I hadn’t spoken to in over a year.
Kyle looked up, his face splitting in a smile as genuine and happy as my own. “Well, look who decided to waltz back into town,” he drawled, pulling his hands out of his shorts pockets so he could envelop me in a hug that almost cracked a rib or two.
“Okay, you can let go now,” I said, my voice muffled by his chest. I could feel the rumble of his laugh, and it filled me with a warmth I hadn’t expected.
Kyle Webber released me, but not before mussing my hair. “It’s good to see ya, Galloway. It’s been way too long.”
I smoothed my wild red hair as much as possible. “I know. I suck at the whole staying in touch thing.” I felt a twinge of guilt. I wasn’t entirely telling the truth. Yeah, I had gotten lax in speaking to my old friends over the years, but that wasn’t the whole reason I had let my friendship with Kyle wither on the vine. Kyle was Adam’s best friend. Where Kyle was, Adam was close behind. You couldn’t have one without the other. And my memories of Kyle would always be intertwined with my feelings for Adam. It hurt to look at him because all I saw was the boy who had rejected me. It wasn’t fair, but it was how I felt. So, it became easier not to talk to Kyle because then I could pretend I could forget about Adam.
I could tell by the way Kyle looked at me that he understood this all too well.
“Well, now that you’re back, you don’t have any excuses,” he lectured.
“Kyle’s been helping me clear out the flower beds for the summer and get the yard tidied up before the place is listed. He brought over some hydrangeas I ordered.” Mom indicated the box of brightly colored flowers.
“Your mom’s a slave driver, though. She has a very clear idea of how she wants the garden to look, that’s for sure,” Kyle teased.
“I just know how I like things is all,” Mom tutted.
“You’re telling me. Remember that time she roped us into painting the living room?” I asked.
“Hell yeah, I do. We were only allowed one ten-minute break.” Kyle chuckled.
“Then Whit splashed you with paint, and you dipped the tips of her hair into the bucket,” I reminded him, remembering it as if it had happened yesterday.
Mom had loaded Kyle, Whitney, and me up with paint rollers and set us to work. It took much longer than it should have because we kept goofing around every time Mom left the room.
Kyle’s brown eyes gleamed. “We had some fun back then, didn’t we?”
“Yeah, we did,” I agreed, wishing I could talk about our shared past without feeling the loss that was smack dab in the middle of it all.
“So, how you been? I haven’t seen you since...” Kyle’s voice trailed off, clearly not sure how to address the uncomfortable topic.
“Since Dad’s funeral,” I filled in for him.
“Yeah, since then.” Kyle gave me a sad smile.
“If the two of you are going to play catch up, close the door, Kyle. I’m not paying to cool down the outside,” Mom scolded, and Kyle gave her a sheepish smile before closing the door behind him.
“Let me take those out to the yard, Mrs. Galloway.” Kyle went to take the box from my mother’s arms, but she stopped him.
“I’m fully capable of carrying a box, young man. Now you and my daughter catch up. Don’t worry about me.” The indomitable June Galloway turned and walked through the house, heading to the backyard.
Kyle and I both chuckled.
“Come on, Mom made peach iced tea,” I told him, waving him through to the kitchen. He followed me just as he had done thousands of times before. Once upon a time, Kyle knew this house almost as well as I did. Our friendship group inhabited each other’s houses as if they were our own.
“One thing I can’t say no to is your mom’s peach iced tea.” Kyle perched himself on a stool and took the cold glass that I offered him.
“And snickerdoodles.” I put the plate of cookies down in front of him, and he attacked them as a man starved.
“Man, I sometimes dream about these. I think I gained ten pounds in my teens' thanks to your mom’s baking,” he mumbled around a mouthful of cookie.
I smirked. “You gained ten pounds because you ate like a horse.”
Kyle wiped his mouth with the back of