AllFreeNovel
Share Us
His smile dropped. “You don’t know? A few weeks ago, you knew.”
Mike rubbed at his knee. “It got weird. She… I don’t know. It was just for the summer anyway.”
“That’s what you want?” Adam asked, cleaning off his glasses with the hem of his shirt.
“It doesn’t matter what I want. She’s going to Texas at the end of August.”
Adam put his glasses back on, and for once in his life, Jimmy kept his mouth shut when Mike would’ve really liked some kind of insight into his childhood best friend.
“We haven’t talked in a few days.”
Jimmy bounced his leg. “Sorry. I didn’t know.”
“Why would you?” Mike tipped his head back to stare at a crack in the corner of the ceiling. “No one was supposed to know, according to her.”
“Easier to say goodbye that way,” Adam said after a few moments, and both of his younger brothers gaped at him. “What? I’m the one married here, so I think I have more experience with relationships than you two morons.”
Both Jimmy and Mike folded their arms, ready for their lesson.
“It’s not that hard to understand. If she’s leaving at the end of the summer, why would she want to tell people about it? Why would she want to make it harder for herself to leave? Anyone with even semi-decent observational skills can see Sammy’s a runner.”
Mike leaned forward. “A runner?”
“Yeah, she’ll run away before she can get hurt. Lauren was the same way.”
Next to him, Jimmy’s mouth tipped down in thoughtful curiosity. “So, what did you do?”
He shrugged. “Kept showing up. Told her I’d wait for her—or run with her if she wanted me to.”
“Aww, Adam.” Jimmy punched his shoulder. “Didn’t know you were such a sentimentalist.” Then he gestured to Mike. “So, what does he do?”
Adam extended his legs and crossed them at the ankles. “I don’t know. You said she’s going to Texas.Isthere anything you can do?”
“Not unless you plan on packing your bags, right?” Jimmy’s elbowed Mike playfully.
He frowned in return. There was nothing he could do. He and Sam were headed in two different directions.
“Sorry, man,” Jimmy said quietly. “I didn’t realize you had feelings for her.”
“How do you know I have feelings for her?”
“Because you’re talking about her,” Adam answered. “You only talk about the really important things.”
Jimmy nodded in agreement, and Mike slouched back in his chair with a groan. His brothers were right. He hated when that happened.
23
Trisha, the real estate agent, had come by, very happy with the condition of the house, and snapped pictures of the interior and exterior before discussing price points. Sam hadn’t paid much attention as she focused on texting the girls. Bronte’s wedding was in a matter of days, and her exhilaration was palpable. Really, all of them were excited, except for Sam. She couldn’t quite match their enthusiasm, especially when Trisha came back to the house this morning, For Sale sign in tow.
“We’re all set.” She shook hands with Phil and then Sam, like she had anything to do with it. “You are officially on the market.”
“Thanks for all your help,” he said, leaning on a cane. He’d been walking more and more lately and gave up on the crutches once his therapist gave him the go-ahead.
Trisha smiled, straddling the line between professional and flirtation. “It is my pleasure, and I’m sure you’ll be hearing from me soon. We’ll get this house sold in no time.”
Phil grinned and followed her a few steps to her car, saying their goodbyes, before he circled around to face Sam in the yard.
“Dad, were you flirting with the Realtor?”
