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“He is a scary guy. It seems Shannon made the right call.”
“It’s not a matter ofifsomething bad will happen, it’s when. I’m glad Madison called Nate. If Richard ever hurts Shannon …”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“No, you’re good. For his sake, I better never run into him. As for that CEO, I tried, trust me. But apparently, I’m the last person she wants dating advice from right now.”
“Fair enough.” I drop the conversation as we approach my truck. I lean against the passenger door, Jackson in front of me, and spin through the same carousel of emotions I do every time Jackson and I separate. I don’t want him to go, but I understand why he is. Wrapping my arms around him will only make things harder. If he were to realize how often I think of him, practically all day, every day, I’m certain he’d think I’m pathetic, given he’s told me “we” aren’t possible.
We stand inches apart. The sun beats on us, and Jackson squints. “What are we doing, Solia?”
He places his hands on the truck beside me and leans forward so that the sun’s glare disappears between us.
“I don’t know, Jackson. What I do know is, every time I see you, I don’t want it to be the last.”
“Do you think two people can be destined to be together, but the timing is wrong? I wish I’d met you a year ago, two years ago, shit, anytime but now. But it doesn’t change the fact I can’t get you off my mind.”
I can’t hold back any longer. I take his hands into mine and press my lips against his knuckles. With a swift motion, he lets go of my hands and weaves his fingers through the back of my hair and gently leans me against the side of the truck. He kisses me with intensity and wraps his other arm around my waist. His body presses hard against mine as his tongue explores my mouth. I can’t get enough of him. We’re two teenagers, unaware of the world until a couple of cars honk.
Instead of releasing me, Jackson kisses me harder, a smile forming. After three more obnoxious honks, I can’t help but laugh. We stand for a minute, laughing and shaking our heads. Every moment I spend with Jackson is another small treasure I tuck into my pocket to save for eternity. I want to create a life full of precious memories with him, but that isn’t possible if he leaves Meriden.
“I guess we should stop making out on the street.” Jackson laughs, taking a step back onto the sidewalk.
“Yeah, I guess so. I’ll see you at the next meeting?” I ask, hoping he’ll respond by saying he’ll meet me at the cabin in five minutes.
“That’s probably best. Bye, Solia.”
Watching him walk away stings as intensely as the first time. Tears stream down my face as I try to block the pain. I return to the cabin, hoping to find Mia. She’ll know just how to help. She always does.
“There she is!” Mia says, rocking on the front porch. “I was worried you weren’t ever coming back. How’d it go?”
I wrap my arms around her in a desperately needed hug. “It went well. So many residents spoke their minds and said powerful things. I’m not sure it’s going to change anything, but I have hope. Completely unrelated to the meeting, I saw the CEO hitting on Jackson’s sister. And Jackson kissed me again.”
“Wait, what? Holy shit, sit and tell me everything.”
In her Mia way, she listens. She interjects with advice and has me roaring in laughter by the end. She always makes everything better.
“You said you had cleaning left to do, right?”
“Sure, but it can wait,” I say.
“No way. It’ll be like old times. Let’s crank the music, get drinks, and clean our asses off!”
So that is exactly what we do. Mia still has an old college playlist on her phone. She hooks it up to the speaker while I gather the cleaning supplies, and we head upstairs to clean the loft.
There are two old bureaus, a few shelves, and a bed that needs the sheets washed and returned. Mia gets to work on the bed, and I empty and dust the bureaus. Sweat covers us from head to toe in minutes from our hard-core dance moves and slow-paced cleaning. My mind is clear of conflicting thoughts, our feet are stomping, hair flying, and for a blissful little while, I don’t have a freaking care in the world.
Thank god for the seclusion of the cabin. Otherwise, my neighbors would petition for a noise ordinance.
After two hours and five hundred burned calories, I’m dumping the contents of the last drawer into the trash bag when papers catch my eye. Several forms in the middle of the pile stick out, bearing the State of New Hampshire logo on the top. I pull them from the pile and toss the rest.
Upon first glance, I can tell these papers are old, crinkled and worn. The words looked typed using a typewriter. I know the papers have something to do with this property, but most of it is a bunch of legal jargon.
“Hey, Mia. Come look at this.” I sit and lean against the bed.
Mia bends, looking closer. “These look a hundred years old.”
“No kidding. I’ll play it safe and put them aside. The lawyer working on the case asked us to show him anything we had regarding our properties. These papers are loaded with signatures—and look here, there’s something about conservation land, and this address is listed.” I remain still and try to make sense of the pages in front of me.
