Page 45 of Take This Heart
“Well, get in the door and we can ask more,” Dad teases.
I put my arm around his shoulders as we walk to the dining room. My parents live right on the water in Lake Minnetonka and the sun is dancing across the water. Their view is beautiful. I’d always thought one day I’d have my own home on this lake, but now that I’ve been staying by Lake Superior, it’s in my blood. I guess I could always have a home in both places…
We catch up over dinner, and then the conversation turns back to Goldie. I should’ve never brought her up.
“So, this Goldie girlispretty, huh?” Mom asks.
“She is,” I say reluctantly. “And she’s opinionated, andfeisty. Colorful. Absolutely infuriating. She wants to have her hand ineverything, and she doesn’t let me get away with shit.”
Mom’s head tilts and then she starts laughing. “Youlikeher!” She clasps her hands together like this is the happiest news.
“She’s all right,” I grumble. “She’s a lot of work, is what she is.”
And it takes a lot of work to not think about her every minute of the day, I almost add, but that would just lead to more questions that I don’t want to answer.
Mom’s eyes are amused as she says, “Well, I hope to meet her. You should bring her over sometime. She sounds like my kind of woman.”
“Sounds like she’s his kind of woman too,” Dad teases.
They both laugh when I roll my eyes.
My mom’s shoulders stiffen. “What am I saying? She’s a Whitman!” She shakes her head. “I’m so excited about you finally being interested in someone, I momentarily forgot the woman is a Whitman. Maybe you ought to distance yourself a bit, go out on a date with someone else. It’s probably just that you’re spending so much time together.”
And I miss her when I’m not.
“She’s really gotten under your skin, hasn’t she, son?” Dad asks.
“That’s one way to put it.” I sigh. “Now, can we please talk about something else? I finally have a break from her. The last thing I want to do is think about her right now.”
I’ve wondered obsessively about what she’s doing tonight. If she went out at all, or if she’s home with Everett. Is she wearing that green shirt that makes her eyes look the same shade? Or maybe those tiny red shorts that make it so hard to concentrate…
I hope she ate enough. Lately, she’s been so focused on Everett eating something that she forgets to feed herself.
My heartbeat skips a beat as another thought comes to mind. That Josh guy better keep to his fucking self. The last thing she needs to worry about is some needy ass guy who thinks books are good fire starters. So help me, if he interrupts her night of rest, I’ll need to have a word with Noah and tell him to keep his crew in line.
What am I thinking? I’m from the enemy camp. She’ll find more reasons than ever to hate me when she figures it out.
My dad snaps in front of my face and I blink groggily, like I’m coming out of hypnosis.
“Ah, there you are. I thought we’d lost you to the Whitman girl.” Dad laughs at his own joke.
“Ha. Very funny,” I volley back, but it packs no heat.
We all know he’s right.
Iamlost to the Whitman girl.
There are messages from Everett the next morning.
“Can you give me a call? We’ve hit a roadblock.”
I try to reach him, but it goes to voicemail.
On my way back to Windy Harbor, I get a call from an unrecognized number. I accidentally push the button to accept the call and there’s a long pause before the person’s voice fills my SUV.
“Hello? Is this Milo Lombardi?”
Dammit.
