They stopped in their tracks at the entrance to the kitchen. Renee’s mom was still screaming, though now it was mixed with laughter and squeals—because Tristan Montgomery held her in his arms and was spinning her in circles.
“Tristan Montgomery! You put me down right this instant! I mean it!” She hit him on the shoulder with her oven mitt, and he finally lowered her to the ground. His smile was so wide it was almost infectious. She quickly pulled him to her chest, throwing her arms around his neck and gripping him so hard you’d think he’d come back from the dead. “I wasn’t expecting you until tomorrow,” she whispered. Her voice thick with emotion. “I thought you had a game tonight?”
He grinned, then stepped backward and pointed to his walking boot. “I got an early ticket.”
Mrs. Montgomery covered her mouth, pulling in a quick gasp before meeting his eyes again. “Tristan! What happened?”
He only shrugged, then hobbled over to lean against the counter. “It’s football, Ma. These things happen.”
It was odd being witness to this interaction. Because in all the time she’d spent with the Montgomerys, Samantha had never seen Mrs. M so emotional. She wasn’t crying, but she looked as though she was trying hard not to. Tristan had been hurt like this so many times it was impossible to keep track of. From the look on Mrs. M’s face. It was as though it had happened for the first time. Even from ten feet away, being there, watching this reunion between mother and son felt like an invasion of privacy. Witnessing a special bond that was only theirs to hold… But she couldn’t make herself look away.
Mrs. Montgomery turned toward Renee and Samantha, who had gone unnoticed until this point, and pointed to Tristan’s leg. “And this is why I’ve always preferred ballet.”
They all laughed, except for Samantha, because she was still in shock. This was her first time seeing Tristan in months, and for some reason, he looked different. The sight of him caused an ache in her chest to burn so painfully it was as though it had never stopped. She told herself it was because she was still angry, but it was an anger she’d never felt before. It made her chest tight and her stomach clench as though she was going to throw up.
He turned to her, watching her as though he’d lost something in her face. Searching her eyes, without the barest apology. It was odd. She’d looked people in the eye before, but never once had she felt so naked. Because he seemed to look deeper than everyone else, everyone combined, and she turned away, sure everyone could read their history on her face. But Tristan carried on as though none of what she’d experienced affected him at all.
“Sis,” he said, resting his back on the counter.
Renee grinned, then pushed off her spot in the doorway and walked toward him. “Can’t you walk into a room like a normal person? Do you always have to cause such a scene?”
He grinned and came toward her, hobbling forward before pulling her into a hug. “Normal’s overrated,” he stated. He threw his arm over her shoulder and looked toward Samantha.
She tried to keep herself under control, taking deep breaths and smoothing her hair behind her ears. Renee told him about her upcoming performance. About the scouts, and New York, and her big role in The Nutcracker. There was actually a smile in her voice as she spoke to him, as though she had missed him as much as her mom did. And Tristan—he listened to all of it. Saying how proud he was, how he’d come back to watch her no matter what the cost.
He told them all about his injury, about it being one of the many trade-offs for being the quarterback of a team. But when the conversation dwindled, he leaned against the counter and glanced between Samantha and Renee. “Any parties tonight?” he asked.
It was the first he’d spoken to her since he’d gotten there, and for some reason she couldn’t answer. Cotton had filled her throat, making it impossible to speak. Renee eyed her with an odd expression, then elbowed Tristan in the rips. “Like I want my big brother tagging along with me,” she scoffed.
He only laughed, as if her elbow had gone unnoticed—but then he moved toward her, like a cat about to pounce. “Oh yeah?” he asked. “You don’t want your big brother tagging along?” He took her head under his arm and started rubbing his knuckles back and forth against her skull. “What’s the big secret, Nay? What are you doing that you don’t want your brother seeing?”
“Tristan!” She screamed, punching in him the gut while laughing at the same time. They circled each other, gripped together in some sort of double headlock move, until Mrs. Montgomery finally had enough.
“Tristan, let her go!” she shouted.
But Samantha only stood there, watching her best friend play fight with her big brother—in a way she’d never seen before.
They both finally stopped, pulling quickly apart, though Tristan had to ruffle Renee’s hair before letting her go. “Good to know you can defend yourself, sis.” He laughed.
“Good to see college hasn’t made you grow up.”
He winked at her, grinning ear to ear. “Never.”
Renee’s mom leaned against the counter, watching her two almost grown children banter like politicians, but there were tears in her eyes. “You kids aren’t going anywhere tonight!” she stated. “I just got you back, and we’re going out to dinner to celebrate. Now go get ready!” she ordered. “Your dad’s working late again; you kids aren’t leaving me alone.”
She turned to Samantha, her voice softening a bit more. “Call your parents, dear. See if you can join us.”
Samantha only shook her head, tucked her hair behind her ear, and looked down to her feet. “No, I really couldn’t—I don’t want to intrude.”
“Nonsense, dear.” Mrs. Montgomery said, then picked up the phone and started dialing. “I’ll call them. You go get ready.”
Samantha swallowed, unable to look Tristan in the eyes as she passed him in the hall. She followed Renee up the stairs, her back straight as she started climbing. She told herself not to look back, even though she desperately wanted to. To see if he was watching her. To see if five months without seeing her was enough to erase their past. To erase the one night she thought about daily. And she didn’t stop until she entered Renee’s room and closed the door, realizing that for some reason, her heart hurt worse seeing him now than it had the night they came home from the lake.
13
Chapter Thirteen
Present day
By the time they stopped at their next hotel, they’d been on the road for thirteen hours straight. She could hardly see, hardly walk, and Tristan looked much the same.
Like before, they went to their separate rooms right next door to one another, where Samantha sent a text to check in with Steven, then took a shower and laid out her things for the next morning.