47. Evie—Age Thirteen
Evie—Age Thirteen
The sun warms my skin, leaving a golden glow that despite how fast it develops always fades two weeks later.
“Ugh,” Sarah groans, propping her head up on her fist as she lounges by the lake on her stomach. “Did you hear what Emma has been saying?”
Lifting myself up on my elbows, I play with the frayed edges of my towel, my sunglasses perched atop my nose. From my new vantage point, I can see more of the lake, and Matteo, whose muscles are rippling as he and Caleb throw a football back and forth. Always so inseparable.
“No? Should I have?”
Sarah scrunches her nose, her dark bronzed skin making mine look pearly white in comparison. “Probably, she’s telling everyone she and Matteo are going out.”
“What?” I squeak out, my head snapping back to Matteo, right as he glances over at me.
“I doubt she is. She’s always been a liar.”
“But what if she’s not lying?” My eyes all but bug out of my head. “She’s only thirteen…”
“So?”
“So…aren’t we a little young for boyfriends?”
“Not according to Emma.”
My heart is in my throat, hammering so wildly I can hear the rush of my blood in my ears. Does he like her? Is it true?
Today has been the best day; any day spent with my best friend and Matteo is. Honestly, Caleb too. I know we pick on each other sometimes but it’s always good-natured. It’s just that Matteo…always seems to make me happier than everyone else. But now…
Why didn’t he tell me?
Thank God for my sunglasses, because to my utter horror, tears begin to fill my eyes.
“Want me to ask him?”
“No!”
She lowers her voice. “You know, I think he likes you. Always has. He’s smitten.”
A sniffle escapes me as I whisper back, “Well, clearly not. He likes Emma.”
“Ask him before you believe her word.”
That’s true…
Before I can blink, Sarah is turning over, sitting up and calling out, “Hey, Caleb!”
Catching the football, Caleb shields his eyes from the sun with his hand, squinting. “Yeah?”
“Can you explain to me what a hat trick is? Lexy during cheer practice said it’s when a player can keep their helmet on and—”
“She what?” Caleb barks as he makes his way over before Sarah can even finish her sentence.
She snorts under her breath, muttering to me, “Predictable as always.”
I frown at my best friend. “What are you doing?” I whisper-hiss.
“Want to go for a paddle?” Matteo calls over, looking directly at me.
Before I can respond, Sarah grins at me. “Waiting for that to happen.”
As Caleb comes over grumbling about hockey, I eye her, standing. “You’re evil.”
“An evil genius,” she says smugly, sitting straighter as Caleb’s voice grows closer. “Now let me sacrifice some brain cells. But you owe me one.”
I let out a bark of laughter but it promptly dies as Caleb plops beside Sarah and frowns in my direction. “Not sure why you’re laughing. Why didn’t you correct Lexy? You know what a hat trick is.” His eyes plead with me. “Please tell me you know what a hat trick is.”
Shaking my head, I drop my sunglasses, turn on my heel, and chuckle to myself. “He’s all yours, Sarah!” I call over my shoulder.
Making my way to the lake, my throat closes up, my good humor from Sarah and Caleb fading as I slowly approach Matteo.
We’ve always paddleboarded together. I’m not sure when it started—perhaps when I was around seven?
Hiking has become a new hobby of ours but we’re never alone.
I try my hardest to organize it that way but Caleb loves hiking too much not to tag along and I don’t want to make it obvious that I just want to hang out with Matteo.
The only person who knows how I feel about Matteo is Sarah. She’s the only one I trusted to tell that my heart has always belonged to Matteo.
Which is why as I slide onto the paddleboard, sitting at the front with my legs crossed and Matteo standing behind me, my heart hammers wildly in its cage. I don’t talk for the first lap around the lake, but on the second, the peaceful setting overtakes my nervous system.
Tipping my head back, I enjoy the heat of the day. Matteo leans forward to block the sun from my eyes, the sight making him look like a glowing angel. He’s started working out more now that he’s older and hockey is becoming more competitive.
I like the change. He’s growing into himself, and the muscles aren’t bad to look at either.
“Can I ask you a question?”
“Always,” he responds earnestly.
Swallowing, I drop my head back, not wanting to see his face as he delivers an answer that could crush me. I let my hand drag in the water, the coldness giving me a push forward as I blurt out unceremoniously, “Are you seeing Emma?”
The paddling stops.
I refuse to look at him.
“What?” he all but yells in shock.
“Are you seeing Emma?” I repeat.
“Emma Lambert?”
“Yes.”
“God no,” he answers, and the second those words leave his lips, my entire body sags before I can control the movement.
Matteo drops down onto the paddleboard, and now that my heart is somewhat safe, I turn to face him, hoping my relief isn’t obvious. Yet by the way he’s scrutinizing me, I think it is.
“I wouldn’t do that,” he whispers after a moment.
I blink in surprise. “Do what?” I ask.
His forest-green eyes pierce my soul as his lips part. I can all but see the words forming on his tongue until he shakes his head, a muscle feathering along his jaw.
The famous Valenti walls have just rose and I know I won’t be able to climb them.
My lips tip into a sad smile. “Keep your secrets.”
“Not a secret,” he says before laughing derisively. “It’s very obvious in my mind.”
“What is?”
He takes a deep breath before leaning back on the board. “Have any hikes you’ve been thinking about doing?”
I roll my eyes at his very obvious change in topic but go with the flow because I know that pushing will get you nowhere with Matteo. “Nothing new, just the same stomping grounds.”
Now it’s Matteo’s turn to roll his eyes. “You know there are hundreds more hikes to do in Colorado, right? You should step out of your comfort zone, Dove.”
Smiling at him teasingly, I joke, “And why would I do a thing like that?”
Matteo’s lips twitch and he’s very evidently fighting a smile.
“Oh, just let it out.”
His eyes finally lock on mine as he slyly grins. “Never.”
“Stubborn Valenti.”
His brow quirks. “Stubborn Dove.”
Pursing my lips, I murmur, “Touché.”
Then, Caleb’s boisterous laugh cracks across the lake, the sound pulling my attention as Sarah starts shaking off water that Caleb no doubt threw on her.
I wince. “I should probably go save her. He’s a menace.”
“Menace indeed, but she’s got it handled.”
No sooner does he say that, Sarah turns from surprised to vengeful. Caleb just doesn’t notice in time. He also doesn’t notice her reach out for her Slurpee that has completely melted in the sun.
Caleb’s laughter cuts off as she pours the sugary soda over his head.
Matteo and I burst out laughing from the paddleboard that he’s begun to drive back to shore. Caleb points at her and growls, “You have three seconds to run, Martin.”
My best friend’s eyes widen before she spins on her heel and takes off for the forest.
Caleb doesn’t give her three seconds.
Like a rocket, he chases after her, both of their retreating forms vanishing from sight, but I can still hear her squeals ringing out across the lake.
Clicking my tongue, I turn to Matteo. “She’s dead.”
“Oh yeah.” He nods. “Time to find a new best friend.”
“Care to be a contender?”
Clutching his chest as if I wounded him, Matteo teases, “I thought I already was your best friend.”
Leaning over the side of the paddleboard, I splash Matteo with lake water, feeling satisfied with myself as I drench his lower half. I wait, expecting him to get me back, but once I look up at him, he’s just smiling down at me, the expression finally springing free.
The sight of it steals my breath.
Matteo Valenti is the most gorgeous man on earth but when he smiles, it’s like fireworks explode in my heart, all the stars in the galaxy gathering to shine behind him.
His eyes begin to flick back and forth between mine, a hum of energy building between us that I’ve only ever felt with him. Matteo’s body begins to lean forward, and it’s then that I realize mine is too, that both of us are gravitating toward each other.
My fingers, dangling by my sides, itch to touch him. Any part of him.
I think my pleas are coming true as his hand reaches out, looking like he’s going to cup my cheek. I stop breathing, my heart seizing…
Matteo blinks suddenly. Then, as if realizing where we are, he grabs my shoulders and takes me with him into the lake.
The water douses whatever warmth was flooding my system as I’m submerged, Matteo’s hands leaving my body the moment they can as we both surface.
Incredulous, I slap the water, aiming the splash for his face.
“You asshole!” I scream.
Groaning, I tread back to the shore, my heart still hammering. I know that was an almost kiss. I know why he did that. And if he’s not seeing Emma, does that mean…
“Dove!” he calls from behind me.
Halfway out of the water, I peer back, seeing the smug grin plastered across his face as he drags the paddleboard behind him. “You look a bit wet. You should dry off!” he teases mercilessly.
“Ugh!” I spin on my heel, cursing him in my head. I haven’t cursed out loud yet despite Sarah’s teasing.
Think of the devil and she appears.
A cross-looking Sarah emerges from the forest, eyes narrowed. A pink sticky residue coating her arms, face, and hair has me stopping in my tracks.
She points at me. “That had better be worth it because your brother is officially in my bad books.”
Caleb appears not far behind her, two empty Slurpee cups in his hands. “If you can’t handle what you serve don’t dish it.”
All Sarah does is groan before diving into the water, washing the soda off her skin. Joining my best friend, we swim into the middle of the lake under the guise of being mad at the boys and gossiping about them. Which isn’t totally a lie.
The moment we’re out of earshot, I tell Sarah about the moment between Matteo and me. No detail goes unsaid, because nothing feels as good as telling your best friend about the boy you’ve had a crush on since you were a little girl.
But that was the last day I spoke about my crush on Matteo.
Because it was the second to last time our friendship was normal.
After that summer, Sarah returned to school and never spoke to me again.
She couldn’t even look me in the eyes.