Page 146 of Come Break My Heart Again

I nod and drop the hammer I was using to pry loose nails out.

“No internship today?” I ask as we approach the front door.

I always leave the trailer before Cormac, so it’s harder to keep up with his schedule.

“Nah. They gave us a couple of extra days off because of the Fourth this weekend.” He glances at me. “You still going to Martha’s Vineyard?”

“Yeah.” I’m not sure if I should, but I am. I promised Reese—and Tuck. “You got any plans for it?”

“Actually, yeah. I have a date.”

I stop walking, blinking at my brother. “A date?”

Cormac’s smile is wry as he tucks his hands into his pockets. “That hard to believe, huh?”

“No. No, not at all. It’s just …”

Just that he’s still a thirteen-year-old kid in my head. Semi-regular visits for seven years weren’t enough for me to fully catch up. To hear about girls and crushes and dances and realize my little brother wasn’t so little anymore.

“That’s awesome, dude,” I finish.

Cormac rocks back on his heels. “I, uh, I’m not sure what to do for it. Where to take her.”

There’s an unspoken question at the end, and I realize he’s asking for my input. For my advice.

I rub the back of my neck, Elle’s angry words running through my head again.

“Man, I’m the last person you should be asking for relationship advice.” Cormac knows enough of the past to get what I mean. “But, uh, food is usually a good idea. She from Boston?”

Cormac shakes his head. “Columbus, Ohio. She’s just here for the summer. For an internship. I met her at a happy hour.”

“Does she like sports?”

“I think so? She played soccer in college.”

“Take her to a Sox game,” I suggest. “Show her around Fenway, then take her out to dinner.”

“Yeah?”

I shrug. “That’s what I would do.”

“Elle would have liked that?”

There’s a tentativeness to Cormac’s voice as he says her name, like he’s reluctant to bring her up. But she’s the only girl he’s seen me with. My one relationship metric.

“Dunno,” I answer.

“Well, where did you take her?” Cormac asks. “Brynn comes from money,” he adds.

“We didn’t really … we hung out at home. Or the garage. Sometimes parties.”

Cormac’s forehead creases. “You never took her out on a date?”

Silently, I add that to the long list of things I should’ve done differently.

“It was high school,” I say defensively.

“Sure.” Cormac snorts, then keeps walking. “This porch new?”

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