Falling In Hard: Book Four in The Bridgeport Lake Summer Series

by Danielle Arie

  “Thanks for the check-in, brother.” I grunted and drew a deep breath to try and calm back down. Maybe I could calm Nolan down, too. Change of subject. “Are you doing okay down there?”

  He sighed. “Better than I was doing up there.”

  “Have you talked to Mila yet?”

  “Look. I love you, but I have to go. Keep it straight, okay? I want to come visit you in LA when it’s all over.”

  I nodded. “Deal.”

  The call cut out, and I cleared my throat, looking at the redhead. “Is there a way I can call my mom?”

  She nodded. “What’s her number?”

  Eleven

  CORY

  “Just wanted you to know he’s locked up. At least for a while.” Mom hadn’t taken the news about Dad too great, but I wanted her to know that she was safe for now.

  “Oh, Cory. I’m so sorry.”

  I sighed, running my thumb down the pay phone frame. “It’s not your fault––”

  “It’s all my fault.”

  “He’s the drunk, not you.”

  She cleared her throat. “What do you think about coming out to see me? I’ve been pulling a few doubles. I almost have enough saved up for your flight.”

  I couldn’t help but grin at the hope in her tone. “I’d like that. But you’re not paying a dime for my flight.”

  “You know I am, son, and don’t you try and argue. You’ll be doing me a favor. I need help repainting this living room. I think it’s original from the sixties or something, and I’m thinking a light gray, or maybe a beige. Sound good?”

  “Sure.”

  She sighed. “Thanks for the update. I miss you.”

  “Miss you, too.” A deep ache pulled through my chest. A month had passed since I’d last seen her, and before that, we saw each other every day.

  “Got a girl yet?”

  “Ma.”

  “What?” She chuckled. “Maybe you’ll meet someone when you visit. There’s this cute little brunette down the street. I think she’s a college student.”

  “Ma.”

  “I’ll put a word in for you.” She chuckled again, Dan-O’s collar jingling on her end. “Call again soon, okay? I like keeping tabs on you.”

  “Sure.”

  “Love you.”

  “Love you, too.”

  The call disconnected, and I hung the receiver in the cradle, checking my watch: 1:38 p.m. Where would Lea be an hour after lunch? Probably doing the ropes course with her youth group, or practicing her song, or maybe she was at the Snack Shop with Taylor. Wherever she was, she wasn’t with me, and that was probably for the best. I sighed.

  Wherever she is, keep her safe, God. And help her win that competition.

  I prepped a rowboat for my next tour, biting back a cringe when the Kyle kid and his friend walked down the dock again.

  “Here for our tour, dude,” Kyle said, pulling an imaginary trigger at me.

  “After you tried moving in on Lea yesterday?”

  “Aw. Come on, man. I was just doing it for the competition. You have to get creative in these situations.”

  “Get creative with someone else’s girl.”

  “I had no clue you guys are together.” He lifted his hands in mock surrender. “Swear. But you can’t blame a guy for going after the hottest girl at camp. I mean, at least we can agree on that, right? And her singing chops are beyond amazing. You should’ve heard her harmonizing with me last night.”

  The image of him on a bended knee kept swinging through my mind, and the dread on Lea’s face when he tried convincing her to fake date him. I didn’t know if it was the buildup of stress from last night, or the smirky grin on his face, but every tendon in my body was coiling to the max, and I was barely keeping myself in check.

  “Fishing tours are closed for maintenance.” It was all I could get out, my grip on the pole in my hand tightening so hard, I was probably going to bend it, but I didn’t care.

  “Dude. You don’t have to be like that.”

  His buddy took one look at me and nudged him with his elbow. “Come on, man. We can come another time.”

  Kyle frowned, shaking his head. “I’m not cowing to some hick with a drunk for a dad.”

  I threw the pole to the ground and rushed toward him—

  “Cory, don’t!” Lea’s voice rang from somewhere in the distance. I stopped dead in my tracks, two feet in front of him, and clenched my fists, my breaths roaring through my chest.

  “Wise choice.” Kyle shook his head, adjusting his shoulders like he could really do anything about me. “My parents would’ve sued you so fast.”

  Of course, they would’ve.

  His friend turned and marched toward the shore, shaking his head. Kyle followed, glaring at me over his shoulder.

  I didn’t care. As soon as they were off the dock, I scanned the shoreline for Lea.

  She was standing on a beach towel, shielding her eyes and staring straight at me.

  A long sigh escaped my lips, and I tipped my hat at her.

  She said something to Taylor, stretched put on the towel beside her, and hobbled across the beach to the dock.

  I turned back to the boat, grabbing the other poles and my tackle box.

  “What was that about?” she asked, touching my arm and lighting a fire in my chest.

  “Nothing.”

  “Don’t play dumb. You almost punched him.”

  “Nothing,” I said again, turning to face her. How could I communicate that I didn’t want to tell her without actually talking?

  She huffed a breath and brushed something off my shoulder. “What is this?”

  I frowned, glancing down at the sawdust still clinging to my shirt before I grunted and swept it away. “Forgot to change.”

  “You didn’t answer my question.”

  I grunted again.

  “Whatever it was, forget it. You can’t fight a camper, and I’m sure Kyle would love to get you fired after you ruined his master plan.”

  Just the mention of that guy made my gut coil. “No one signed up for a fishing tour tonight. Are you free?”

  She stopped sweeping me and dusted her hands together. “Depends. Are you asking me out?”

  “Maybe.”

  She lifted those gorgeous hazels up at me and gnawed her bottom lip. A shadow flickered through her stare.

  “What?”

  She frowned. “Nothing.”

  “Tell me.”

  Her shoulders lifted with her inhale, and she let it all out in a heavy sigh, dropping her gaze to the lake behind me. “Nolan called.”

  Huh.

  “Pastor Braden called my mom this morning. Told her about last night. She’s on her way up. I called and tried telling her she didn’t have to come, but she’s a little freaked.”

  My stomach clenched harder, everything inside twisting into a knot tighter than the ones I’d put on my lures. I couldn’t look at her anymore. Her mom was freaked because of me and what I’d brought on her daughter. She had every right to be. “I’m sorry.”

  “No. Don’t apologize. She just has to see me in person. She’ll be chill after.” Lea cleared her throat and stepped closer. “Just telling you so you know why I can’t really hang until tomorrow.”

  I nodded.

  “Can’t wait to spend some time with you, though.” Her lips parted into that addicting grin, and she gave my arm a squeeze. I wanted to feel as happy as she did, but it was all clouded now. The doubt was too thick. I was the one who’d put her in harm’s way.

  “Hey.” She stepped a little closer. “I’m fine. And he’s in jail.” She trailed her hand down my arm and took a step back. “We’re fine.”

  He was in jail, wasn’t he?

  A twinge of hope sliced through all of my doubt, and I nodded, setting my eyes on hers again. “I have something for you. When can you hang out tomorrow?”

  “I’ll be down here first thing.”

  “Sure it won’t ruin your energy for the competition?”<
br />
  “More like distract me from my nerves.”

  “You’re nervous?”

  She shrugged.

  I grinned. “Fish start biting at five-thirty.”

  “Can’t wait.”

  LEA

  After three more hours of rehearsals and dinner, I went to the office and waited on the front steps. Mom said she’d be up by six. It was getting close to six-thirty, but that wasn’t a shock. Good timing kind of went out her door when Dad passed. As much as she tried to pretend like everything was back to normal for her, she was lying to herself. She was with Dad twenty-plus years. Garrett or no Garrett, there was no way she was normal again.

  A Volvo wagon pulled into the parking lot, and I stood, eking out a small sigh of relief. As crazy as she was for hustling up here, I didn’t like thinking about what could happen on the drive. One glimpse of Garrett’s serious mug in the passenger seat, and my relief was zapped down to the less-than-existent category.

  Gah. Why did she have to bring Garrett?

  She gave the horn a tap and pulled into the space right in front of me, her blonde hair up in her classic french twist. “Oh my gosh! You’re okay!” she said, as she clamored to open her door and ran my way. She threw me into a hug, her vanilla perfume taking me back a thousand years. The relief was back.

  “Told you I’m fine.”

  “I know you did, but I had to make sure myself.” She pulled away, her deep blue eyes scouring my whole body before she released her own sigh. She tucked my hair behind my ear, searching my eyes like she’d lost her grandma’s antique wedding ring somewhere inside. “What on earth is going on up here, sweetie? First, you sprained your ankle, and I was about to come up then, but Garrett reminded me that you’re an adult now, and ankles get sprained all the time and yada yada. But now, this? Cory’s dad threw you to the ground?”

  I shrugged. “He was drunk. He came up here unannounced and started scrapping with Cory, and I tried stepping in––”

  “What?”

  “So it was kind of my own fault. I mean, I’m strong, but he’s a grown man, you know?”

  “Pastor Braden said it happened pretty late. What got you into that situation in the first place? He said you’d gone off on your own.”

  I cleared my throat, eyes slipping to Garrett, with his salt-and-peppered crew cut, short-sleeved polo shirt, and tan khakis. He might as well be on the front of a golfing magazine for how stiff he was, leaned back against the car and acting like he wasn’t listening in. He was totally listening in!

  I angled my back toward him and grabbed Mom’s hand. “Do you want a coffee or anything? We could go to the gift shop, see if there’s any cool new gear this year. I could show you the chapel theme. It’s Shipwrecked this year, and honestly, it’s beyond amazing. It’s massive, with a pirate vibe, and it’s––”

  “Lea. I asked you a question, and adult or not, I think you can give me an answer.”

  I sighed. “Yeah. I know. I, uh . . . So Cory and I, we, um . . .” How was I supposed to tell her I was dating him? Were we even dating?

  “You, what?” There was an edge to her tone I really didn’t like.

  “We were hanging out during my free time last night, and—”

  “Hanging out during free time? I don’t understand.”

  “We’re talking, Mom. Me and Cory. I really like him. We’re kind of dating.”

  Her eyes bulged. “But Nolan said he’s not a good guy.”

  “Nolan knows he’s a good guy.”

  “But his dad . . . well, look what he did to you. Was this because he found out about you guys dating? How did he find out about that before I did?”

  “It’s not a big deal.”

  “It is a big deal, Lea. Something happened to you. You haven’t been your usual self, and now you say you’re dating someone on staff up here? While you’re at camp? He’s a man!”

  “He was Nolan’s friend before he was ever on staff up here, and three years isn’t that big of an age gap.”

  She clamped her lips shut and crossed her arms. “Garrett, would you please come over here?”

  “Sure, honey.”

  Honey . . . A little over a year ago, my dad was still calling her “honey”.

  I tensed.

  Mom looked at him. “She says they’re dating.”

  He frowned. “Who?”

  “Lea and the friend Nolan was telling us about.”

  “Where is he? Do I need to talk to him?”

  “No!” I dug my fingers into my hair, my skin crawling at how out of control this whole situation was getting. “I’m an adult, you guys! And telling us about Cory?” I asked Mom. “Like, telling you, Mom? Or telling you guys? Because last time I checked, Garrett isn’t my dad.” I grunted. “And I don’t know how you forgot about him already, but I’m freaking sick of this whole game you guys are playing.”

  “Lea Marie,” Mom gasped, covering her mouth, her engagement ring sparkling in the sunlight. “Garrett is my fiancé. Take that back.”

  Garrett set a hand on Mom’s shoulders. “It’s okay, Con. She has the right to feel this way.”

  “I do have the right! And no, I’m not happy about you guys getting engaged. Okay? I’m not! And I don’t care what either one of you says about Cory. I care about him! I might actually love him, and I don’t care if his dad’s a freaking jerk, I want to be with him, and I’m going to do everything in my power to help him through it.” Tears were welling in my eyes and streaming down my cheeks. It was true. This feeling I had for Cory Griffin had shifted way past the classic friendship, I-care-about-you stage. We were moving into way deeper territory, and I did. I loved him.

  Garrett squeezed Mom’s shoulder. “It’s okay, Con.”

  Gah! Every emotion I’d stuffed down over Mom and Garrett was boiling over and colliding with my realization about Cory, and I couldn’t take it anymore. I’d held my thoughts in for way too long, and I had to clear the air. Live and let live. Do or die. “By the way, I hate what you guys are doing. And I hate that you don’t care, Mom. How can you be so cold?”

  “Lea, I’m happy, sweetie. Why can’t you understand that?”

  “Yeah? Well, I am, too. Cory’s a freaking rock. And I don’t care if Nolan doesn’t like his dad. He can just get the heck over it!” I grunted and swept at my tears. “Are we done here, or was there something else you wanted to ream me about?”

  Mom’s eyes were welling, too, so much agony in her stare, I had to look away. We used to go grab coffee together on the way home from school, and she’d take me out shopping on the weekends, “just us girls,” and we used to paint our nails and laugh until midnight. Now, she was stuck on Garrett twenty-four-seven and moving on with her life, and I hated that she was leaving me behind.

  “I love you, sweetheart. And I don’t know enough about Cory to make a judgment about him, but that doesn’t mean I’m okay with you dating someone I’ve never held a conversation with.”

  “Talk to him, then.” I wiped my eyes and drew a deep breath.

  She nodded, dabbing at her eyes, too, as she stepped away from Garrett and toward me. “I’d love to. I’m so sorry. Just . . . your brother said––”

  “My brother’s way too overprotective, and you know he’s not in a good place right now.”

  She nodded, pulling me into her arms again. “I know. I’m so sorry. I just love you so much, and I don’t want to see you hurt.”

  “I get it.” I sniffed. “Look. You guys should go grab something at the Snack Shop, and I’ll find Cory. We’ll meet you there, and we can all hang out for a while.”

  She kissed the top of my head. “That sounds good to me.”

  Twelve

  CORY

  The reeds lining the east shore of the lake probably made for a sweet fish maze. I cast toward them from a few yards down the bank, trying not to think about what Lea said, but I couldn’t get it out of my head. Her mom was worried, and I was the reason.

  Grunting, I wiggled the line
a little and reeled in a few inches, waiting for the first nibble of the night. I’d imagined bringing Lea out here, laying out a picnic blanket and enjoying a couple hours just hanging together. Maybe she could’ve brought her guitar and sung to me a little. I grinned just thinking about the couple times she’d performed the national anthem at our games in high school. Every guy out there, home and visiting, had to pick their jaws up off the ground when she was done. And her family was always so proud. They were always in the stands watching Nolan play. So many times, I’d wondered what it would’ve been like to be part of a family like theirs.

  A stuttering tap vibrated the fishing line. I waited, the tap getting stronger. The line tightened hard, and I pulled the rod straight up, reeling like a madman, but this one had some fight in it.

  “All right,” I muttered, moving closer to the water, angling the rod back down and giving the fish a little leeway. I pulled it back and released it in a steady rhythm, ’cause this wasn’t the type of fish you could just yank out of the water. This was the type of fish you had to stick with for a while, the scrappy kind that didn’t cave to just any fisherman. This one had to be worn down a little first, needed to be won, but by the time it was tired, it would practically swim itself into the net. “Come on, tough guy . . .”

  “So this is where you talk.”

  I started, jerking the line up with me. It zipped and snapped, falling in a curly heap on top of the water. The fish jumped, leaving a massive set of rings on the surface as it disappeared. Sighing, I ducked my shoulders and reeled in what was left of the line, clenching my teeth.

  “Did you lose it?”

  “Mm.”

  “I’ve never seen the line snap like that before.”

  “First time for everything.” I didn’t mean for it to come out so short, but if there was anything worse than a night of no bites, it was losing a fish you’d already hooked to a girl whose life you were in the middle of ruining.

  “Why did it do that?”