Love Next Door (Lakeside 1)

“Right?” Tawny looks over her shoulder before she continues. “Well, there was a rumor floating around a few days ago that a tow truck was parked down the street from Sue’s house that just happened to belong to the Carters. Now, I’m not saying it’s true, but Sue and Sterling had a thing back in high school, and then when you left, she broke it off with him and tried to get with Tucker. They hooked up, but nothing came of it. Until two summers ago. They met up at one of these parties, hooked up again, and starting dating on and off. Nothing serious at first, but she kept pushing for more, and he finally asked her to move in with him. Then she got pregnant, had the baby, and now they’re both miserable.”

“I still don’t get why she’d want to be with him in the first place, especially when she knew he’d been cheating on me.” Other than the fact that she always seemed to want what I had.

“Who knows? Maybe she thought she could do what no one else could and make him be faithful to her? He was pretty broken up about it when you left, and she basically threw herself at him. I used to think maybe the cheating was because he knew you were leaving, you know? Maybe trying to prove to himself that he didn’t need you. But it just seems to be how he is. It’s pretty sad.” Allie takes a sip of her drink and makes a face while she sloshes it around, maybe to mix it up some more.

“His parents had a shitty relationship, too, so poor modeling and all that,” Tawny says. “I read an article about that. How our parents’ relationships frame our own. Makes sense that what you see is what you emulate.”

“Yeah, doesn’t excuse the serial cheating, though. And we all have the ability to break the cycle if we want to. Anyway, I feel bad for Sue, but I’m glad he’s not my problem anymore.” I hold up my glass. “To putting the past behind us.” We all clink our tumblers together, tip our heads back, and make a face on the swallow.

“Is it me, or is this getting stronger the more we drink?” I ask.

“I don’t think it’s mixed very well.”

Simultaneously, we shake our glasses, the ice clinking against the stainless steel sides, and chuckle.

“It really is good to be back, though.”

I kick at a pebble on the ground. It skips a few feet, heading toward a group of guys I used to go to high school with, one of whom is Aaron Saunders. That’s not a surprise; he always loved a good beach party. It pings off another bigger rock and bounces up, hitting a guy with his back to us in the calf.

I cringe as he turns around and adjusts the brim of his hat. Most of the guy’s face is in shadow, apart from his chin and mouth. A flash of memory from a decade ago pops like a bubble, gone before I can catch it. He flips his hat around so it’s facing backward, and I realize it’s Van. Hanging with the locals.

Tawny gives a low whistle. “Who the heck is that delicious hunk of yummy man?”

“That’s Bee’s grandson. He’s my neighbor.”

“Holy hotcakes on the griddle, he’s ridiculously gorgeous.”

“He is that. He’s got some asshole friends, though. And he can be an asshole at times too.” I say that through gritted teeth while smiling and waving at him.

He tips his head to the side, a slow half smile forming on his lips. His eyes roam over me in a leisurely sweep. He doesn’t so much as glance at Tawny or Allie. He tips his chin up in acknowledgment and then turns back to his group.

“Ooooh, looks like someone has a thing for his neighbor.” Allie elbows me in the side.

I roll my eyes. “He doesn’t have a thing for me. We can barely have a conversation without arguing.” And he seems to enjoy pushing my buttons.

“Then why is he headed this way?”

“Huh?” I glance back in his direction to find that he is most certainly headed toward us.

“Crap,” I mutter. I resist the urge to touch my hair or do any of the typical things women do when a ridiculously attractive man is approaching. It annoys me to no end that I react like this to Van. I don’t even really know him, and what I do know, I’m still on the fence about, especially after last night.

“Howdy, neighbor, I didn’t expect to see you here tonight.” He tucks a thumb in his pocket and smiles, gaze still firmly fixed on me.

“It’s a local party and I’m a local; not sure why I wouldn’t be here.” Clearly I’m dishing out my surly tonight.