Page 83 of The Summer Plans

“He’s been in love with you since middle school.” Her tone is flat.

When I’m a raging sea of emotions, Raven has always been the rational one. She’s been able to calm me with her steadiness and no-nonsense demeanor. But I’ve never felt this out of control of my emotions before, and I’m suddenly insecure at her lack of a response.

She looks out at the driveway, and I can’t tell how she’s feeling about all this and it’s killing me. “Are you mad?”

“Why would I be mad?”

“I lied to you. I stayed at your house for an extra week when you could have rented it out to someone else and made money. I humped⁠—”

“Do not finish that sentence.”

“Sorry.”

“I’m not mad. I don’t need the money. And I’m not selling the house,” she says in rapid succession.

A deep sigh escapes me, as though a weight has been lifted. I sit in the silence, waiting for her to share more.

“There’s another property I’m thinking about flipping, though.”

“Oh? Wait, what do you mean you don’t need the money?” RJ mentioned she owned several properties she never told me about, but that’s it.

“I got more than just a few houses after Kristopher died. There’s a reason we got married that I’ve never told anyone except RJ. The only way he could inherit his family fortune was to get married and have kids. His homophobic grandmother put that clause in there, hoping it would turn him straight.”

“Wait. Kristopher was…”

“Yup.”

“So you two never…”

“Nope. We had two kids together, but we went to a fertility clinic to conceive them since he wasn’t into making them the other way. And frankly, neither was I. He was one of my best friends, and I miss him every day, but it was a business arrangement that turned into friendship.”

“But you looked like a couple. I had no idea.”

“Only RJ knew.” Her eyes are watery, but she blinks rapidly, pushing it away. The only time I’ve ever seen Raven cry was after Kris passed. “I’ve never been in a romantic relationship before.” Her voice is soft, but her admission is huge.

“But you’ve been with a man before, right?”

“I’ve had hookups over the years. But nothing that’s ever made me feel as love-drunk as you two look when you stare at each other.”

I reach for her hand. “Can I?”

She nods, and I squeeze her hand in support.

“I didn’t want to come between the two of you. It’s obvious you both still liked each other after all these years, and I figured you’d either get it out of your system or realize that you’re perfect for each other, so I made it happen. The Summer plan.”

“I thought your plan was just to get me to sell your house.”

“That’s what I wanted you to think. The Summer plans were always the real reason I lured you there.” She lets go of my hand and turns to face me. “If I’m being honest, the two of you were driving me insane.”

A smirk turns up one side of her face and I can’t help but laugh at her words. “How so?”

“RJ asked about you nonstop once he moved back. For a whole fucking year. And I know you think you were being subtle, but you did the same thing with me and the girls. Anytime the guys went out on a call, you’d ask if RJ was okay. If anyone mentioned the fire station, you’d perk up like you were suddenly interested. And a few months back, I found your list.”

“What list?”

“I swear I didn’t mean to snoop. I was dropping your kids off after a playdate, and I got a call with a tip about a story for the newspaper, and I needed a pen and paper to make notes. When I went through your junk drawer in the kitchen, I saw the firefighter calendar.”

Dropping my head in my hands, I groan. “Oh my God.”