Page 2 of Cross My Heart

PART 1

THE PAST

Chapter 1

TYLER

13 YEARS OLD

Summer in Georgia is disgusting. I hate the heat and humidity. I hate that it makes my skin sticky. In fact, I wish I could be in Colorado again, where the summer is a high of the eighties—at least where I used to live. The only thing keeping me from screaming right now is the promise of a pool at our new neighbor’s house.

I stare at myself in the mirror and groan, hating how small I look. There are guys my age who have already developed muscles, and even though I play football, I’m not there yet.

“Tyler!” Dad shouts from downstairs, and my chest squeezes as I fidget with my fingers.

My curly brown hair is messy, and my blue eyes are wide as I take myself in. I grab my swim trunks off my bed and pull them on quickly, then reach for a t-shirt and do the same. I can hear my dad running up the stairs, probably because I didn’t answer him, and suddenly there’s banging at my door.

“Ty?” he tries again. “Are you ready? The Milner’s are waiting for us.”

I sigh. “Ready.”

We single file out of the house and walk next door to a house about the same size as ours. We live in the suburbs of Peachtree City, one of the richest neighborhoods, according to my dad. He’s an architect, so I guess that’s his expertise. Dad said the Milner’s just moved here a few years ago after John retired from the Army, so maybe their kid will take pity on me and make me feel a little welcome if having to move all the time is how they grew up.

Or maybe they’ll hate me.

My dad knocks on the dark brown door of the stark white home, the plank siding squeaky clean, like it’s been power-washed. At least that’s what my dad points out. A lady with dark brown hair and blue eyes opens the door for us, and I take in her attire. She’s wearing modest jean shorts with a white tank-top, her hair cut in a short bob. She looks to be in her late forties, which is a contrast to my parents who are in their early forties.

“Tyler, this is Mae.” My mom gestures to the woman in front of us. I offer her a soft smile, and she grins. “Mae, this is our son.”

“Nice to meet you, Tyler,” Mae murmurs, and I nod with a smile.

“Nice to meet you too, ma’am.” My mom squeezes my shoulder softly in reassurance.

“Oh, and he has manners!” Mae claps her hands, moving aside to let us in. “Wonderful! Maybe you’ll teach Noah how to use them.”

I stick to my parents’ sides like I’m glued to them, and they shove me inside gently. Mae smirks and points to the back sliding glass door, where I can see a pool with a girl and a boy horsing around. They both look to be around my age, but for some reason, I don’t want to go. What if they think I’m weird? What if they don’t want to be my friends?

“M-mom,” I start, but she just smiles at me gently.

“It’s okay, sweetheart,” she reassures me, her blue eyes crinkling in the corners as she smiles brightly. “We’re right here.”

“Okay…”

“You can just let yourself out,” Mae tells me as she walks toward the kitchen and we trail after her, stopping right next to that sliding glass door. “They’ve been waiting for you.”

I paste on my brightest smile, not feeling confident at all. “Great,” I squeak.

Walking past them, I open the door and close it behind me quickly, not wanting to let in the flies that inevitably invade every home at this time of year. Wealsodidn’t have that problem in Colorado.

The girl and the boy in the pool are shoving at each other, laughing loudly.

I clear my throat. Two pairs of eyes crash with my face, and I gulp. I don’t know why I just did that. It’s not like I have any idea what to do with their attention now, but when the redheaded girl looks at the brunette boy with a smirk, my eyes narrow.

“Oh, look, Red.” He looks at me. “We have company.”

My eyes narrow to tiny little slits until I can barely see. But when he looks at me with a smile on his face, my stomach twists into one big knot. His sky-blue eyes are trained on me, and he’s looking right into my eyes. He doesn’t look like he’s judging me or how I look, and when he grins widely, I relax a little bit.

“I’m Scarlett,” The girl says with a grin. “And this is?—”

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