Page 8 of The Heart Remembers

A squirrel is pointed out. A feather picked up.

“Do you think we should ever talk about that kiss?” The question from her surprises me.

“Which one?” I laugh, although anxiety cracks my voice. Why would I want to discuss the best kisses of my life?

“Both. I overreacted to the first one and was a little forward on the second one.”

“Forward?” I sputter. What the hell was forward about her kissing me as though she owned me? “It’s not 1950, Katie.”

“I know, but I just don’t want you to think of me as a silly girl. I mean, I was a silly girl, but I . . . I don’t know.” Her eyes squint, and her hands slip into the pocket of a hoodie she’s wearing. It’s still warm, but it rained overnight, so the air temp is chilly this morning.

“I don’t think you’re a silly girl, and I don’t think we need to discuss it. It was a long time ago, right? I’d figured you’d forgotten all about them.”

“Did you forget about them? I mean, I’d totally understand if you did, and now I’ve just made it awkward by bringing them up again. You probably forgot, right? Because why would you remember? You’ve probably kissed thousands of girls.”

“I wouldn’t say thousands,” I mutter, but I chuckle at the thought.

“How about Lys?”

“What about Lys?” Lys Ramirez was one of my best friends. It was difficult to ignore the crush I knew she had on me when we were younger, but I did what I could to never cross the line of friendship because I valued her as a friend. She was sweet and quiet back then, and I didn’t want to take advantage of her, nor did I want to wreck our friendship. It would cost me more than Lys. I could lose Tricia and Leon, and I’d never want to hurt them.

But you kissed their niece, you pervert.

“I just always wondered,” Katie begins, but her voice drifts.

“Why?”

She shrugs again, but I’m not letting it go. Why would she care if I kissed Lys or any woman for that matter? Those kisses we shared when she was too young were just that—kisses to a girl too young.

“I just . . . never mind. Forget I brought all this up.” Her voice turns edgy, almost upset.

“Look, if you want to discuss the best kiss of my life, we can go right ahead and discuss that alley kiss.”

“Now you’re just being cruel,” she says, looking over at me with ire in her eyes. It’s a look she can’t really pull off. Her face is too sweet for irritation, and it makes me want to laugh. It also makes me want to kiss the hell out of her right here on this abandoned road. Instead, I stop walking and step up to her. We’re so close I can smell her fresh floral scent and feel her breath at my lips.

“I am not being cruel, so do not dismiss the best kiss in my history. That kiss got me through some dark nights and lonely days. That kiss nearly saved my life, so I won’t let you blow it off or tell me how it was for me. Want to discuss it? What do you want to talk about?” My chest rises and falls with my growing agitation. I will not ruin one of the purest memories of my existence by fighting with her over it.

“So, you remember it,” she whispers, her voice straining as her eyes fall to my mouth. She bites the corner of her lip after speaking, and my hand twitches, desperate to cup her neck. I want to pull her to me and remind her of the kiss I never forgot.

“Yeah, I remember it.” We continue to breathe heavily, absorbing the energy of each other. She’s close enough her covered breasts slowly drag over my tee. As if it has a mind of its own, my hand lifts, reaching for her, ready to take what I desperately want.

“Good. Then we’re all good. That’s all I wanted to know.” Katie steps back, and my courage falters. My heart crashes to my belly. Fuck. I misread those signs, and I want to kick myself. My head lowers in defeat as she steps away from me, and I hear teens on bikes drawing near. The soft slosh of tires over pavement still wet from last night’s rain gives them away.

“Katie!” a few girls squeal as they ride past us. It’s Katie’s younger sister, Daisy, and Tricia’s daughters, Liza and Maggie. My head shoots up, and I catch Katie watching me. Her brow tips up, and then a smile curls her lips.

Perhaps it’s wishful thinking, but maybe I misinterpreted her retreat. Kissing in front of her family is not our thing. We’ve only had private exchanges. Then I second-guess myself and realize our kisses need to remain where they were—in our past.

+ + +

I’m exhausted that night and too easily fall asleep. It’d been a long day. For the remainder of that walk, we ignored the tension crackling between us and focused on AJ instead. Then lunch happened, followed by a rambunctious and competitive game of baseball: Scotts versus Carters.

The Scotts have an unfair advantage despite their smaller team because Gee Scott is a professional baseball player. It was surprising he could make the game with his hectic summer season. In attendance with him is his agent and one of Katie’s best friends. I had trouble working out all the connections but something about roommates and them never realizing that Gee was a cousin of sorts, but the agent was trying to represent him as a client. I don’t follow that sort of background on people.

The reunited friends squealed like schoolgirls, razzing each other when they played opposite one another. Katie was actually pretty good and held her own. I didn’t recall her being so athletic, but then again, she was only a little girl when I left the area. I learned she’d been a cheerleader and a softball player, and I wished I’d seen the days of her in a short skirt or tight pants. Then again, the short shorts she wore to the family event held their own in wreaking havoc on me and my dick. She was tempting in every way, from the swish of her ass before she’d hit the ball, to those long legs running bases, and then a nice jump into my arms when she scored.

I hiked her up my body in a congratulatory hug. Not awkward. Not awkward at all with her family staring at me, especially her dad. Jess Carter is one moody man. He’d lightened up over the years, but I remember the glares he could give when I was a kid, and he hasn’t changed when he has his sights set on something. That something was me a few times during that game with my reaction to his daughter, and I tried to chill, but it was hard to do with Katie teasing me and her overall enthusiasm for the game.

“I love baseball,” she blurted at one point.