Page 1 of Be My Summer

CHAPTER ONE

“Are you serious, old lady? Are you trying to give my old man a heart attack?” Breathlessly, I asked my stepmother.

“You don’t think that’s a good idea?”

“Someone jumping out of a cake, Ma? I think it’s a horrible idea unless you have medics on standby.”

“Well, your brother is a physician, so that wouldn’t be much of an issue.”

“No. Speaking of my brother, have you run this by him?”

“No.” She sighed, defeated.

“Exactly. Don’t.” Chuckling, I shook my head, wondering how many more tricks she had up her sleeve.

Though she meant well and simply wanted my father to have the time of his life at his party in two months, the ideas she tossed my way simply weren’t sticking.

“How about we go with a large, elegant dining experience that he’ll remember for years to come? He’s a simple guy. We can’t miss him with an extravagant dinner.”

“You’re right,” she agreed. “Maybe I’m just overthinking it all.”

“You are. Just relax. Don’t stress. When I get a chance this week, we can have lunch and hash out the details. Make sure your son is in attendance because he’s not going to nod his way out of this one.”

The son who she and my father shared had inherited our father’s mellow demeanor. He hardly protested anything and simply went with the flow. However, this was something we wanted his input on, and wouldn’t accept the nonchalant head nods and shoulder shrugs.

“Words. We’re expecting words,” I emphasized, finally slowing my stride to catch a breath.

“I know. I will talk to him.”

With my hands on my hips, I began pacing in a large circle to keep my legs moving and my heart pumping. I watched from atop as the soles of my shoes collided with the cement beneath them. It was a calming mechanism. One that helped me settle before my last stretch.

“Don’t you think it’s a little too hot to be running out there, son? You’re going to pass out.”

Chuckling, I lifted my head with a nod, agreeing with my mom’s statement. However, it wouldn’t deter me. My mid-day run was a source of relief from the unsolicited stress creators managed to incur as a daily right of passage in the creative realm. It was welcomed chaos.

A fluffy fabric that littered the green grass captured my attention as I responded to the comment and question that had been posed. My attention had been divided. My adrenaline had been reinstated.

“Maybe it is a little hot, but a good sweat has never hurt anyone, has it?”

Long, dark legs that rested against the blanket made my eyebrows race to the center of my forehead. Curiosity was the cause of my lingering gaze. I was utterly, completely intrigued.

Inch by inch, I studied the umber-colored skin until I reached a white dress that led to long, slim arms and fingers that huddled around a thick book to keep it steady. The face that was stuffed inside was almost impossible to get a good view of, but I didn’t need to.

Soft, straight hair dangled with the slant of her head. And then, it fell backward. Laughter erupted from her soul as a result of whatever she’d just read. Just as her finger turned the page, I witnessed her beauty in its entirety.

Be still. I commanded my heart, placing a hand over my chest.

As if time had frozen, she paused, briefly, before beginning to read again. The sound of my beating heart, as loud and thunderous as it was, led her directly to me.

Be still. I begged it.

Our visions aligned.

“Saul?” My mom called on the other line.

“Ma, I uh– let me hit you back later, aight?”

Without waiting for a response, I removed the AirPods from my ears and shoved them in my pocket. Instead of continuing my jog along the designated path, I accepted the unofficial invitation to join whoever the fuck this gorgeous woman was sitting before me. The run could wait.