Page 120 of Catch the Sun

And I wasn’t there to catch her.

“How to Catch the Sun” Step Three:

Weather the Eclipse

Even the sun navigates through shadows.

Chapter 28

Ella

Jonah brings me lemonade.

I tip my chin, my eyes squinting underneath a wide-brimmed hat as sunlight pours down from the clear-blue sky. My denim romper is stained with mud. Worse, my fingernails look almost black from working with the horses all day as my hand curls around the sweating glass. “Thanks,” I tell him, my lips searching for the straw. “Mom makes the best lemonade.”

“It’s the honey syrup,” Jonah says, his thumbs hooked in his belt loops. Shaggy copper hair curls at his ears and his bangs are damp from hard labor under the sun. “Erin is coming by for dinner tonight. I can’t wait to finally introduce her as my girlfriend.”

“No, shit!” I say, grinning wide. “It’s official?”

“Official as a judge’s gavel.”

“She’s really sweet, Jonah. And pretty, too.” I think of Erin and her long blond hair and perfect bangs. I tried to give myself bangs once and I looked like a bewildered sheepdog who’d had an unfortunate altercation with a hacksaw. “Is Mom losing her mind?”

“She’s made three casseroles, seven pies, and enough lemonade to hydrate the entire state of Tennessee for years to come.”

“Sounds legit.” I giggle. “I’m happy for you.”

“Thanks, Piglet.” He leans in to ruffle my hair like I’m a toddler. “No clue what she sees in me, but no complaints.”

“She sees what I see, of course.”

“Hope not. That would be creepy.”

My arm shoots out to swat him on the shoulder. “She sees your heart, Jonah. You know…that big, beautiful thing inside your chest.”

“You think so?”

“I know so.” Sighing dreamily, I sip my lemonade and imagine what it wouldbe like to fall in love one day. I picture a rugged cowboy with dark hair and broad arms. He’s fit and strong because he works on a ranch all day, tending to horses and baling hay. Sunrises are filled with songful birds and floral breezes, and sunsets are the prettiest color orange I’ve ever seen.

“Where’d you just go?” Jonah wonders, his head tilting to the side.

I blink back to the stables, the fantasy dissolving. “I was just thinking about my future love story.”

“Oh, yeah? You’re only fourteen. You’ve still got a ways to go.”

“I know. But it’s fun to think about,” I muse. “Besides, you always wanted me to find love one day.”

Jonah glances off over my shoulder and his sage-green eyes brighten. “Well, he’s here right now. You should introduce yourself.”

I cough when lemonade catches in my throat. “What do you mean? Who’s here?”

“Your future love story.”

My future love story? Did Mom accidentally spike the lemonade?

“What the heck are you talking about?” My nose wrinkles with confusion.

He points off into the distance. “Look.”

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