Page 18 of If the Summer Lasted Forever
“I haven’t been here in years,” I say to Landon as we walk through a two-story that’s in better shape than most.
“They’re tiny.” Landon motions to the room around us. “Can you imagine living somewhere this small?”
He’s right. The structures were built in the eighteen-hundreds, and they look more like large playhouses than real homes. There are a few plaques on the walls that talk about who owned the houses, how long they lived there, and what they did for a living. Most of the men worked at the crumbling lumbermill down the road, but a few were miners, and others raised livestock.
“Don’t go upstairs,” Landon calls to Caleb, who’s already climbed the first two steps. “It doesn’t look stable.”
The boy looks back at his brother, frowning like he’s trying to decide if taking a peek would be worth getting in trouble. After a moment, he gives in and comes down to join us.
We wander for a while longer. Growing worried about the way my nerves hum when Landon comes close, I keep a reasonable distance, never letting myself stand near enough to accidentally bump his arm or let our fingers brush.
Over and over, I remind myself this is just a friendly outing, nothing more. The Tillmans are going to leave at the end of the summer. Landon will move on, and I doubt he’ll even remember me by this time next year.
This is just a nice way to pass a day—no reason to overthink it or put more stock into it than it deserves.
I’m quiet on the way back, but if Landon notices, he doesn’t mention it. Caleb’s gregarious enough to carry on a conversation for all of us, and I’m relieved he’s here to fill the silence.
We pass Uncle Mark and Mr. Tillman as we pull into the drive. They’re standing by the front gate, talking. They wave as I drive around the house.
Caleb hops out of the Jeep as soon as I stop, eager to tell his dad about the shanty and the ghost town, leaving Landon and me alone—and acutely aware of it.
“That was fun,” Landon says.
I play with my keys, purposely avoiding his eyes. “It was. I think Caleb had a good day.”
Landon murmurs an agreement. It’s hard to get a read on him. He’s usually charming, but now that it’s just the two of us, he seems hesitant.
“I think we’re supposed to go on that hike soon,” he says after a long pause. “Mom said she and your mom settled on a day.”
“Oh, that’s right.” I nod.
Silence.
We sit here for another moment, but when it’s obvious we’ve both lost our words, I force an easy smile and step out the door. Landon does the same, though he looks reluctant to join his brother. After a moment, he taps the Jeep’s roof twice. “Thanks again.”
“No problem.” I’m relieved he’s finally leaving…and disappointed he’s finally leaving.
He pauses on his way toward the front of the house and turns back. “So, I’ll see you tomorrow?”
I think about it for a moment, wondering if we planned something I didn’t realize. “Why?”
Landon walks backward and flashes me a crooked grin. “Why not?”
CHAPTER SEVEN
“You’re seriously not goingto come?” I demand into the phone.
When Mom was planning the family hiking trip with Mrs. Tillman the other night, I figured she’d eventually come to her senses and remember she has an entire campground to run. But no.
She says Jack, a guy from the Silverton area who helps Mark out on occasion, is looking for some extra work now that he and his wife, Kinsley, are expecting their first baby. Jack said he’d be happy to keep an eye on things this afternoon while he makes repairs to the irrigation shed.
I still think it’s a bad idea. What if we have a problem with the code to the pool gate like we did last year? Or what if someone runs into the office with the back of their trailer like the year before that? One of us should be here, just in case.
Granted, it’s still a little too chilly to swim, so no one’s using the pool yet. And the chance of someone hitting the office twice is rather slim-to-none. But still.
“I’m sorry, Lacey,” Paige says, sounding sincere. “Tanner called fifteen minutes ago, and we made plans.”
“But I need you,” I whine.
