Page 74 of Chasing Lynda

She returns with a tray with a bottle of vodka in an ice bucket and several shot glasses that she sets down at the end of her lounger.

“Let’s do some shots, guys! I’m bored.” She pours the booze and offers it around. Everyone accepts it except me and Bennett.

Arya also has a deck of cards for one of those games where you have to wear the card on your forehead and guess what’s on it by asking the others a set amount of questions.

The game is fun and the atmosphere around the pool seems to grow more relaxed as we laugh at how bad Carter is at guessing; everyone is laughing and I can almost imagine them playing the same game when they were kids.

A pang of sadness invades me when I think that I never had a close group of friends like this. I’m an only child and I was often lonely growing up. Things got worse after we moved to California and my father’s involvement with the Church of the Higher Self meant that we became more and more isolated in their chosen community. I used to feel like I never belonged anywhere; even my friendship with Kelley and his friends, wasn’t comparable to how tight the guys and Callie are. I’ve always suspected that to Kelley I was more like a charity case than a real friend.

I sigh, feeling guilty about that thought. I’m being unfair, Kelley cared about me, not just the way I wanted him to.

The game at the table gets louder and louder when people do a few more shots. I’ve been drinking water this whole time and I realize that I really need to use the bathroom.

I get up from my lounger, walking into the pool house rather than all the way into the maze of the main house.

17.

Easy And Complicated

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Lynda

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THE POOL HOUSE IS MOSTLY open space, with just a bathroom and a couple of changing rooms in case the guests want to change their bathing suits without walking into the main house.

There are several full-length windows that must let in a considerable amount of light when the wooden shutters that cover them are open; right now they’re mostly closed, with only some slats inclined to let some sun in.

It isn’t dark in here, but the shade provided by the blinds is pleasant after the brightness outside. It’s a sunny day and I don’t have any shades, I wonder if Callie has spares, since she’s been so kind to let me borrow her clothes.

The door opens and I jump, surprised by the sudden noise. “Shit!” I utter, bringing a hand to my chest.

I’m relieved to see that it’s Bennett. That Skip guy has continued to look at me this entire time and I don’t particularly like the idea of being alone with him.

“Hey GT, are you all right?” He smiles. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

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