I tried to envision the scene from six years ago. "But I didn't see a mower in the truck bed."
"Right. Because I was mowing out back."
"Oh." His explanation was surprisingly simple. And yet, it wasn't what I'd expected. "So that's why you were skipping class? To work?" I stared up at him. "Seriously?"
"What, you're surprised?"
"Well, yeah, actually. I mean, I always figured you were cutting class for the fun of it."
"Want to know what I always figured?"
"What?"
His gaze hardened. "That I was done with you."
His words stung, but for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out why. The two of us had never been friends. And, as I'd learned the hard way in high school, just because we were working on a common project, that didn't mean we were working on the same side.
Still, I dreaded the idea of fighting with him for four long months while the house was being restored. It would be miserable for both of us – me in particular, since I was so much lower than him in the pecking order.
I gave him a pleading look. "Look, it's been what? Six years? Don't you think it's time we put the past behind us?" I forced a laugh. "I mean, you don’t see me complaining about my eyebrows, do you?"
His gaze flicked to my brows. "Hey, they grew back."
Talk about callous.
And besides, he was missing the point. As usual.
I tried again. "Yeah, but my grades didn't. That stunt in chemistry? It destroyed my grade point average. You do realize that, don't you?"
With something like a sneer, he said, "What, your perfect piece of paper?"
"It wasn't just a piece of paper," I said. "There was a lot more to it than that."
"Yeah? And maybe there was more to my truck."
I didn't doubt it. Still, a truck was replaceable. My scholarship wasn't. But Brody would never understand, and in the interest of mending fences, I tried to focus on the positive.
"Look," I said, "I know the truck was important to you. I get that. And I tried to pay for it. Remember?"
It was true. Being the kind of sap who always played by the rules, I actually did offer to pay for the stupid thing, even though I had nearly no money of my own. Embarrassingly, the offer was only possible because the truck was so old and crappy, it was practically worthless – even if it was an extended cab.
Still, I had offered. And I hadn't wasted any time either. I'd made the offer in class the very next day, only to have Brody tell me – and not too nicely either – that he'd rather have revenge than money.
The jerk.
At the memory, I felt the familiar pang of bitterness and frustration. Maybe he should pay me for the lost scholarship. But I never asked, whether due to misguided pride or the realization that Brody Blastoviak had even less money than I had.
Well, at the time, anyway.
Funny how much things had changed.
And now, he still hadn't responded to my statement. I tried again. "You do remember me offering to pay for it, right?"
His jaw clenched. "I didn't want your money."
Right. Because he'd wanted revenge instead.
So much for mending fences.
I glared up at him. "Well, goodie for you. So I guess you're pretty happy now, huh?"
He frowned. "Do I look happy?"
No. He didn't.
And neither was I.
Still, I had to say it. "Well you should be happy. You could buy a million trucks now if that's what you want, so why are you still mad about that one?"
The more I talked, the more pissed off he looked. In a tight voice, he replied, "It was more than a truck."
"Yeah. And it was more than my eyebrows, too."
When his only reply was a stony look, I threw up my hands. "You know what? Forget it." And with that, I turned away, intending to stalk off toward the beach.
That didn't happen.
I'd taken barely two steps when I spotted Roy standing near the side of the house, almost directly in my path. He was holding that godawful video camera. And yes, it was pointed straight at me.
Terrific.
With a sigh, I turned in the opposite direction, looking to avoid Roy and his camera, at least while I regained my composure.
Maybe it was cheating. But at the moment, I couldn’t bring myself to care.
Turns out, that was a mistake. In the process of changing course, I nearly collided with yet another brother.
Oh, for crying out loud.
I felt like a human pinball, bouncing from