Page 4 of Secondhand Secrets

Her heart climbed to another gallop, the tension from earlier evaporated, even as she lunged forward, throwing her arms around him.

Chip—Sarah’s brother, and Ally’s boy-genius best friend from her childhood—was back.

She leaned away, a million questions rattling her brain as she looked him over anew, less conflicted about his presence now, more just plain excited.

His lips curled into another smile, small and boyish, bringing back decade-old memories. Of them sitting side by side, just like this. At school. On her front lawn. Down by the Mirabella River after a summer swim… and it was summer once again, wasn’t it?

“Jeez Louise, you look…” Though she failed to finish her sentence, her focus bounced all around him, remnants of the old—or more precisely, younger—Chip still there amongst his stark changes.

Gosh, that wiry kid now had broad shoulders. And his jawline. So defined. With the light shadow of bronze stubble. A slightly manic giggle escaped her.

Chip Overton has stubble now?

She searched for more semblances of the Chip she’d known. Something she could cling to. Something to dull the disorienting din inside her head. After all, he’d already stirred emotions she didn’t want to associate with anyone, much less her sweet and geeky childhood buddy.

“Last time I saw you, you were––”

His slow smile revealed those perfectly straight teeth again, his once-gappy grin completely gone. “Fourteen.”

“No.” Though, that too. She shook her head. “Skinny… and pale… really, really pale.”

His shoulders shook with an unrestrained laugh, and he reached out to her. The action from any other man would have resulted in her instantly reeling back, but all she had now was her own laughter taking over and her hand slipping into his long and nimble-looking fingers.

Relief drowned out her confused hormones, and a light sensation drifted over. Suddenly, the hand holding wasn’t enough, and she extended her arms, pulling him in for another embrace.

Shock had drowned her appreciation of that first hug, but this time, this time, she breathed him in, making up for an entire decade of absence.

Another laugh disappeared into the curve of his neck, and she held him long enough for his crisp scent to reveal deeper tones of amber and musk. When she finally did pull out of the embrace, she looked him over again, all while ignoring any tight, fluttery feelings within her body. “You grew up on me!”

“Like you can talk.” A slower, thoughtful expression swept his face. “What happened to the reedy, thirteen-year-old I left behind?”

She opened her mouth to offer an answer, but his reminder about “leaving” dried her reply. He had left. And suddenly, too. All the way to Boston in the wake of his parents’ divorce.

Now, shame snaked through her torso.

What had happened to her?

Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

She’d stayed right here in Harlow while Chip—though not his fault—had been the first of many her age to either settle down and have kids or embark on adventures far, far away.

“Chip!”

The loud clap of Blaine’s voice had her startled and sucking in a sharp breath, the man wading down the row until he sidled up to Chip, her solo moment with her old friend gone.

“How you doing, buddy?” Blaine dropped into a neighboring seat, one hand balancing a newly bought beer, the other snapping out to give Chip a quick pat on the back. “Finally decided to visit the old stomping grounds, huh?”

Though Chip flicked his gaze back to her, it didn’t hold the same unabashed light as before. As though the new company had him hiding any overt signs of joy.

“Just taking a break from Boston.” He turned back to Blaine with a tight nod. “I brought work with me. With Sarah moved in with Dean, I figured I’d take over her house and get more done in Harlow.”

Blaine leaned over and latched his gaze to Ally at the same time. “Back when Sarah and I were a thing, we’d occasionally visit Chip over in Boston.” He tilted his head to Chip. “You’ve only just graduated, right?”

“Yep.” A muscle twitched along Chip’s jaw before he rose quickly, the twist of his body indicating he wanted to leave. “Looks like your lady’s here.”

Sure enough, Emilia did make her way toward them. Not that Blaine noticed, his brows still pressed together in a quizzical stare. “What did you study again? Computer something…”

“Computer science.”

---