Love Next Door (Lakeside 1)

“Jealous? Why?”

“Because you were so close to her. You had access to her all the time growing up, and I didn’t. It’s interesting how determined you were to escape the place I considered my haven. The weeks I spent up here in the summers were something I looked forward to every year. That never changed for me, not even as I got older.”

“Well, it was sort of a vacation for you, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah, but it was also more than that. Here, people seem to have each other’s backs, at least for the most part. There’s a community here that doesn’t exist in the same way in the city. There’s no anonymity.”

“It’s a blessing and a curse.”

“I can see that. Everyone knows your business, but at the same time, the lack of posturing is a nice change. You are who you are. No one cares about what kind of car you drive or how much money you make. Except maybe Tucker the Fucker. Hell, it seems to be a badge of honor to drive a rusted-out, beat-up old pickup truck because it means you love it enough to keep fixing it.”

“To be fair, I think Bee refused to give up the pickup truck because it was your grandfather’s other lover. He spent as much time tinkering with that thing as he did sitting with Bee on the front porch. At least that’s how it seemed when I was a kid.”

“Whenever I visited, he spent most of his time in the garage,” Van agrees.

We both smile, and Van tips his head, eyes dipping down.

“Does everyone around here mumble and add an r to your name and call you Darlin’?”

I chuckle. “Honestly, I think Billy is the one who started calling me that, and everyone else followed suit. Like he couldn’t pronounce it properly, and then people started adding the r, and it stuck. Except Bee. She called me Lynnie, and sometimes people call me Dee because it’s shorter, and we’re lazy with our tongues.”

“What do you like to be called?”

I shrug. “They’re all fine. Apart from trailer trash, anyway.”

Embarrassment makes him duck his head. “Monica is an asshole.”

“She’s the kind of person who made me hate the north side of the lake. All that entitlement and believing they’re better because they were born with a silver spoon in their mouths. I wanted to prove to everyone who ever looked down on me that I could be just as successful. And I wanted to prove to this town that if you wanted to leave, you could.” Between people like her and Tucker, I had motivation to get out. Spread my wings, and knock a few people off their pedestals on my way out.

“And now?”

“I’m starting to see this place differently.” Having lived in the city, where anonymity is easy to come by, and then coming back here, to where everything and everyone is familiar, has changed things. And so has the guy sitting across from me. He’s a link to Bee, and in many ways he embodies the nostalgia of my teens. And now that I’m getting to know him, I’m finding there’s lots to like about him.

“Yeah, me too. At least when I’m around you.” His eyes roam over my face, and this time I don’t win the battle with my hand not to touch my hair.

I snicker. “You’re a fan of surly neighbors?”

“Maybe it reminds me of Chicago. Everyone’s surly there.”

“That’s a fact.”

“Or maybe it’s because you don’t put up with shit.”

“Oh, I put up with lots of shit.”

“Not from me.”

“You happen to catch me on particularly surly days, is all.”

“I like your surly.” His tongue peeks out and drags across his bottom lip. “Can I tell you something?” He tips his head down, the brim of his hat casting shadows over his face again.

“Sure.” We’ve been open with each other tonight, and all that hostility I felt has dissipated, especially in the wake of his revelations.

He taps on the table, leaving fingerprints in the dust. “Remember the summer you worked at the french fry truck?”

“Yeah, it was my last summer in Pearl Lake.”

“Mine too. I used to go to the food truck all the time and get fries and hot dogs, even though I’m not a fan of either.”

“Who doesn’t like fries? And why would you get them if you don’t like them? For Bee?”

Van laughs. “No. I mean, sure, she liked them well enough, but I went just so I could talk to you. I kinda had a thing for you.”

“A thing?”

“A crush, Dillion.” His smile is wry.

“Oh. I had no idea.” I lean back in my chair, which creaks ominously. “Why didn’t you come over and say hi, when I lived right next door to Bee?”

He tips his head to the side. “Because I knew you had a boyfriend, and I was only there for the summer. I had a feeling if I acted on that crush, it would be hard to walk away come the end of August. I used to go to those beach parties hoping I’d run into you there.”