It didn’t surprise me that Andrew was renting a place I’d always been curious about. The restored 1800s schoolhouse was fifteen minutes from Crush, a cute little brick building with a peak over the arched door and big windows everywhere. It didn’t have much of a yard, but it backed against preservedfields, which meant that Dude had hundreds of acres to get lost on if Andrew let him off leash without practicing his recall homework. I made a mental note to remind him to keep at it.
I fought off the jangly, queasy feelings at the sight of Nolan’s old Honda already parked in the driveway. I didn’t allow myself to think about how much I’d missed both of them until I was seconds away from hugging them again. I’d been stupid to not be better about staying in touch. Sure, it was a two-way street, but I felt like I’d been the one idling at the stop sign.
I opened the back door of my car, grabbing Edith’s leash and the six-pack of craft beers I’d picked up. It was going to be a great night. Old friends, cute dogs, and lots of laughs. I had to keep telling myself that as I walked up the steps and the front door opened.
“Chels!”
Samantha’s scream cut right through me. In that single syllable I could hear the crack of emotion in her voice. A little pain mixed in with her happiness.
“Sammie!”
I dropped the six-pack, crashed into her, and burst into unexpected tears.
Hugging Samantha stripped away any of my worries about things being awkward between us. I could feel her cry-laughing too as we embraced. I’d been bottling up how much I missed her, pretending that it didn’t matter that we’d drifted apart.
Edith pogoed next to us until we finally broke apart, smiling as we wiped away our tears.
“I’m so happy to see you that I can’t stop crying.” She had her hand over her mouth, laughing as the tears trailed down her cheeks.
Edith seemed to realize that I was getting more attention than she was and jumped up on Samantha.
“Oh, Chels, she’sperfect!” Sam dropped to her knees to pet Edith.
“Well, Birdie would beg to differ,” I laughed.
Samantha looked up at me as she tried not to get nibbled, then jerked her head back dramatically. “Oh my God, you look good. Like, really good. What’s different about you?”
Even after our time apart she was still in tune with me enough to pick up on the fact that there was something wild rumbling around inside me. We’d always had an almost psychic connection, where a glance or raised eyebrow could hold an entire conversation’s worth of context. Now, though, I wasn’t sure I was ready for her to know my innermost thoughts. I didn’t want Andrew crowding out all of the other catching up we needed to do. Plus, I didn’t want her to resume her pro-Andrew campaign until I had a better understanding of what the hell was going on with him.
“Oh, stop.” I ducked my head to avoid her curious stare. “I got a good night’s sleep maybe? Anyway, look atyou.Love the haircut.”
I was shocked that Samantha had chopped off her mahogany-streaked crowning glory, but the new shorter bob suited her too. Then again, she was naturally gorgeous enough to get second looks in sweats and a ponytail at breakfast. When we used to go to bars together, before she and Nolan got serious, Sam’s dark eyes and showstopping smile were the siren songs that lured men to their doom. I was fine with her castoffs.
“You really like it?” she asked, wrinkling her nose. “Mia kept pulling my hair and honestly, this is just easier.”
“Did you bring her?” I peeked past her to where the blue door was flung open and letting all the warm air out.
She shook her head. “Nolan’s parents wanted to take her for the evening and I was more than happy to let them. Mommy needs a break!”
Nolan’s voice echoed out to us. “Would you two stop gossiping and get in here?”
It was typical of us to get so caught up in the moment that we forgot about the rest of the world. Sam swooped Edith up and I followed her in. I had a few seconds of sensory overload after I crossed the threshold, trying to absorb Andrew’s shockingly cozy space, giving him an appropriate smile and nod while simultaneously heading to Nolan for a bear hug.
“Hey, gorgeous, missed you,” he laughed as he wrapped his arms around me. Edith came over to jump up on us and I realized that she was becoming one of those dogs that hated hugging.
Nolan was the brother that I’d always wished for. We’d been in the same friend group since middle school, but going to college together had strengthened our pretend siblinghood. And the marrying-my-best-friend part had sealed it for life.
“You’re so skinny,” I said, pulling out of our hug to take him in. His sandy hair was cropped shorter than I’d ever seen, and he had dark rings beneath his bright blue eyes.
“Just what every man wants to hear, thanks.” He pretended to take a blow to the chest. “I prefer ‘lean.’ ”
“I think he looks great,” Andrew said from the kitchen, where he was flipping caps off beer bottles. I tried not to notice how snug his white Henley was. “Wiry and strong.”
“He’s running again,” Samantha said. “At least one of us has time to exercise.”
A loud bark interrupted us.
“There’s Dude,” Andrew said, glancing down the hall. “I guess he can sense that his favorite teacher is here.” He fixed a shockingly friendly Gibson Glare on me. “Is it okay if I bring him out so he can meet Edith?”
