“What happened? Did you talk to him?” She rambled on, tucking a piece of her chin-length bob behind her ear. The two of us looked alike, but her hair was shorter and blond. My hair used to be closer to Georgia’s shade, but I let the highlights go a long time ago—along with a whole lot of everything else. “Is he hotter now? I mean, I was young when he left, but he was hot then. He’s got to be hotter, right?”
“He’s something,” I mumbled. Of course he was hotter. Unbearably hotter. Thinking about the way I looked at him when we were teenagers, it seemed impossible that he could get better looking, but damn did he ever. “I mean, he looks the same I guess. More muscles. Maybe a little taller.” My lips went dry as I described the returned version of Reid Travers. “Oh, and he has tattoos now.” Visions of the ink that wrapped around his midsection and arms when I got that too-brief glimpse of his midsection drew out a sigh from deep in my chest. “Like a lot of them.”
“And how exactly did you see said tattoos?”
“I had to go out to his property,” I answered. I could tell by the look on her face that she assumed I’d went running out there the second I heard he was back in town. “For work.”
“Sure you did,” she teased. “It’s not every day the love of your life comes back to town.”
“Love of my life? No.” I shook my head. “I swear.” I went on to explain exactly how my afternoon had played out. “He purchased the land his parents sold,” I said. “Believe me, the last person I thought I’d see today was Reid. I can’t even tell you the last time I thought about him. And, yeah, I may have loved him a long time ago, but that ship has long sailed off.”
“Really?” Her skepticism was evident. “You never think about him? Not even when you’re wearing one of the five-hundred Fox Racing T-shirts you own? Or when you just happened to be “flipping through” the photo albums you left at mom and dad’s house? Don’t bullshit a bullshitter, Nora. I know you better than you think I do.”
“I may...” I hesitated, “on occasion, look at Mom’s albums. And a T-shirt is a T-shirt. I sleep in them. That’s it.” Georgia’s astute observation of my behavior was alarming. I’d be buying new pajamas immediately. And, the photo albums, well those were special. I’d taken most of the pictures that filled the pages. Back when I thought a camera and Reid Travers were all I’d ever need. Before I grew up and realized that young love was a learning experience and nothing else. I’d learned how to avoid getting my heart broken among other things. When he left, I retired from photography. I just didn’t seem to have the drive to do it anymore. Especially when my favorite subject was racing and the guy that served as the model in the majority of my pictures left me crying and confused.
“Okay.” Georgia said from her perched spot on the edge of my bed. The two of us had rented a little house a couple years ago. Our parents argued that neither of us needed to move out. The two-story house we’d grown up in did have room for us, but no privacy. At least not the kind of privacy two twenty-something young women should have. Mom said, “You should stay so you can save your money. Or at least wait until you’re married.” I think she thought that at least I would be settled down by now. I kind of did too, but I just hadn’t had that itch to get married yet like most of my friends had. I was content living with my sister and just having a boyfriend. Wedding bells would ring one day, but not in the near future as far as I could tell.
“Okay, what?”
“Nothing. Please, continue describing this new delicious sounding version of Reid Travers.” She smiled sweetly. “And keep denying the obvious,” she added with a wink.
“I don’t know about delicious and I’m not denying anything.” He was definitely fun to look at, I’d give him that. But, that didn’t change anything between us. “He’s still the same guy that dumped me. And with no reason, I might add. Just because I like to reminisce every now and then doesn’t mean I want to get back together with him.”