Page 120 of Homecoming

“I can’t imagine him doing anything else.” She showed Dan into the room where two twin beds remained along with her childhood treasures. Everything of Kelly’s had been removed, leaving her side of the room all but empty other than the bed. On the shelves over Kara’s old desk were some of her favorite books, including Nancy Drew mysteries and a few Agatha Christie novels that Bertha had given her after she’d expressed an interest in the genre.

Dan picked up the trophy she’d won at a summer tennis camp when she was fourteen. “I had no idea I was married to a champion.”

“First place for the whole camp that year. I used to play a lot of tennis, but I haven’t played in years. We had tournaments on the court outside when we were kids.”

“That sounds fun.”

“It was. Kirby always beat me, though. I don’t think I ever won a match against him. Kendra was really good back in the day, too. She played on the high school team.”

“You didn’t play in high school?”

“I’d moved on to lacrosse by then.”

“I never have understood that game.”

“Most people don’t unless they play or have a kid who plays. I was pretty good at it once upon a time.” She held up the letter she’d earned playing varsity lacrosse.

Dan took the letter from her and examined it. “That’s very sexy.”

She rolled her eyes. “Honestly…”

“I’m being honest. It’s sexy to picture you running down a field with your golden ponytail flying behind you as you whip the ball around and score goals.” He shuddered dramatically. “Very hot.”

Kara sat on the bed that still had the quilt she’d picked out when they redecorated the room. She’d gone with flowers, while Kelly had gotten an ugly black thing that Kara had found depressing. Her mother had gotten rid of that at some point, or Kelly had taken it.

“What’re you thinking?” Dan asked when he sat next to her.

“How I used to share this room with Kelly and tell her all my secrets that she then used against me when it suited her purposes.”

“That had to be devastating.”

“It was, but I wasn’t as surprised as I should’ve been. She’d had a mean streak, for lack of a better term, her whole life. You never knew when it would show up. Part of me has always thought that her pursuit of Matt was more about hurting me than it was about having feelings for him.”

“If that’s true, then she sure is stuck with him now.”

“They deserve each other.”

“Indeed.”

“Anyway,” Kara said, forcing a smile, “this is my old room.”

“I’m very happy to be your new roommate.”

She leaned in to kiss him. “You’re the best roommate I ever had.”

Dan put his arm around her. “Let’s get going back to Bertha’s. I want to snuggle my baby mama.”

“Your baby mama would love that.”

Chapter

Twenty-Five

“That was surprisingly fun,”Kara said when they were on their way back to Bertha’s with a box of leftovers Judith had sent to her mother and brother, along with another piece of cake for Dan to have before bed because he’d loved it so much.

“It was a very nice evening. I was glad to get the chance to see Kolby and Keenan, too. Who’s left for me to meet?”

“You’ll meet Kellen tomorrow. He’s second-in-command to my dad and Kendra at BBW.”

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