This Summer
Carina UK
Summary from Goodreads:
Before college, before responsibilities, Hadley Beauman and best friend Lily are determined to have a summer to remember. There will be all the usual dramas - ex-boyfriends who don't seem to know what 'ex' means, pesky younger brothers with unrequited crushes, but what Hadley didn't anticipate was the out-of-the-blue return of the seriously hot boy-next-door, Will Carson. The boy who broke her heart when he skipped town two years ago.
Will may have shot up a foot and filled out (oh yes), but inside he carries the weight of guilt - for leaving, for coming back... Now he's just passing through to tie up loose ends but it's clear the old chemistry still crackles between him and Hadley. Trouble is, it's built on two years of lies...
This summer might just be the best time of their lives, but is Hadley ready for everything to change - again?
This summer might just be the best time of their lives, but is Hadley ready for everything to change - again?
My hands grip the steering wheel, tightening
with each rolling mile towards the house I’d locked up almost two years ago. In
the thirty-six hours of driving I had the urge to turn back at least a hundred
times. But this was the last time I’d ever be in Spring Falls. Once the house
was sold I’d slam closed that chapter of my life.
The green sign for Bryn Street
appears from behind the leave of an overgrown tree at the corner. I suck a
breath in through my teeth and turn the wheel.
I keep my eyes on my childhood home,
growing larger as I near. I break out of the tunnel vision when I pass the
Beauman house. I don't expect anyone to be home, considering we're due at the camp
in less than an hour. I know Mr. Beauman will give me leave, considering I'm
doing him a favor.
A blue car sits in my driveway as I
pull into it, turning off the truck. I flip my phone open just as a woman gets
out of the car.
The line picks up on the first ring.
“Mornin’!” Aunt Mabel exclaims.
My chest squeezes at the sound of her
voice. “Mornin’.” I hold a finger up to the woman outside the truck. She nods,
walking toward the house with a ring of keys. Not that I don’t have one.
“Although it’s almost noon here. How y’all doing?”
“We’re just fine, sweetheart. I’m
assumin’ you got home okay?”
This place isn't my home. My home is
with her. “Yes, I’m here.”
“Now off with you, we can carry on
later.”
“Love you,” I say.
“Love you too.” She’s the first to
hang up.
I toss the phone into the cup holder
and grab the bag from the seat next to me and sling it over my shoulder as I
get out of the car. I stride up the driveway and the real estate agent, Trudy,
turns around, grinning with a set of gray teeth.
“Welcome back, William.”
I clear my throat. “It’s just Will.”
“Oh, sorry about that. I’ll just let
you inside”
“I have a key. Listen, can we talk
later? I’m late for work.”
She blinks a few times but nods.
“Sure thing. Let me just get you the paperwork and you fill it out at your
leisure.”
She run-walks down the driveway, her
heels looking as if they were about to snap and leans through the open window
of her car pulling out a large folder. “These are just the standard contracts,”
she says on the way back up the drive. “Just take a look at them and let me
know if everything is okay?”
“Yes ma’am.”
She beams. “How polite of you. Well
I’ll let you be on your way. My card is in there, call me with any questions.”
“Sure.”
She waves her long fingers at me and
goes to her car.
I turn to the house and fight the
urge to get back into the truck and get the hell out of here. I pull the single
key from my pocket, the one that burned against my leg since Mabel handed it to
me three days ago. I push it into the keyhole and turn. I allow the door to
open in front of me, my feet planted to the ground. The door ricochets off the
wall and starts to return, but I enter the house before I lose my nerve.
I bump the door closed with my foot.
The air in the house is stale, lingering with the spicy scent of whiskey from
that final night. I peer into the living room, which needs a serious cleaning.
My nose wrinkles at the amount of dust on the fireplace mantel. I head into the
kitchen and open the door to the basement. I don’t need lights to find what I’m
looking for, not that they work anyway. I find the electric panel and flip on
the switches. The house hums to life. I take the steps two at a time and am
back in the kitchen. The clock above the stove blinks 12:00. I check the time
on my phone. I should leave soon.
I round the corner and take the
stairs to the second floor, ignoring the two bedrooms on the right side of the
hallway, and fling open the middle door on the left. My shoulders droop and my
bag falls to the floor. My room is exactly how I left it. An outdated PC sits
on the desk I made in wood shop, still unstained. A full-sized bed takes up
most of the room. I make my way to the window, pushing aside the navy blue
curtains that match the bedspread, revealing Hadley’s bedroom window. My heart
lurches at the thought of her. Soon enough I’ll see her again.
A small bright orange piece of yarn
still hangs from her sill, barely noticeable to anyone who wasn’t looking. At
ten I thought it was the greatest idea to build a zip-line between our houses
using Hadley’s grandmother’s knitting yarn.
I tear my eyes away from the window
and let the curtain fall. I cross the room to the closet. I didn’t take much
the night I left. I grab a black t-shirt from the hanger and toss it on the
bed, lifting the same one I’d worn for three days over my head. I pull on the
black shirt and bring the fabric to my nose. Good enough.
I take a deep breath and leave
the room. Here goes nothing.
Check out the trailer!
Katlyn Duncan was born and raised in a small town in western Massachusetts. Her overactive imagination involved invisible friends, wanting to be a Disney Princess and making up her own stories. Her bibliophile mom always encouraged her love of reading and that stayed with her since. Even though she works full time in the medical field Katlyn has always made time for books, whether she is reading or writing them.
Katlyn now lives in southern Connecticut with her husband and adorable Wheaten Terrier and she is thrilled to finally share her stories with the world.
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