Page 20 of Hometown Hottie

10

CARSON

Before I even knew what was happening, Nova and I were doing the read-aloud like we were competing for some grand prize. She was even more animated than she’d been the other day and I was feeding off the energy radiating from her, playing off the cues she was giving and loving every minute.

The back and forth, give and take rhythm we had going was seamless, as if we’d spent hours rehearsing it, and the kids were completely captivated. As we read a story about two giants, I was pretty captivated myself.

With Nova, everything always came so naturally. Like she and I were two halves of the same whole or some shit I never would’ve been caught dead thinking just a month ago.

By the end of it, even the parents burst out in applause and several of them crowded around us.

“Are you going to be reading together again next week? That was wonderful.” The question had come from a hopeful-looking mother, who beamed at Nova before glancing shyly at me.

Another parent nodded, then gestured at the little girl who’d inched her way forward until she’d been sitting in the very front row.

“Please say there’ll be a repeat performance. I’ve never seen Ella so interested in a story before,” he said, mainly focused on me. “I didn’t know you were a man of so many talents, Mr. Drake. Thank you for giving your time.”

“It’s her you should be thanking.” I tipped my head toward Nova. “She’s the mastermind. I’m just along for the ride.”

“So you will be reading together again?” another woman asked, repeating the original question.

Nova opened her mouth—presumably to say no—but I beat her to it. “Yes, we absolutely will be doing it again. Anything for the kids. Right, Nova?”

Her throat worked like she was swallowing down some vile things she’d been about to say, but then she smiled and nodded at the parents. “Thanks for bringing the kids. We appreciate it. See you next week.”

Before anyone could say anything else, Nova picked up her purse from the floor and hurried out into the parking lot. I chased after her, shielding my eyes against the bright sunshine as we broke free of the building.

“Wait, Nova,” I called, jogging to catch up. “Do you want to go grab some lunch? We can plan our next session and choose a book together this time.”

Her hand was already on the door handle of a beat-up, light blue truck I recognized as having belonged to her father when we were kids, but she spun to face me. There was a fire in her eyes as she shook her head at me.

“Unlike you, I still have a job, Carson. I need to get back to it.”

She locked her gaze on mine for another moment, opening her mouth like she was about to say something else, but then she must’ve decided against it. Opening the door instead, she climbed into the old truck and slammed the door before she sped off, probably racing back for the lunch rush at the coffee shop.

I’d never experienced said rush myself, but Mom had told me it could get pretty hectic there. I sighed and walked over to my own truck, muttering to myself as I opened the door. “I’m retired. Not unemployed.”

While I’d been hoping for lunch with Nova, I was okay with going home to spend time with my mom. She was outside doing yardwork when I pulled up, and my heart nearly stopped when I saw her teetering on a stepladder while she tried to trim a plant.

“Fuck. You’re going to break your neck,” I muttered before slamming to a stop in the driveway and jogging over to help. “Are you okay up there, Mom? I’m not gonna lie. It looks like you’re trying to hurt yourself.”

She chuckled. “I was just fine doing this while you were away, sweetheart. I’ll be just fine doing it now.”

“Maybe, but the difference is that now, you don’t have to take the risk. Let me do it for you.” She glanced down at me and handed over the trimming shears before she climbed off and motioned for me to take her place.

I took over, my heart still pounding with fear over what could’ve happened to her. I knew she’d managed while I was away, but she’d also been ten years younger when I’d left. Also, I had no idea why I was this upset about it, and evidently, neither did she.

“What’s bothering you, baby boy?”

“Baby boy?” I wagged a finger between the two of us, even though I was now on the stepladder. “Have you seen me lately? I’m, like, twice your size. At least.”

She waved me off. “You’ll always be my baby boy, which is also how I know for sure that something really is bothering you. You wouldn’t have bothered with the semantics if you were okay. Did something happen?”

“No, not really,” I said as I tilted my head back to focus on the greenery I was supposed to be trimming. “I, uh, I just volunteered at the library with Nova today, and she didn’t like it very much. She doesn’t seem to like me very much anymore, actually. I’m just not sure why.”

Okay, I had a feeling I did know why. It had been ten years, but back then, I’d been kissing her one minute, and the next, I’d been in my truck, on my way home, and she hadn’t seen me since. Not until last week anyway.

I’d brooded about it a bit at first, but then I’d gone back to college. The draft had happened. Life as I’d been imagining it had gotten started. Eventually, I just didn’t think about her so much anymore, and then I didn’t think about her at all.