Her laugh is a giggle so sweet that it tugs at something deep inside my chest. I want to bottle it up and keep it for the days we’re apart.
The sound is heaven and hell to my ears. It’s my favorite, one I’ll miss when camp ends.
A stark reminder that our time is running out.
Maddie tilts her head back, eyes bright with mischief. “What now,Romeo?” she teases, her arms tightening around my neck.
I grin, committing every little detail of her face to memory. “Now?” I pull her closer, my voice barely above a whisper. “Now we make every second count.”
We’ve been relaxing by the lake since Mom and Dad left. Maddie is lying between my legs, her back to my chest, her head resting against my shoulder, as we look over Lake Horizon when she asks me the question I’ve been dreading.
The one I knew I wouldn’t be able to hold off for much longer, though I was hoping we could have at least gotten through the rest of camp before she asked.
“Why don’t you talk to your parents?”
It’s not like I didn’t see this coming, especially after lunch with the Morales family.
But I hate talking about them…more than anything.
I let out a slow breath. “There’s not much to say.”
But that’s not entirely true, and I know she deserves more than that. So, I give her as much as possible without tearing open old wounds.
“For as long as I can remember, Harrison and I were a burden. Our “parents” didn’t want kids. They had Harrison because it was expected of them. Anderson and CarolineDavenport, the perfect high-society couple, had to maintain appearances and uphold a certain statute, and that vision included children. Their legacy and their inheritance depended on having at least one child. Then I was born, the accident.”
Maddie’s body tenses against me, but she doesn’t speak.
I’m grateful because I don’t want her pity.
“For them, it was easy to pretend they cared about one child. But they realized their pretty life wasn’t so easy once I came along. So they left us at home with nannies, or we stayed with our grandparents on my dad’s side, which happened more often than not. It would have been a lot worse if it weren’t for them. When we got a little older, so did our grandparents. My grandmother died of a heart attack, and it was rough for my grandfather. He passed away last year, but he did his best to give us a semi-normal life until he couldn’t. But what saved us from being totally fucked up was Rosa and Javier, and I’ll never be convinced otherwise.” I pause, accidentally letting my voice harden. “I’d be surprised if my parents even know I graduated. I haven’t seen them in months.”
Maddie doesn’t respond right away. Instead, she tightens her hold on my arms as if trying to anchor me to her.
“What language were you speaking to your brother earlier? When I accidentally eavesdropped.”
“French.”
“Wow. Can you speak any other language?”
“German and Spanish. Harrison and my friend Matteo are teaching me Italian.”
Maddie wiggles between my legs. “Could you teach me? I’d love to learn French…or honestly, any language.”
I smile against her hair. “Of course. Hopefully, you’re better at that than swimming.”
“I’m ignoring that,” she grumbles, then sighs after a moment. “Nate. Can I ask you something else?”
“Go ahead.”
“Well…two things.”
That earns her a small chuckle. “Yes, babe. Ask away.”
“The first day I met you, you told me sailing was your perfect escape. That it was calming.”
“Didn’t let that one slide past you, huh?”
Maddie rubs my arms, refusing to let me deflect. “An escape from your parents?”
