had actually been asleep. Not surprising due to her late night texts.

“You know we need to be there early on the first day,” I say, eyeing the two extra large travel mugs that I know are filled with black coffee. Neither are for me.

She blinks a few times and settles her hand on the shifter, a wild grin spreading over her face. “It was so worth it.”

I laugh. “I don’t want to hear it!”

But I do hear it. The whole ride. Lily is usually pretty straight forward with discussions of her dates, but this one, nearly ten minutes long, has me thinking that she actually might be interested in a second date.

“He’s going to the fireworks Friday, he said he’ll bring a friend.”

I groan. “Are you setting me up on a blind date?”

“It’s not a date. I just mentioned that my very hot friend is single and he mentioned his also-single very hot friend will be coming along. Well he didn’t call his friend hot, but I made sure he was attractive to guy standards.”

She pulls into the park and I shake my head. “You know Carter is going to be there.”

“I don’t see the problem. This is what single people do.”

“I just wanted—” I pause, unsure of what I really want.

She groans. “Wanted what? This is what you wanted. You aren’t tied down. You can go out with whoever you want. I’m not telling you to sleep with the guy but you can’t be a hermit until college. Don’t feel guilty about Carter. He’ll be fine. The girls at the pool are already plotting.”

My head snaps in her direction. “Who?” I shove down the reflexive jealousy that floods my veins. He’s not yours anymore, remember?

Lily eyes me and takes a large swig of her coffee, draining the first mug. “It’s how guys get over girls. By replacing them with another.” She catches my look. “What? It’s a simple fact of manhood. You just need to accept it. It’s not fair to hold onto him when you know the outcome at the end of the summer.”

“You’re right,” I concede.

“Yes I am.” She pulls into a spot at the back of the community center that houses all the town’s events throughout the year. During the summer its rooms are used for the campers’ activities and lunchtime. I get out of the car and head for the door, but soon realize I’m alone. Lily leans her hands against the car, her forehead resting against them.

“Come on!” I urge.

“Give me a minute,” she grunts. She drops her sunglasses over her eyes jumps back and forth on her feet, shaking her hands at her sides in some crazy wake up dance. I laugh and she stops. “Let’s do this.”

The back entrance to the building filters into a hallway with several different rooms on either side. For the purpose of the camp these are divided into the various activities that take place during the summer. Inside one of them there are paint supplies and canvases the next one has gym mats set up across the floor.

Lily chugs the last bit of her coffee and lets out a whoop, as if I had been the one to challenge her to do that. Her voice bounces off the concrete walls and we follow it to the front entrance. Several six foot tables line the entrance. Five cardboard boxes wait patiently next to the tables, ready to be dug into.

Her nose wrinkles at the boxes. “Ah, registration duty.”

I twist my hair, pushing it behind my shoulder. “A little organizing never hurt anyone.”

She rubs her head as if it just might.

“And there’s always that,” I say, hearing someone entering the room.

Dad comes into view carrying bags from Donut Joes. Lily’s eyes light up. “Please tell me you got the chocolate croissants!”

A condition of Lily helping me out, since most years I did this by myself, I had told Dad her favorite pastry from the bakery.

“Six in fact,” he says, putting the bags down on the farthest table. “But this is for after we get the welcome packets on the tables. I don’t need chocolate all over the paperwork.”

Lily bobs her head and digs right into the first box.

I give Dad a “told ya” look and he winks.

“You know the drill?” he asks. If there’s one thing he didn’t have to worry about at camp, it was me. I had lived and breathed this place my whole life and it started to sink in that this was the last time I’d be doing any of it. Dad had made that very clear to me earlier that year. He wanted summers in college to be filled with places outside of Spring Falls. It was unlike any other parent that I’ve come across, but he and Mom never got away from this town and it was the only thing he wanted for me. And it wasn’t like me to disappoint him. And I was going to be living in the most amazing city in the world. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever want to come back.

Lily is already halfway done with her box before I open mine.

I laugh. “Maybe I should bring chocolate croissants everywhere with me. Like Lily treats.”

“Yeah, well,” she says, distracted, rearranging two of the folders in front of her. “Whatever they put in them is like catnip for me. Unless you want me to roll out of this place, I wouldn’t suggest doing it.”

“I’d pay to see that,” I say.

She tosses the empty box at me and I jump out of the way. She’s on a roll and I struggle to catch up. We make quick work of organizing the folders and are just about done when the front doors open. I look up and am momentarily blinded by the bright morning sunlight streaming through. Will and Ethan enter the room, both with a yellow glow around their bodies as if they are angels coming through the pearly gates.

Will locks eyes with me and I can’t help taking in the full sight of him. Even though he’s become leaner throughout the years I can’t help the constricting feeling in my chest that steals my breath. It was the last outfit I’d seen him in the night he left. The hurt resurfaces and it takes all of my strength to turn around.

Ethan beelines for the food but Lily slaps at him. “Not until we’re done.”

He shoots me a look but I turn back to my work, attempting to steady my breathing.

“What can I do?” Will appears at my side, close enough that I can feel his warm breath on my cheek. I inhale sharply, noting a minty scent on his breath.

I indicate the next full box. “Alphabetical, based on age group on the tables.”

He hovers for a second as if he’s going to say something, but I reach down, grabbing the next set of packets, ending the conversation before it starts. He eventually moves the box to another table and gets to work. Ethan joins in with one as well.

“So Will,” Lily says pointedly.

I stiffen and glare at her, but she continues on, fueled by the caffeine shooting through her veins. “What are you going to do around your house this summer?”

He doesn’t miss a beat, again throwing me back in time when their sparring matches were the highlight of many times with just the three of us. “The plumbing needs some work, I need to do some repairs on the trim, and I was going to paint a few of the rooms. Trudy said it will help jump up the price.”

“Do you need help, man?” Ethan asks.

Will nods. “I could use a hand if you have time.”

I snort. “Ethan has plenty of time. He’s been playing Enter Strike since school got out. Actual work might be good for you.”

The corner of Will’s mouth quirks up. “You still play?”

Ethan gives me a see, I am cool grin.

“I never stopped,” Ethan says and fixes me with a look. “Don’t pretend like you don’t either.”

“Seriously?” Will asks incredulously, turning to me.

I blanch. Enter Strike is a first person shooter game. Ethan and Will played for about a year until I got involved. I haven’t signed on since a particularly embarrassing weekend of missing Will where I signed on and stared at the chat menu waiting for him to do the same. For about five hours.

“I don’t!” I exclaim. “Not since—” I stop myself. “Not for a while.”

Will turns back to his task and Ethan continues on about his ranking within the game.

Ethan claps a hand on Will’s back as he tosses the empty box next to Lily. “We should set up your computer and play Enter Strike tonight.”

“Sure, man,” Will says just as I say “I’m sure he has work to do.”

“It’s fine,” Will counters. “I have three weeks before the first open house. It’s nice to get a break from chores too.”

Ethan sticks his tongue out at me and I roll my eyes, turning back to my work. Ethan and Will chatter on about video games while my skin pricks with embarrassment. I feel Lily’s eyes on me, begging to look at her, but I keep my focus on the task.

The rest of the counselors slowly trickle in and by the time eight-thirty rolls around they are all accounted for. Dad hands out morning assignments and just my luck I’m paired with Will for check-in. But so is Lily, Skye and Tyler. Lily gives a little pout when she realizes she won’t have time with Aiden that morning, but I remind her she has a whole summer with him.

“I don’t need a whole summer.” She eyes Aiden’s bobbing head as if he’s rocking out to music in his head.

Tyler and Will prop open the doors and already there is a crowd. Lily nudges my arm. “And so it begins.”

CHAPTER SIX

Hadley

I take a breath, inhaling the fresh morning air that streams in around the campers and their families. The beginning of the end. I shake away the negativity and smile warmly. No second will be wasted in what is to be the best summer of my life. Even if Carter nearly ruined it for me.

The kids rush the table and we sort them by age group. Will returns to the table, taking the space next to me. He’s grinning, one of those melt your heart kinds. I’m not sure if it’s for the benefit of the campers or he’s genuinely happy. I hope the latter.

Harry and Oliver Yates are the first in our group. Their black hair is cut exactly the same, but they’ve been in my group for three years now, starting when they were in the eight to tens group. And unlike most of the people in town I’ve picked up on the subtle differences between the twins.

“Will!” Harry bellows.

Will leans over the table and high-fives Harry’s outstretched hand. “Hey buddy.”

Harry’s blue eyes find mine, “Did Carter get fired?”

Mrs. Yates, a tall olive-skinned woman, steps up to the table. My spine straightens. I overheard Dad on the phone speaking about Mrs. Yates and her reluctance to send Oliver to the camp this year. He’s behind his brother, looking up at us with big brown eyes. He’s always been a shy boy, but his shyness progressed as he aged, almost as if Harry’s exuberance had sucked it out of him. Polar opposites in personality but they were both amazing kids. Without being asked, I knew I had to work on Oliver a bit to ensure he had a great summer. Pulling a camper out in a small town would be devastating to the program, especially since Mrs. Yates tended to be quite vocal about her thoughts.

“Will,” Mrs. Yates says in a breathy whisper. “I didn’t know you were back.”

He nods politely. “Just for the summer.”

Her lips press together in what I think is the closest that woman will ever get to a smile. Her eyes flick over to mine and all signs of it disappear. “I expect Will to do a better job with my sons.”

I mask my embarrassment for Carter in a reassuring grin. Carter had been a replacement for Will but really only in body. I carried a lot of the weight with the kids last year while he was distracted by his friends rather than them. I didn’t have to worry too much about the girls, but the boys got a little lost in the mix while I juggled everything.

I open my mouth to say something, anything to assure her, but Will steps up. “They’re going to have a great summer, right guys?” He looks down at Oliver who still hasn’t said anything.

“Hi,” a young girl catches my attention away from the Yates.

“Well, hello there,” I say.

She twists her long almost white blonde hair around her finger. “I’m Casey Winters.”

I scan my list. Casey is new to the group this year.

“Will Carson?” says Casey’s mother. I look up at her.

“Sarah?” Will says, as the Yates move away from the table.

Lily chokes and I grab her hand, squeezing tightly.

Sarah Goode. Winters now. How did I not put two and two together? She married Casey’s father nearly a year ago after his wife passed away. He was disgustingly rich and the rumors I heard about his philandering made even Lily blush. Sarah was Will’s last girlfriend in high school.

“Gold digger,” Lily mutters under her breath.

I squeeze her hand tighter. Sarah looks exactly the same, and I wonder how long she can keep that up. Her chestnut hair is cut short, making the lines of her model-thin face even more severe and unnecessarily perfect. I can’t stop staring at her. I never understood their relationship. Well I did from her point of view. Will was gorgeous and kind. Well, she was gorgeous too but as a cheerleader she was anything but kind. She rubs her belly and a little thrill goes through me. She’s pregnant! Thank goodness for small miracles.

Will leans over the table and gives her a kiss on the cheek. She beams and I let go of Lily’s hand, dropping my hands at my sides. Sarah never liked my friendship with Will and she made that perfectly clear to half the school. The rumors of my crush never hit Will but they did carry over the last two years of high school.

I meet Casey’s emerald green eyes. “She’s not my mom,” she says in a low whisper.

I’m so not going there. “My name is Hadley. We’re going to have a great summer, Casey.”

Casey nods slowly and walks past Sarah into the gym. I glance at Sarah. She doesn’t realize that her step-daughter has left the room.

“Excuse me!” A mother calls from further down the line. “Some of us work for a living.”

Lily snorts and finishes checking in another camper.

Sarah stiffens and turns around to see several scowling mothers. She grins sheepishly. Now she knows how it feels to be the butt of a joke.

She spins around frantically looking for Casey.

I want to let her sweat but Will looks at me. I hold back the urge to roll my eyes. “She went into the gym,” I say.

Sarah flashes Will a grateful smile, as if he was the one to direct her, and leaves the room.

“Easy tiger,” Will says under his breath.

He’s smiling as he greets another kid.

I want to say something but there isn’t time. The line is now out the door so I focus on the job, but I can’t help hearing Will interact with the families. I’m distracted by his charisma. He’s been distant since he’s returned but, watching him, it’s as if he’s found his niche. He’s relaxed and carefree and seeing him that way makes my heart ache. Is it just me that makes him clam up? He’s only here as a favor to Dad and to sell the house. Maybe he’s just being polite to me since we have to work together. I steel my resolve. If that’s how he’s going to play it, I’ll do the same.

The room empties almost as quickly as it filled up. Dad enters the room and ushers us into the gym.

Lily tucks her arm into the crook of my elbow. “At least she’s fat now.”

“She’s pregnant.”

Lily shrugs. “Still fat.”

I love this girl.

“Well at least you don’t have one of the Pritcher boys in your group,” she gripes. “Their mother is a major OCD case. Rider has a whole backpack of fricken’ Purell and gloves. And he will tell her if I don’t make him use it.”

The counselors line up on the stage behind Dad, who is at the podium. He has a way of commanding the room and soon enough he even has most of the kids at his attention.

“I just want to welcome you all to Spring Falls summer camp—” he goes on with the same practiced speech I’ve heard for years. It’s not a bad one but there’s only so many times I can hear it before I start mouthing it and I’m sure Dad wouldn’t be too happy. My mind wanders to Will and Sarah, another part of my past that I don’t wish to revisit.

“And here are your counselors!” Dad says, waving a hand to us. The gym explodes with applause and soon enough the parents are saying goodbye to their kids.

Dad turns to us. “You all have your schedules. Head to your first section.”

“Aye aye,” Aiden says, holding his hand to his head in a mock salute.

Dad turns on his professional face and his normal jovial nature is lost. Lily takes Aiden’s hand down from his head and drags him off the stage.

“Hadley and Will,” Dad says. “May I speak with you two for a moment?”

The rest of the counselors assemble into their groups.

Dad turns his back to the kids and crosses his arms. “As you know, Mrs. Yates has her concerns about Oliver. I am hoping you two will be able to bring him out of his shell. Mr. Yates is a significant donor to the department so we show him that our program is above the rest. All right?”

“We’ll try our best,” I say.

Dad smiles tightly. “That’s all I ask for.” He and Will share a weighted glance before he walks away.

I open my mouth to ask Will what that was about, but he is already off the stage before I can.

More secrets Will Carson? This time involving my dad.

I take the stairs off the side of the stage and walk to the group. Will already has his boys in a straight line and their mouths closed. I’ve always had trouble with the boys, they don’t listen to me, but Will holds a commanding stance above them. But his secret tactic was sneaking candy to the kids when he thought I wasn’t looking. We didn’t buy any the other day so I wonder if he grew out of that. Until I see Harry sneak something with a shiny wrapper into his pocket.

The five girls preen at Will who appears unfazed. “Casey, Jaclyn, Allison, Kelli, Lauren.” Their hands go up when I call their name. I quickly put faces to names.

Will turns to his boys and they do roll call themselves. Will smiles at me in a See how quickly I trained them? look. I don’t give him the satisfaction.

“We have the Art elective first this summer, and this week is painting.”

A few of the kids groan but I ignore them. It’s always best to establish authority the first day. “Let’s put a little shake in our step!” I say, leading them from the room.

***

After a morning of keeping paint off the kids during their art elective and avoiding the wild free throws during basketball, I’m glad for a break during the swimming lessons. As much as I’m not looking forward to seeing Carter, at least he’ll be busy with the kids.

“Pool time!” I say to the bunch.

Jaclyn, Kelli and Casey huddle together and walk off the basketball court. Jaclyn scoops her black hair into a ponytail as she talks to the girls. That was quick. Forming cliques within groups is usually discouraged, but rarely successfully. Allison, the tomboy, looks longingly at the boys’ group but her expression is torn between them and the other girls. Instead she sidles next to Lauren, a skinny girl with glasses and braces. They pick up their bags, walking close behind the others.

The boys grab their bags and I’m right behind them. Jaclyn holds the other girls attention. I hear her say Harry’s name but as soon as she notices me she clams up and diverts the conversation back to a werewolf book series she’s reading.

The boys take off at the same time.

“Slow down!” Will and I call at the same time. The boys are ahead of the girls by several strides but all slow down at the same time. I can almost feel the excitement in their veins.

Will walks beside me. “Are you going to be okay?”

I look at him. “With what?”

Will stares ahead. I follow his gaze to the closest lifeguard chair where Carter sits overlooking the empty pool.