"You're late," I said, holding back my tears, taking in his appearance. His light hair was longer than it was the last time I'd seen him, and he looked leaner, but the rest of him was all the same. Looking at him, I realized that all my drawings hadn't done him justice.
"It took a little longer than I thought to find my way," he said, taking a step toward me. "I needed to be able to walk to you on my own," he added, taking yet another step closer to me, bringing us a breath away from each other. "That's if you'll have me," he added quietly, studying me intently.
"If you ever do that to me again, I'll hunt you down and make you sorry," I threatened as a single tear streaked down my cheek.
"Trust me, bunny, I'm not going anywhere," he said before sweeping me into his arms.
I sighed with pleasure when his lips claimed mine. Here was the spark I had been missing. He ran his hand up behind my neck, anchoring me in place as he deepened the kiss.
I lost all track of time until in the foggy recesses of my mind I heard someone clearing their throat.
"Oops," I said, pulling back slightly, but not releasing my hold on him.
He slid an arm around my waist and we walked into my house to find my parents eyeing us, knowingly.
"You knew?" I accused my mom, feigning anger.
"Yes, I knew at Thanksgiving, but I had to be sure that you were basing your life on choices you wanted, and not ones that were ruled by some feelings about some guy," she answered. "Call it my motherly right. I wanted to tell you after I realized that despite thinking things were over with Mason, you still planned on transferring to Colorado, but I promised Mason I wouldn't say anything," she admitted.
"I appreciate it, Ms. Hanson," Mason said warmly.
"I've told you, call me Kate," she chastised.
"Okay, I appreciate you keeping my secret, Kate," he said with the twinkle I loved in his eye.
"Just don't hurt my girl again," she warned.
"I promise," he said, tucking me more securely under his arm.
"That's all I ask. Now, let's get your stuff and we can eat some lunch," she said, heading for the door. Rick followed behind and I watched as he reached for her hand and laced his fingers through hers.
"What do you think of that?" Mason asked, following my stare.
"I think it's pretty fabulous," I admitted, facing him.
He dipped down to place a kiss at the corner of my mouth before trailing his lips along my jaw line. Goose bumps popped up along my arms and my breath quickened at the feelings he was evoking in me.
"I've been dreaming about doing this for months," he mumbled against my neck right below my ear and I shivered in anticipation.
"I have to tell you something. I lied to you this summer," I told him.
"You did?" he asked, puzzled.
"Yeah, I'm not in like with you," I said as his lips paused their exploring. "I'm in love with you," I admitted with shining eyes.
"I'm I love with you too, beach bunny," he said as his lips claimed mine.
Epilogue
The bus chugged to a stop twenty yards from us, making dust billow up around the tires in the warm air. I couldn't help marveling at the differences in temperatures from this summer and the one the year before. Mason stood beside me with my hand clasped in his. His prosthetic leg was a couple shades lighter than his skin. I had teased him the first time he pulled a pair of cargo shorts that he was going to have to get a tan prosthetic leg for summertime.
As if reading my mind, he tilted my chin up and dropped a kiss on my lips. I smiled wickedly at him when we parted and I licked my lips. I laughed when his eyes narrowed. It would be a long six weeks in our separate cabins.
"Ew, get a room pervs," Amy said, coming up to join us.
Mom ignored our exchange as she stood nervously on my other side. I couldn't help smiling as I recalled my own nervousness from the previous summer. I reached over and clasped her hand. "You got this," I told her, echoing words from so long ago.
She shot me a stilted smile, resting her free hand against her slightly rounded stomach. She and Rick had been nervous as hell to break the news to Mason and me after their spring wedding, wondering if it would be too much too soon.
"It's a good thing you're married," I had admonished, before breaking into a big smile as Mason clasped Rick into a tight congratulatory hug.
"We know we're older," she dragged out, obviously embarrassed about her age.
"Mom, women in their forties have been having babies for years. There's nothing special about you," I had teased, easing her fears.
I watched her now as she nervously waited for the bus to empty. "They're going to love you, Mom," I reassured her, giving her hand a squeeze as the doors of the bus opened.
Still clutching Mason's hand, I stepped forward underneath the Unlikely Allies sign and waited for my girls to disembark. I couldn't help laughing when they piled off the bus and surrounded me with their high-pitched chatter.
My eyes grew misty when Alyssa finally disembarked. She stood for a moment at the last step of the bus, uncertainty covering her face. When we made eye contact, she looked away quickly, as if she wanted to make a mad dash somewhere. I made my way through the crowd and stopped in front of her and opened my arms. She studied me for a moment and I swear I saw her eyes watering up, just a bit. She stepped forward into my embrace and hugged me tight.
“I’m sorry about last summer,” she mumbled, finally pulling back.
“Hey, it’s water under the bridge. Besides, what happens at UA stays at UA, right?” I said, draping my arm across her shoulder so I could propel her to the center of the group where she belonged.
Looking up, my eyes met Mason's and he smiled proudly at me.
“All right campers,” Dad bellowed into the megaphone, getting everyone's attention. “Girls, ages ten to twelve, you’re with Amy and Kimberly, my daughter, in cabin Raven,” he said, pointing to where Amy and I were standing. “Girls, thirteen to fifteen, you’re with Liz and my wife, Kate, in cabin Sparrow,” he said with sparkling eyes, pointing to Mom. “Boys ten to twelve, you’re with Travis and Ryan in cabin Blue Jay, and boys, thirteen to fifteen, you’re in cabin Eagle with Mason and John. Gather your belongings and head to your cabins. We’ll meet back out here at ten for orientation," he finished before joining us under the Unlikely Allies sign.
Forever Changed
Enjoy this excerpt from
Forever Changed
By
Tiffany King
Kassandra
“There are moments in everyone’s life that define the type of person you are, and the person you will become,” or so my dad always says—used to say, I corrected myself, kicking at the pile of discarded clothes at my feet. Ugh, how do you pick the right outfit to wear to your own father’s funeral? The words clanked through my head like a roller coaster ratcheting up the track. This was a decision I could use my mother’s help with, but she had spent the past few days adrift in a medicated stupor. She collapsed at the hospital after the no-nonsense surgeon came into the waiting room, informing us that the internal bleeding from the accident was too extensive. His words instantly snuffed out all the hope and optimism we had been clinging to, and in one life changing-moment, my father was gone.