Forgotten First Kiss

Chapter 7

The next afternoon, I took Danica for a ride into the hills above Wilder River. “You always loved the fall colors,” I told her. “Though there aren’t many at this elevation yet.”

“Do you live in Wilder River?”

“Nope.”

“Does that mean you’ll be gone before the trees turn colors on the valley floor?”

“Not sure.” I helped her into the truck. She wore a burgundy-colored sweater that hugged her gymnast body in all the right ways. I’d like to be that sweater. She caught me looking and didn’t blush. Instead, she lifted a welcoming eyebrow.

I tuned the music to a playlist I’d prepared—full of that Australian boy band, plus a few classics that everyone our age knew by heart, thanks to their being overplayed on the local radio station when we were in junior high.

“Turn it up so I can sing louder.” Before I could reach for it, Danica adjusted the knob and then sang at the top of her lungs as we sailed up the winding road into the higher elevations. Lonnie wouldn’t pull me over again. Especially not if he saw Danica in my truck. Danica started laughing when I accidentally took a curve too fast. “You’re making my stomach do flips.”

She was doing the same thing to me with her hair flying in the breeze of the open window and her complete lack of inhibition while she sang. It was like this amnesia thing had peeled back the layers of reticence and fear, and all that remained was Core Danica.

I never would have guessed I could have fallen for her beyond the bottom of the deep abyss of in love with Danica Denton. But there I lay on my back, at the bottom of the world, staring up at the expanse of possibility.

Eventually, she turned down the radio and told me about her mom’s visit, later on last night, after I’d left. “She wanted to know whose truck had been at my house.”

“Did you tell her?” My hands froze on the steering wheel.

“It was one of a whole barrage of questions, so I didn’t end up telling her about you. I hope you don’t mind. It’s not like I’m embarrassed by you. But I wanted to let you know it had come up, and it got sidestepped. Not on purpose.”

“It’s fine. I love your mom.” Even if she didn’t love me. “She’s very protective of you and your sister.”

“Mom said my sister is coming to town to visit and check on me soon. Did you know Angelica well?”

“My older sister Penelope was friends with her, like I told you, but I’m pretty sure Angelica thought of me as a nuisance.”

“All girls probably think of their friends’ younger brothers as nuisances.” Danica brushed off my approximation of the truth.

Soon, we reached the summit overlooking the Wilder River Valley. I pulled over, parking the truck at an angle so we could look at the incredible view.

“Wow. It’s breathtaking. The river looks like a silver ribbon winding through fields of green and gold.” She let out a huge sigh. “It’s strange. I feel like I’ve never seen it before and like I’ve seen it ten thousand times.”

I stared at her instead of at the valley. She was God’s most beautiful creation in this scene, as far as I was concerned. When she turned to me, though, I wiped the besotted look off my face and pulled my figurative rolled-out tongue back into my mouth. “Yeah. Gorgeous.” My gaze reverted to the fields and mountainside.

“Do you wish we’d brought something to eat?” Nearby was a rest area with picnic tables. “I should have thought of that. I might burn grilled cheese, but I’m pretty sure I could figure out ham sandwiches.”

From behind her seat, I pulled out a thermal bag. “Your wish.” I plopped it in her lap.

“Lunch? A picnic lunch?”

In it, I’d included every single item I could ever recall her having in her lunch sack when we were in high school. Everything from Little Debbie Cakes, to those tiny tangerines, to string cheese to peanut butter on celery decorated with raisins.

“Yes!” She hopped out of the truck and raced over to the picnic table and pulled out the stuff I’d put together, one by one, with me arriving halfway through the extraction process. “I don’t know why, but every single one of these things feels nostalgic. Which is weird, since I have nothing concrete in my memory to attach to them. But thank you.” She looked up and met my gaze. “You’re pretty amazing.”

We ate, and then we stood awhile, gazing out over the valley. Danica stepped closer, leaning against my arm. I wrapped it around her, and she nestled beneath it, where she fit perfectly. In a moment, she rested her head against my chest. It felt righter than anything right I’d ever felt.

And wronger. All at the same time.

“Are you ever going to tell me about your life?” she asked after taking in the view of the blue and green valley’s expanse.

“What do you want to know?”

“You’re a boss, you said. What’s your business?”