Page 65 of The Summer We Mended
“Do you like tomato salad?”Lily offered, holding the bowl.
June blinked at her again, and then, almost like it surprised her, she smiled.
“I love it.My mom used to make it all the time.”
“Then sit,” Cody said.“You’ve passed the test.”
She sat gingerly on the edge of the swing.Her hands folded in her lap, her gaze kept drifting to the road, to the trees, as if she were checking for something.Or someone.
“Hi!”Nora called, jogging up the steps with Blaze on her heels.“Who are you?”
“I’m June.”
“I’m Nora!That’s Blaze.Wanna play with us?”
June blinked again.“Play?”
“Tag,” Blaze explained.“But it’s animal tag.If I tag you and yell ‘elephant,’ you have to stomp like one.”
“Until someone else tags you,” Nora added.
Anna laughed.“They made it up.Don’t ask for rules; they’ll just change them.”
June hesitated, then looked at the kids.“Sure.Why not?”
They shrieked in delight and bolted toward the yard.June followed slowly at first, then broke into a jog, her laugh rising lightly behind them.The timidness of earlier seemed to disappear.
Lily watched June twirl in the grass as Blaze tried to tag her, Nora collapsing nearby in a fit of giggles.
“She’s a natural with them,” Anna commented.
Lily nodded, smiling as Nora and Blaze regaled June with their tales.She noticed Cody watching the woman closely, his eyes following her as she moved about with the kids.He looked away, his eyes locking with Lily’s, and she watched his cheeks turn a shade of red.
There was a sharp crunch of tires on gravel that broke the air, and everyone looked up.
A familiar pickup truck pulled into Tom’s driveway.Max’s head was sticking out of the passenger side, his tongue hanging out as he barked excitedly.Tom parked, killed the engine, and as soon as he opened the door, Max was out before Tom could even get a foot out the door.Max hit the ground running, barking once with joy before sprinting full speed toward the yard.
“Max!”Blaze shouted gleefully.
But Max didn’t veer toward the kids; he barreled straight for June, barking happily, tail wagging like mad.He launched himself at her, paws against her chest, whining and wiggling as if seeing a long-lost best friend.
June stumbled backward in surprise, laughing with startled joy.“Max!Oh my gosh, Max!”she said, rubbing behind his ears as he pressed himself against her like he never wanted to let go.
Lily couldn’t help but smile.“Well, there’s no doubt about that relationship,” she murmured.
Tom appeared around the truck, keys in hand, sunglasses perched on his head.The moment he saw the scene in his yard, he froze.
His whole body stilled for half a second before he picked up his pace, coming around the truck slowly.His face was a careful blank, but his eyes flickered with something Lily couldn’t quite place.
He stopped a few paces from them.“June?”
She turned, still petting the dog.“Hey, Dad.”
“What… what are you doing here?”
June straightened, brushing dog hair off her shirt.“I…uh… I was in the area.I thought I’d visit.I haven’t seen the new place, and… I figured it was time.”
Tom stared at her.For a heartbeat, no one said anything.
