Once Upon a Summertime by Melody Carlson

Author:Melody Carlson [Carlson, Melody]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: FIC027020, FIC042040
ISBN: 9781441223340
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2015-04-27T16:00:00+00:00

16

“What’re you thinking about?” Sean asked as he sipped his ice water.

“Oh . . .” Anna made an embarrassed smile. “Nothing much.”

“You seemed deep in thought.” He waited.

“The truth is, I was about to pinch myself.”

He laughed. “Well, don’t do that. Might leave a bruise.”

“I was just thinking about how I was working in Springville just one week ago. Now I’m here in New York. It’s just so unbelievable. It’s true what they say—you never know what’s around the next corner.”

“You were actually working in Springville? I guess I didn’t know that.”

She grimaced, wishing she’d left that cat in the bag.

“Tell me, what were you doing in our old stomping grounds?”

“It’s kind of humiliating,” she confessed. “But if you promise not to laugh—or feel too sorry for me—I’ll tell you.”

“I promise.” He leaned forward with genuine interest. She told him the whole pathetic tale, clear to the part of sleeping on her grandmother’s couch and using the coat closet for her clothes.

“Pretty sad, eh?” She took a sip of ice water.

“It’s obvious you love your grandmother a lot, Anna. Nothing sad about that. I think it’s sweet.”

The waiter set their wineglasses down now. After the waiter left, Sean lifted his for a toast. “Here’s to old friends . . . reunited.”

“To old friends,” she echoed as they clicked glasses. She wanted to add “old friends who never really knew each other,” but why spoil the moment? Besides, in some ways it really did seem like they were old friends. Like perhaps they really had known each other somehow. She took a cautious sip of the wine and was surprised that it tasted better than expected.

“Okay?” He watched her.

She took another sip, letting it roll around her tongue. “Yes. I actually think I like it.”

He grinned, holding his glass for a second toast. “Here’s to old friends who like the same things.”

She nodded as their glasses made a pleasant ding. “Speaking of old friends,” she began, “my grandma told me a sweet story about how your dad helped her out one day.” Because Sean seemed interested, she told him Grandma’s roadside tale.

“Sounds like something Dad would do,” Sean admitted.

“It must’ve been nice growing up in Springville with a dad like that . . . a family like that.”

Sean got a curious look now. “Did you always live with your grandmother? Or just after college?”

Maybe it was the wine, or maybe it was Sean’s empathetic eyes, but Anna’s usual reluctance to talk about her family life dissolved and she opened up, spilling out her sad little story. Sure, a part of her was shouting inside, Shut up—don’t let him know or you’ll scare him away! But another part of her just didn’t care. If her family history was too much for him, she might as well find out now and cut her losses before she was in too deep. Or was she in too deep already?

Whatever the case, the cork was off and she was telling him how her mother got pregnant

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