Page 15 of If the Summer Lasted Forever

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

A knock at the door pulls me from my laptop. Earlier today, the Tillmans posted the video that contained the footage of Landon and me at the bonfire. It already has thousands of views.

The comments are enough to make my head spin. Dozens of people ask if Landon and I are together. Some people gush about how cute we are; others seem upset Landon’s already moved on to another girl.

Why do they care? Honestly, some people are just obsessive. (Thinks the girl who’s watched the video half a dozen times already.)

Leaving my laptop on the couch, I answer the door, fully expecting Paige.

Busy with Tanner, she hasn’t been around as much lately. She’ll get bored and break it off eventually, and then I’ll see more of her again.

Ours is a stable friendship, and I don’t mind. Especially since she sends me emoji-filled texts several times a day just so I don’t feel ignored.

Still, Tanner’s lasted longer than I expected, and I don’t like it. I have this awful feeling about him, and I’ll be glad when he’s out of the picture.

But it’s not Paige on the other side of the door.

“Hi,” I say, startled to find Landon.

We haven’t talked since the party. In fact, I didn’t see him all weekend. I’m sure it has nothing to do with the fact that I’ve been hiding in the house.

“You’re avoiding me again.” He crosses his arms and leans against the door frame. His light green eyes are bright despite his serious tone.

Just seeing him does funny things to my stomach.

“No,” I protest, stepping aside so he can come in. “I’ve been…busy.”

“Oh yeah?” He nods toward the open laptop, displaying the paused video, and a grin steals across his face. “What’s that you’re working on?”

I rush over to the computer and snap it shut. “Not that.”

He raises his eyebrows, waiting.

Giving in, I plop onto the couch, motioning for him to join me. “Gray Jay celebrates its anniversary in the middle of July, and the campground hosts a barbecue every year. I decided to make flyers this year, but I’m not very good at it.”

Self-conscious, I open the laptop and quickly close the browser, revealing the sad design. Even I can tell it looks terrible.

“You even work while you’re at home,” he jokes.

I roll my eyes as Landon pulls the laptop onto his lap.

“This is…” he begins, trying to hide a grimace.

“Awful.”

He laughs. “I was going to say a good start.”

He’s so close, his leg presses against mine. I try not to think about it—and definitely try not to think about our kiss, though that’s an impossible mission.

“Care if I tweak things?” he asks, gesturing to the screen.

“Be my guest. In fact, start over.”

Anything he comes up with has to be better than what I had.

Immediately engrossed in his task, Landon opens a new screen, uploads a few pictures from his phone, and gets to work. After a few minutes, unable to handle sitting so close to him, I wander into the kitchen, leaving him to it.

“What are you doing in there?” he calls after a while.

I put the finishing touches on two chocolate chip cookie sundaes and bring them into the living room. I sit next to him…though not as close as before.

“You are the best faux girlfriend I’ve ever had,” he says, greedily accepting the ice cream.

“Have you had many?”

He smirks and takes a massive, boy-sized bite. It should be disgusting, but it only makes me laugh. As he eats, he continues to work.

I watch him, more than a little impressed. As I finish the last bit of caramel syrup at the bottom of my dish, I tell him, “You’re really good at this.”

“I hope so.” He makes a few final tweaks. “I’m thinking about studying graphic design.”

“You definitely should.”

The finished flyer looks incredibly professional—in fact, it looks like we hired someone to make it. And it took him less than thirty minutes.

“Thank you,” I say, wholeheartedly meaning it.

He saves the file and closes the computer. “Don’t think too highly of me. My motives were entirely selfish.”

Our eyes meet, and I’m unable to look away. “How is that?”

“I’m bored, and you’ve locked yourself away for the last few days. Now you have no excuse to avoid me.”

“I wasn’t avoid?—”

“Yeah, okay,” he says with a laugh. His phone rings as he’s dragging me off the couch.

He pulls it from his pocket, and the smile drops from his face. The phone continues to ring, and he stares at the number.

“Landon?” I ask, growing a bit worried.

He looks up. “It’s Evie.”

“Evie…like, your Evie?” And though it’s none of my business, I feel sick.

He’s already shoving the cell back into his pocket, but I put on a nonchalant expression. “You can answer it if you want.”

“Should I?” he asks, unsure.

No, I think, but I say, “Why not?”

He nods, hesitant, and then answers the call. But not like I expect.

“Why are you calling, Evie?” he asks, his tone flat.

It would be enough to send chills down my spine if I were on the other line.

“We’re not together anymore,” he responds to her answer, and this time his tone is a little softer. “And it really isn’t your concern.”

She must have seen the video, which means she’s still watching the channel. If I were to take a guess, I’d say she still has feelings for Landon.

I turn away, worried I’m intruding, but there’s nowhere for me to go. It would be rude to leave Landon alone in my living room, wouldn’t it? Well, that’s the excuse I’m going to use so I don’t feel so guilty about eavesdropping.

“It’s Lacey, not Stacey,” he corrects, making me wonder if she messed my name up on purpose. Unable to help myself, I turn back to face him. Our eyes meet, and he holds my gaze. Then, enunciating each word with precision, he says, “I like her. A lot.”

Tingles travel my spine, spreading to my limbs. The way Landon’s looking at me, the way he’s holding my eyes, makes me think that he means it. That maybe he said it for my benefit, not in response to something his ex-girlfriend said.

He ends the call a few moments later, and I look away, feeling a bit overwhelmed. What’s happening here? This pretend relationship is starting to feel like more.

“I’m hungry,” he says out of the blue, sliding the phone back into his pocket.

I look back. “What?”

He offers his hand. “Let’s get hamburgers.”

I stare at his palm. “We just had huge sundaes. How are you hungry?”

“I’m a guy—it’s kind of our thing.” He wiggles his fingers, waiting for me to accept the invitation.

Giving in, I take his hand. There’s something sweet about holding hands, something indescribably fulfilling.

It’s also extremely intimate, in some ways more so than kissing. And it scares me.

But it’s exhilarating too. As Landon leads me from the house, I decide to focus on that and push my doubts aside.

We walk out the door and find Mom and Uncle Mark in the front. She’s leaning into him, and he has his arms wrapped around her back.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, instantly concerned.

“Nothing.” She steps away, and Mark’s arms fall to his sides. “Just a typical Monday. Hi, Landon.”

“Hey, Mrs. Morrison.”

“Cassie is fine,” she says, cracking a smile.

“What happened?” I prod, not about to let her avoid the question.

She rolls her shoulders. “I mixed up spaces and sent a couple to an occupied site. Instead of letting me know, they chose their own. Thirty minutes later, I sent another couple to that spot, and it created all kinds of chaos.”

“We fixed it,” Mark adds.

I frown. “Did you use my laminated campground chart? Maybe I forgot to mark off the spot. I should probably go through it and double check it for current occupancy.” I’m already tugging away from Landon, heading toward the office.

“I just forgot to look at it,” she says, brushing it off. Then she changes the subject. “Where are you two headed?”

“We’re going out for hamburgers,” Landon says.

I glance in the direction of the office. “I should probably take a quick look?—”

Mom laughs in a frustrated way. “Lacey, it’s fine.”

Biting the inside of my cheek, I finally nod.

“ Go ,” she says, making shooing motions with her hands.

Giving in—but not necessarily happy about it—I let Landon lead me away.

We make the unspoken agreement to walk. It’s a good trek to Main Street, but it’s a beautiful day with a cool breeze, and we have sundaes to work off before I’ll be able to eat again.

Landon still has my hand, and we walk side by side, in no rush.

“I have a weird question, but I don’t know how you’ll take it,” he says after several minutes.

I give him a questioning look.

“Would you be upset if your mom and uncle ever got together?”

“They’re not together.”

He gently tugs me back when I try to yank away. “But would it bother you if they were?”

My mom wouldn’t do that to my dad, and neither would Uncle Mark. Doesn’t anyone get that? It would be a betrayal to his memory. Who makes a move on their dead brother’s widow? Just…ew.

“They’re really good friends,” I explain again. “And Mark is like a dad to me, but I swear their relationship isn’t like that.”

“Okay.”

That’s all he says. Just “okay.” Which is a little obnoxious because I know it means he doesn’t agree, but he doesn’t want to argue.

“It’s not. ”

Landon laughs, shaking his head. “I believe you, Lacey. I was just asking.”

And I let it go because I like the way he says my name, like we’re close. Like I’m his, and he’s mine, and we’re actually together.

“Where has the best burgers?” he asks, putting the previous conversation behind us.

But even though we’ve changed the subject, my mind stays on his question. I remember the way Mom was leaning into Mark for comfort, and I’m plagued with niggling doubts.

But she wouldn’t do that to Dad. I know it.

A glop of sticky, white paint runs down the split rail fence that separates the campground from the road. I mop up my mess with a big, fat brush I found in the back shed.

Yesterday, I noticed the fence was looking a little shabby. Since it’s the first thing people see when they pull up, I decided it needed a fresh coat. Mark said the project has been on his to-do list for months, but he hasn’t gotten around to it yet.

“You realize it’s the Fourth of July?” Paige calls as she walks up the road from the direction of her family’s property. A gust of wind tosses her long hair in front of her eyes and kicks up leaves and dirt.

Unfortunately, those leaves stick to my fence.

“Yeah,” I mutter, plucking bits of debris out of the wet paint.

“They canceled the fireworks due to the wind,” my friend informs me as she stops in front of the fence and admires my work. “You missed a spot.”

Normally, I would tell her to grab a brush, but I haven’t seen her in days, and I’m reluctant to put her to work. “I thought they might,” I say, referring to the fireworks. Then I realize she’s alone. “Where’s Tanner?”

She bites back a besotted grin and stares at the fence with a dreamy expression that worries me. “His family drove to Telluride for the weekend. They’re supposed to be back Monday.”

“Whatever are you going to do with all your free time?”

“I’m going to fetch a paintbrush because it’s obvious you’re rubbish at this.”

I roll my eyes, but I’m glad for the help, so I don’t argue. What started as a simple project has grown. The fence seems to be getting longer. At this rate, I’m not sure I’ll ever finish.

“Take a break,” Paige says. “Help me find a brush.”

Gladly, I set my own brush aside and stretch my back as I rise.

“Where’s your fake boyfriend?” she asks as we make our way to the shed.

“He’s helping his dad with video stuff. They’re having trouble with one of the computers.”

Instead of answering, Paige nods to a patch of dirt near the gazebo. “Isn’t that a little Tillman? What’s he doing?”

“He’s looking for gold.”

Paige flashes me an incredulous look.

“No, I’m serious. Caleb’s been completely obsessed since he found a book about it at our house when they first arrived.

Somehow, he figured out that our gravel came from a local quarry, and he asked Uncle Mark if he could search through it to see if he can find something valuable. He’s been at it for days. ”

“Okay then…” Paige says, just as baffled as I am.

“Hi, Hunter,” I call to Landon’s second youngest brother. The boy sits in the gazebo, poking at his phone, looking bored as can be. He must be on Caleb duty this afternoon. Watching the spirited eight-year-old is a full-time job, and everyone in the family takes turns.

Hunter looks up and raises a listless hand in greeting before he goes back to his screen.

“Find anything?” I ask Caleb.

His head is bent over in extreme concentration, and he doesn’t stop sorting long enough to even look up. “Not yet.”

“Well, good luck,” I call as we walk past.

Still staring at the ground, he says, “Yep.”

“I saw the Tillmans’ latest video,” Paige says as we enter the shed.

“Oh yeah?” I can’t quite bring myself to look at her, so I search for an extra brush instead.

“You two look awfully couple-ish.”

“That’s kind of the point.”

“I thought maybe you had forgotten that point and dropped the fake in fake dating . ”

I remember how Landon told Evie he likes me, and my cheeks heat. Hopefully, Paige can’t tell in the dim light.

“Nope.”

“If you say so.” She spots a brush poking out from under a folded blue tarp and pulls it off the shelf. “This should work.”

The rest of the afternoon passes quickly, and we somehow manage to finish the fence before dinner.

As we’re cleaning up, Paige’s phone rings. “Hey,” she coos as soon as she answers.

I wrinkle my nose.

“ Tanner ,” she giggles, making me ill.

Resisting the strong urge to gag, I finish cleaning the brushes as she talks, and then I rinse out the pan with a garden hose. Across the way, Mom and Uncle Mark catch my eye.

Her hand is on his arm, and they’re awfully close. I freeze, feeling uneasy, but they split a moment later. Mark goes one way, and Mom heads the other.

I shake my head, determined to believe I’m reading too much into things.