"What are you doing here?" I return his embrace. "You said you weren't coming for a couple of weeks."
Carter sets me down. "I had some changes in my schedule and decided to come out sooner. I went by your place, and your grandfather said you were here. I was hoping I could steal you away for lunch. If not, I can come back." Carter eyes me then looks over my shoulder to Summer.
I step aside and introduce them. "Sorry. Carter, this is Summer, Summer, this is my old friend Carter. We grew up together."
Summer waves, and Carter tips his head. "Nice to meet you, Summer."
"You too," Summer returns.
I look down at my watch and then at Summer. "I'm going to take off for lunch unless you need me to stay."
"Nope. You go ahead. Lev will be here soon anyway to grab a bite."
"Okay. I'll be back in an hour." I turn back to Carter. "Let me grab my purse. Pizza? It's just down the street."
"Sounds good," Carter replies.
"Are you okay with walking?" I ask.
"Sure."
With one last wave over my shoulder to Summer, Carter and I leave.
Fifteen minutes later, we are seated at the pizza shop with a large pepperoni pizza between us. The walk here was done with polite conversation, but I knew Carter would bring the next topic up.
"Cat, I know we've talked the last time I was in town, and I have already apologized for how things went down in the past, but I want to repeat it. I'm sorry about Lana. I heard she's been being a bitch to you lately and that's on me."
"No it's not. Lana is just being Lana. She's always been like that and probably always will. Trust me, she doesn't bother me. Not like it did in high school. I'm not a kid anymore though. I can take care of myself."
Carter sets his slice down and gives me his full attention. "I should have never let her treat you like she did back then." He shakes his head. "I got wrapped up in being popular and all the other stereotypical high school bullshit, but that doesn't excuse me ending years of friendship over it." He shakes his head. "I was so fucked up. I allowed Lana to get in my head. She tried to convince me you had feelings for me and that the only way to let you down easy was to just end our friendship altogether."
"I never had those kinds of feelings for you, Carter. You were my best friend. You were like a brother to me."
"I know that now. That was just Lana spewing her bullshit because she was jealous. I can't believe I didn't see her for who she really is."
Reaching across the table, I place my hand on Carter's arm. "At least you saw it sooner and not twenty years from now. And like I already told you, all is forgiven. Let's leave the past in the past. I'm just happy to have my friend back."
After taking a bite of pizza, I ask, "So, have you seen her?"
Carter shakes his head. "No. But then again, I just got into town this morning. Has the town been talking?"
I snort. "Does a zebra have stripes?"
"Figures."
"Don't worry. Everyone knows what a bitch Lana is, and we're all on your side."
Carter wipes his mouth with a napkin and tosses it on the table. "Yeah, I'm sure she's spreading her sunshine around."
A second snort escapes me. "You should have seen the way Mrs. Margaret put her in her place."
I proceed to give Carter a run-down of the interaction.
"You're shitting me," he laughs.
"Nope. I told you, everyone is on your side."
Over the next thirty minutes, Carter and I polish off the remainder of the pizza while catching up on what we have missed in each other's lives. I tell him about the ranch, and he tells me about baseball. He admitted how his mom still talked about us and how I still visit with her once a week.
