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“Your mom’s coming over and you’re gonna be in trouble,” I said, dragging out the last word like Andrew and I used to do when we were kids.
Her tail wagged and she licked my hand, not seeming concerned.
“Thea, what are you doing over here?”
Summer walked up the steps and stood across from me, leaning against the bannister. My heart pounded at the sense of nostalgia that triggered. How many times have I seen her do that? She always leaned in the same spot.
When Thea wasn’t inclined to answer, Summer turned her attention to me.
“This is yours. Thea stole it the other day.”
She kept her butt stuck to the bannister and stretched her arm in my direction. I thought about pretending I couldn’t reach so she’d have to move closer, but decided against it. Instead, without disturbing Thea, I reached out and took my T-shirt from Summer’s hand.
Without thinking, I held it up to my nose and inhaled its line-dried fresh scent.
“I washed it,” she said. “Thea slobbered all over it.”
“Thanks.” I took another sniff. “It smells great.”
“You know Nanny Jules trained me to hang clothes to dry.”
I nodded. I do know that. When we lived together, if we didn’t have a clothes line, she’d hang them on a rack, putting it outside whenever possible.
We just looked at each other for several heartbeats. There are so many things I want to say, should say, so I started with the first thing that popped into my head.
“I’m sorry about Nanny Jules.”
The corner of her mouth kicked up and she shrugged.
“Thank you.”
Her grandmother passed away almost three years ago. She lived beyond what anyone thought she would and I’m sure that’s because Summer was taking care of her. Being here now, I feel bad about not coming home for the funeral. At the time, I’d just gotten the promotion that took me to Dublin and I told myself I was too busy to make the trip. Story of my life for the past decade.
She looked down at her feet and tucked her hair behind her ear, a sure sign she’s uncomfortable. That’s when I realized I was just staring at her. But I can’t help it. She’s so beautiful. And being here, seeing her, is bringing so many memories and emotions to the surface.
“I’ve missed you.”
I didn’t mean for those words to slip out. I felt as shocked as she looked when they did.
She shook her head.
“I can’t do this right now, Adam,” she said and straightened. Snapping her fingers, she added, “Thea, come.”
Thea jumped down and followed her mom, giving me one last glance before stepping inside the house.
CHAPTER3
Summer
I’m such an idiot.Why can’t I respond to Adam Barnes like a normal person? What the hell is wrong with me?
I dealt with what happened between Adam and me a long time ago. Seeing him now shouldn’t be an issue. It definitely shouldn’t cause my heart to pound and all those memories to pop into my head.
Dr. Madden walked into my office, stopping my wayward thoughts.
“It’s a pretty slow day today. You can head home if you want,” he said.
“I might take you up on that.” I stood and glanced over at Thea, asleep on the couch. “Didn’t one of your dogs figure out how to open the gate?”
