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Mom was smiling. “Sam, this could be it,” she said.
“Stop,” I said.
“Why?”
“Because you have that look in your eye,” I told her. “The one where you get all hopeful that this one will be the one I marry. Believe me, every time you get that look in your eye, I don’t end up marrying the guy.”
“No, I’m serious,” she said. “Maybe this is your second chance. You can meet back up with Gavin after all these years, reconnect, and maybe there could be a spark..”
“That’s not going to happen,” I said. “But thanks for the vote of encouragement.”
“Cath, could you help me with the cooler?” Greg said, flagging her back over to the RV.
“Never say never, sweetie,” Mom said to me before she walked off, leaving me at the table with Fox and Logan.
“Somebody’s getting laid tonight,” Fox said.
I glared at him. “Shut up.”
“Never seen you blush like that, Sam,” he kept prodding. “Really must have been a big crush on this guy Gavin, huh?”
I cocked my head to one side. “Who knows? Maybe he’s a good kisser.”
I watched Fox’s eyes flare wider for a moment before he regained his calm veneer. He picked up his glass of lemon water, holding it up. I clinked mine to his.
“Cheers to that,” he said.
The truth was, I wanted to shut Fox up by covering his lips with my own. I would have preferred a night naked in bed with Fox in his RV, but I never said no to an opportunity to see an old friend.
In reality, I had no idea if I’d ever hook up with Fox again.
A while later, the sound of loud, rumbling motorcycles cut through the peaceful RV park. The sound only got louder, and I turned to see the two motorcycles stopping right next to Mom and Greg’s RV. The engines cut out, and after the riders removed their helmets, I saw that it was Gavin and his sister Christina.
“Well that’s cool,” I said.
Fox just stared at the motorcycles blankly. “More like a death sentence.”
“You don’t like motorcycles?”
“They’re fine, I guess,” Fox said. “But it always just seemed like asking to get hurt.”
I got up, waving at Gavin and Christina.
Gavin had apparently had a bigger glow-up than I’d even realized on social media. Not only did he look more distinguished now with facial hair and a sleek haircut, but he also filled out his motorcycle gear perfectly.
“Sam!” he shouted, coming over to give me a big hug. “This is Christina.”
“Pleasure,” I said, offering her a hug as well. “I didn’t know you guys were riding.”
“Cross country,” he said, nodding. “We’ve been wanting to do it for years.”
I introduced the two of them to the rest of my family. Gavin had met Mom and Greg before, back in high school, but he hadn’t interacted much with Fox. Fox turned on the charm, thankfully not acting all standoffish like he had been when they’d ridden up. I offered everyone a beer from the cooler, and we gathered around the table as Jim, Laura, and Logan took over dinner duty for the night, cooking up some grilled chicken and veggies.
“You’re touring the country from L.A. to New York?” Fox asked Gavin, slowly sipping his beer.
“You bet,” Gavin said, flashing a big smile. “It’s a shame you guys weren’t here last night. We had Ashton and Mila here.”
“Wait. Ashton Kutcher? And Mila Kunis?” I asked.
“Of course,” Gavin said. “They’re good friends of mine. They were on a big hiking trip in the mountains, and stopped by to say hello. Very warm-hearted people.”
“I didn’t know you were friends with them.”
“Oh, I have them over for dinner regularly when they’re in L.A.,” Gavin said, shrugging. “The last dinner party we had was Ashton, Mila, Brad, and Robert.”
“Brad Pitt?” I asked, incredulous. “And Robert—”
Gavin just laughed. “Downey Jr., of course.”
I stole a glance across the table long enough to see Fox roll his eyes, trying his best to hide it. For the next twenty minutes, we were regaled with tales of all of the celebrities Gavin was apparently friends with in Los Angeles. After a while I didn’t know if I even believed some of the stories he was telling, but I politely listened as he talked and talked and talked. By the time the conversation turned to other things, Laura was bringing dinner over to the table.
“You ever still think about moving out to L.A., Sam?” Gavin asked.
“Oh, no,” I said, shaking my head. “I never really planned on it, anyway.”
“In high school you always talked about it,” Gavin said. “We both did, but I was the only one who actually did it.”
Gavin laughed like he’d just made a joke, but I didn’t think it was very funny at all.
“No plans on moving there. I’m happy in Amberfield.”
He sighed. “Well, if you ever do move out to L.A., maybe you could work for me,” Gavin said. “Make costumes or something, for the plays. I couldn’t pay you, of yourse, but it would be fun. You could meet some celebrities.”
