Terra swings her head around. “It is.”
“LiketheAbbott Barlowe? Who plays for the Boston Eagles?” Tom is fangirling so hard I’m almost embarrassed for him.
“Yeah.” Terra’s tone is hard and cold like stone but Tom doesn’t notice.
“You know him? How did this never come up? Can you introduce me?”
“Nope,” Terra answers, and finally Tom looks at her. He’s visibly startled by the hardness in her chocolate eyes. “Because that blonde he walked in with is his sister and my ex-best friend and I’ve exiled the whole family. But Jake here might be able to help you out. Since it’s his party, and she’s his ex-girlfriend.”
Terra storms off toward the doors to the deck that overlooks the dock. Tom doesn’t follow. Jerkoff. I’m about to turn around and follow her to explain I definitely didn’t invite Aspen or Abbott when Abbott calls my name. “Hey bud. I’m leaving tomorrow for training camp but I had to swing by and say welcome home.”
“Yeah, thanks.”
Abbott shakes my hand and actually pulls me into a hug. Abbott and I were never close. He’s a good guy and everything, we just don’t gel. He was closest to Declan growing up, but they don’t really talk anymore. Of course they didn’t have the colossal blow-out fight that Terra and Aspen had. Speaking of … my eyes land on her. “Hey Aspen. How are you?”
I lean down to give her a hug because it’s expected. She hugs me back. “Oh you know…”
Tom clears his throat. I pull away from Aspen. “Have you guys met Tom? He’s with Terra.”
Tom immediately starts talking to Abbott about hockey. I back away and turn to make my way out to the deck. Aspen’s voice calls my name. “Jake! Can we catch up for a sec?”
“Yeah. In a minute. I have to do something,” I call back and make my way to the deck doors. I’m worried Terra won’t wait for her man to stop gushing all over Abbott and just leave by herself, and I don’t want to miss her.
Out on the deck Terra is leaning against the railing. It’s still unbelievably warm outside and humid. My clothes start to feel clingy as soon as I step outside, and there’s zero breeze. I notice for the first time she’s wearing a long-sleeved sweater over her cute dress. “Aren’t you melting in that?”
She nods, keeping her eyes on the inky black ocean churning in front of us. The moonlight is slicing a perfect silvery line down the middle of the water. It’s really pretty and I realize how much I missed this, the tranquility of the ocean.
“So take off the sweater.”
“Nope. I’m good,” she replies firmly. It makes no sense but I don’t push her.
“So Tom…” Now she looks at me, her expression anxious. “How’d you meet?”
“He gave a guest lecture at my school. I attended and asked him a couple questions afterward and he asked for my number,” Terra replies. There’s no awe in her voice. No excitement or sweet nostalgia as she recounts the tale.
“How old is he?”
“Thirty-one.”
“Wow. Older than Deck,” I say without thinking.
“Let me guess, you think he’s too old for me,” Terra says but doesn’t stop talking so I can answer the question. “I mean if you thought a junior was too old for a freshman, this must be totally unacceptable to you. Tom was already in college when I was a freshman. Gasp!”
“You’re feisty tonight,” I remark and wink at her before growing serious. “And I don’t think he’s too old.”
“Age was one of your excuses not to touch me when we were in high school,” Terra replies, turning her eyes back to the ocean.
I laugh. “Okay well, if we’re following the stupid things we said when we were teenagers, then why aren’t you and Tommy boy married with twins named Chuck and Blair?”
She swings her head back to stare at me. The freckles on her nose are gleaming in the moonlight and it’s fucking adorable. I want to cup her face and run the pad of my thumb across them. “You told your family you wanted to marry by twenty and have twins and name them after thoseGossip Girlcharacters, remember?”
“I was thirteen and an idiot,” Terra replies. “I don’t actually want kids now. And marriage is a big maybe … and I’m not talking with Tom, I’m talking with anyone.”
I love the Tom part of that revelation but not the anyone part.
“Oh, so you’ve changed, but I haven’t?” I cock an eyebrow.
“Maybe you did but how would I know?” she asks softly after a long pause where we just stare at each other. “You didn’t keep in touch.”
