Page 6

Dad nods. “Yeah, we were just finishing up distributing this week’s jobs.”

Stepping into the living room, I find him scrolling through the TV channels. “Hey, buddy.”

Luke’s head snaps up to mine as he rises from the couch and brings me into a hug, clapping his hand on my back. “Evans, good to see you. It’s been a while.”

“Too long,” I reply.

“Are you staying for dinner tonight, Luke?” Mom shouts from the kitchen, which is divided by an archway.

“Nah, thanks, Rachel—first barbecue of the season.” Luke turns to me. “You wanna come? There are a few people going.”

I shout back to Mom. “I’m back for three months—plenty of time to cook for me.”

“Tomorrow night then,” she replies.

I turn back to Luke. “Yeah, why not.”

I didn’t expectthis reaction.

Standing in the empty white kitchen of the beach house Amie and I were supposed to use as our second home, it all comes back to me. The hope I had for a happy future with the woman I thought I loved. The ring I planned to put on her left hand when I surprised her with this place. Life fucking sucks sometimes.

Making my way through to the living room, I cast a quick glance around. There’s one gray couch the previous owners left and a small wooden coffee table in the center. The place isn’t big;it’s only a two-bedroom. I bought it for its position and privacy, as it backs directly onto the vast beach. The bonus is that you get a perfect view of the rocket launches from Kennedy Space Center.

I remember spending nights lying on the soft white sand, watching the latest launch with my friends. Luke was into it, but his ex-girlfriend, Luna Johnson, was obsessive. Long after all our other friends had left or gathered around a campfire drinking, she’d talk my ear off about the constellations, but mostly about aerospace and the mechanics of the latest launch. To be honest, most of what she said went in one ear and out the other, but I couldn’t help the way her animated face drew me in. Maybe it was her passion and love for something I found so endearing.

I’ve kept in light touch with many of my old friends, Luna included, but heading to tonight’s barbecue is like taking a step back in time to when I was eighteen and about to leave for college. It’s a comforting feeling of déjà vu.

Moving through to my bedroom, or what was supposed to beourbedroom, a king-size bed sits alone and against washed-out blue walls. They’re uneven and need work, like most of the house. But it’s the flooring and porch that need most of my attention. I’ll be pushing it to get everything completed in the three-month window I have. Whether I’ll flip it and sell it afterward, I don’t know. I just know it’ll be a welcome project while I distract my mind from the events of the past six months.

I stand staring out of the glass doors overlooking the beach when my phone begins to ring.

Jesus, I need to update his contact.

“Hey.”

“Is it still showing as Magnificent Morgan?”

I roll my eyes, even though there’s no one to witness it. “Yes.”

“Good. I assume you made it back to the Sunshine State?”

“Yeah, I’m standing in my bedroom right now, thinking how much work there is to do.”

“I’d love to help, man, but you know me and DIY. I’ll probably make it worse.”

I chuckle. “Yeah, probably.”

“So, what have you got planned for your first night back?”

“I was about to grab a shower, get changed, and head to the beach. I’m meeting some friends there. You remember Luke, right?”

“Oh yeah, works for your dad?”

“Yeah, well, he invited me to a barbecue, and a few of my old school buddies should be there.”

“Cool, be good for you to relax. Just don’t go breaking any hearts this summer, alright?”

I laugh at the thought of a summer romance. “Not likely.”