Carter takes more after his dad. I met his parents last week and, as far as I can tell, they’re both caring and kind people. Carter is cute. I’ll give him that, but Jake holds my fascination. He’s carefree, always joking, and my stomach flutters wildly every time he smiles my way.
As I sit there, surrounded by my new friends and enjoying my icy treat, I’m surprised to realize that, at that moment, I’m truly happy. Sure, I still miss my old friends, but who wouldn’t like raising hell with two of the coolest boys in town? They make me laugh so hard that my sides hurt at the end of each day, and I’m beginning to care about the people I’ve gotten to know here.
I’m scraping the last bit of ice cream from my bowl when the doorway darkens, and a tall, handsome man enters the room. The atmosphere changes instantly as Jake squirms in his seat while Carter lowers his gaze, staring at his hands like they’re the most interesting thing he’s ever seen. Only Mrs. Nelson and Anna seem genuinely happy to see him. Jake’s mother walks up to her husband and kisses his stubbled cheek, and the little girl squeals with delight as her father plucks her from her mother’s embrace.
“You’re home early. How was your day?” Mrs. Nelson inquires before continuing her dinner preparations. Mr. Nelson takes a seat beside his son and bounces a giggling Anna on his thigh.
“Frustrating,” comes his deep reply. “I had to get out of there before I lost my temper. Blake still refuses to pay the full amount for the garage we built. Cheapold bugger. Oh, hello there,” he adds as an afterthought when he notices me staring.
“Robert, this is Teresa. Her family moved to town a few weeks ago. Her dad owns the country store now.”
“Nice to meet you. About time the business changed hands. Old Steve was so senile that he constantly ran out of produce. Couldn’t get anything you needed. I hope your daddy has more sense. How about you, son? Anything new at school?” Jake seems to shrink into himself at his father’s question. For once, he doesn’t smile and keeps his gaze firmly on the tabletop.
“Got my math test back,” he mumbles so quietly I can barely make out the words.
“Oh yeah? Let’s see it.” Jake takes a deep inhale and reluctantly hands the sheet of paper over. I don’t understand his odd behavior. He’d been so proud of his grade all day. Mr. Nelson gives the test a once-over and regards his son with a stony expression.
“B-minus,” he grunts, not impressed in the slightest. “You’ll have to do better than that if you plan on taking over the family business someday.”
“Maybe I don’t want to take over the family business,” Jake mutters.
”What was that?” his father barks, making me flinch. “Look at me when I’m talking to you, son. And for God’s sake, speak up.”
“Robert, please,” his wife pleads from her spot at the sink. “A B-minus isn’t bad, and it’s an improvement. He’ll do better next time, won’t you, sweetheart?”
“I should hope so, and please, quit coddling him, Sharon. It’s about time he started taking life more seriously. At his age, I was helping out my old man every day after school. You know how hard I worked for what we have. It’s time for our son to take responsibility and develop some work ethic. I’m going to take a shower,” he snaps and rises to his feet, handing his daughter to Jake, who clutches her to his chest like a human shield.
“It was nice meeting you, Teresa,” he adds, before leaving the room in uncomfortable silence.
Mrs. Nelson looks after her husband’s departing form with sad eyes but quickly morphs her expression into a blinding smile before she turns to Jake.
She gently squeezes his shoulder and tells him, “My beautiful, smart boy. Don’t let him get to you. You know how he gets when he’s had a stressful day at work. You did well, and I, for one, am very proud of you.”
“Thanks, Mom,” he mumbles, but his previous excitement vanished with his father’s disapproval.
“Now,” his mother claps once every bowl has been licked clean. “Why don’t you take your friends and siblings into the yard and get some fresh air while I clean up this mess?”
“Your dad scares me,” Carter admits once we’re out of earshot. Jake gives us a smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “He’s not so bad. Mom says he’s under a lot of pressure at work.”
“Are you going to work for him one day?” I ask with genuine curiosity.
Jake shrugs. “I guess so. My dad wants me to. Says he didn’t build the company to hand it over to some stranger.”
“But if you could choose. What would you want to be?”
Jake’s face lights up instantly. He grins from ear to ear, gaze fixed on something in the distance. “I want to be a NASCAR driver. Carter wants to be a mechanic to fix my cars for me. What do you want to be?”
I give a dreamy sigh and let my eyes flutter shut.
“I want to be a famous ballerina,” I announce, puffing up my chest and feeling mighty proud of myself. Carter and Jake stare at me like I’ve suddenly sprouted a second head before they give each other a pointed look and burst out laughing.
Three
Jake
Present Day
Ican hardly believe what I’m seeing. The woman has some nerve, showing up here out of the blue after seven years of radio silence. Talk about a blast from the past.
