The waitress pushed back a vibrant red curl and winked before leaving the girls to it.
JoJo took a long draw from the straw and let Valerie's words sink in.
Matt was home.
"Speak of the devil." Valerie grinned and waved at someone behind JoJo.
JoJo swiveled in her seat to see what held Valerie's attention and froze. Matt Todd was standing in the doorway, looking as perfect as ever. His sandy brown hair, which he'd always kept short, had grown out and covered his ears. He turned his head as he scanned the restaurant until his gaze settled on Valerie.
Valerie stood and ran toward him. They met in the middle and she threw her arms around his neck; he returned the embrace, his grin reaching ear to ear. They broke apart and he placed his hands on her shoulders, inspecting her with a critical eye.
"Your hair is shorter," he stated. Valerie had recently chopped off her long brown locks and was sporting an edgy bob.
"Yours is longer." Valerie reached up and gently tugged a lock of his hair.
He dropped his hands from her shoulders and swatted her hand away, then ran one through his hair, sending it into sexy disarray. Like JoJo's, Valerie's hair was nearly stick straight, but the humidity had curled the ends of Matt's. She had a sudden urge to touch it, to see if it felt as soft as it appeared. She pressed her hands into the surface of the table and mentally scolded herself for thinking such thoughts. Matt didn't want her. He'd made that perfectly clear all those years ago. She had no right to think about her hands on any part of him.
As if he sensed her thoughts, Matt turned his attention to JoJo. Their eyes met, and a kaleidoscope of butterflies took flight in her stomach. She averted her eyes and feigned interest in her food. She felt his eyes on her.
"How have you been, JoJo?" He closed the distance between them, stopping only feet away.
She met his gaze and smiled, managing to keep her cool. It was the performance of a lifetime. Casually, she dipped a fry in ketchup and said, "Peachy, and you?"
"I'm doing all right."
"Are you going to sit down with us?" Valerie asked hopefully.
“Mom’s waiting outside for me. I was just supposed to stop in and say hi.”
“I can give you a ride home,” Valerie insisted.
He glanced between the pair and grinned. “Actually, I’ll drive you home. Now that I’m home, I’m taking my truck back.”
Valerie pouted, and Matt laughed. He mussed her hair and said, “I’ll be back in a minute.”
Finger combing her hair back into place, Valerie glared after her brother.
JoJo had witnessed that exchange with a fry clutched between two fingers, paused in the air midway to its destination. She popped it into her mouth, chewed, then said, “You barely ever drive his truck anyway.”
She shrugged. “I don’t like driving stick.”
“That’s what she said?”
Valerie laughed and threw a french fry at JoJo. She attempted to catch it in her mouth, but it bounced off her chin and landed on the table between them. They both broke into a fit of giggles.
“Don’t tell me I’m missing the food fight,” Matt said as he returned to the table. He slid into the seat beside Valerie, nudging her over with his body, then swiped one of her fries and popped it into his mouth.
JoJo tried not to look at him. Every time she met his eyes she was brought back to that awful night before he'd left for college. It was the August before she’d started sophomore year and they’d both been at a bonfire party down by the rodeo grounds. The next day they were supposed to perform a duet at Generic Eric’s as part of a talent show, but that never happened. And it was all her fault.
“JoJo?”
Pulled from her thoughts, she met Matt’s eyes. He was staring intently at her. “Huh?”
Valerie threw another fry at her. She missed, and it landed on the seat beside her. “Are we that boring?”
JoJo forced a smile. “Sorry, just thinking…”
Matt narrowed his eyes. “Care to share?”
“Just work. Boring stuff. Wondering if I’ll be getting a supply shipment in today that I’ve been waiting for, that’s all.” She took a long drag from her shake.
“Aww, JoJo is being so responsible,” Valerie gushed. It was JoJo’s turn to throw a french fry.
“Anyway.” Matt rolled his eyes and said, “My mom is throwing a welcome home party for me tomorrow. You going to crash, Jo?”
She pretended to be offended. “Are you telling me I’m not invited?”
He grinned. “Joanna Johnson, would you do me the honor of attending my welcome home party?”
She threw a fry at him. "Don't call me Joanna."
He dodged, laughing.
She wrinkled her nose in thought. “As for your invitation, I’ll have to check my calendar.” This earned another french fry tossed at her face, this time from Matt.
She leaned to the side, and the fry hit her shoulder. Tammy approached the table, hands on her hips.
"Hey Tammy, long time no see," Matt said. He dropped the fry he was holding into the basket and tried to appear innocent.
"It's good to see you back in Peace, Matt. Can I get you anything?"
"Nah, I'm just going to bum some fries off the girls."
Tammy quirked a brow. "Will you be eating the ones off the floor, too?"
JoJo, Valerie, and Matt all burst into laughter, earning them some curious glances from nearby diners. As their laughter died down, JoJo surveyed her companions across the table. Her unease at Matt's return began to fade. It seemed clear that he wasn't hung up on that last night before he left, so why should she? Maybe they could go back to the way things had been when they were kids.
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Summer of Peace goes on sale April 27, 2018
Preorder now!
And if you want more of JoJo, Matt, Valerie and Liam, be sure to leave a review!
About the Author
Caroline Andrus was born and raised in the St. Paul suburbs where she lives with her husband, two daughters, and Henry McCoy—her cat, who is actually a wild cougar trapped in the body of a housecat.
She divides her time between writing, Facebook, designing, and managing her household. Since 2011 she has been second in command for indie press Melange Books. She is head of acquisitions for their YA imprint, Fire & Ice Young Adult books, as well as web designer, formatter, and head of their cover art department. In her minimal spare time she enjoys reading, rocking out to the radio, and binging TV shows on Netflix.
She is passionate about both reading and writing teen fiction, and is pretty sure she will forever be eighteen at heart.
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Peace in Flames: A Peace Series Novella Page 9