by Rae, Alicia
Jason glanced at me. “So, whose hot red car was that in the driveway this morning? It magically disappeared shortly after the movers left.”
My eyebrows pinched in confusion. I wondered if Abbey had already picked it up. “That’s Abbey’s. She must have gotten a ride over here this morning to pick it up.”
“Well, if she’s as hot as her car, you should definitely introduce me,” Jason said with a grin.
Kyle’s head swung over to stare at Jason. “Hey, that’s my sister, jackass. Watch it.”
“Your sister drives that?” Jason asked in a surprised tone.
“Yes. Apparently, she just bought it,” Kyle replied. He looked at me. “You didn’t know she was coming to get it this early?”
“No.” I shook my head. “I was going to swing by and pick her up for a late lunch, but she must have changed her mind.” I shrugged. “I’m sure it’s nothing.”
Kyle pulled his phone out of his pocket. “I’m going to text her just to be sure,” he said while his fingers pounded the screen on his phone.
A minute later, his phone beeped, and he read the screen. “We must have missed her by a few minutes. She said Gail offered to swing by since it was on her way to work.”
“Oh, that was nice of her,” I said, relieved that it was not anything serious.
“Ready to ride?” Kyle asked while looking at the three of us.
“Born ready,” Jason answered.
We all made our way to the mudroom and into the garage. My eyes focused on my car that was now in the first stall. Kyle’s car was in the second parking space, followed by his truck in the third. I looked around, realizing this was the first time I’d really noticed everything he had in the garage.
As we passed by the front of the vehicles, I zoned in on all the toys parked in a neat row along the far wall. My eyes widened at seeing six four-wheelers in all. I recognized four of them as mine. The first two had belonged to my parents, the third had been Annie’s, and the last one was mine. The other two had to belong to Kyle.
“This one is mine,” Kyle said, pointing to a black Yamaha. “And this one is Ryan’s, but he doesn’t get out here to ride it much anymore. The three of us aligned the four-wheelers in here this morning only to make sure they’d all fit. Otherwise, we would have left them outside.” He lifted his hand to point to the window. “Your snowmobiles are out there on a trailer with their covers on. We’ll have to try to make room for them”—he looked around—“somewhere…or we might have to extend the garage.” He chuckled.
I couldn’t help but laugh at Kyle’s expression. He was definitely enjoying all the new additions to his garage.
“Lily, mind if I borrow this one?” Jason asked, pointing to my dad’s four-wheeler.
“Sure,” I responded. Then, I turned my attention to Damon. “You want to ride my mom’s since I know it’s a bit faster than Annie’s?”
“Sounds good to me.” Damon smiled.
Kyle opened the garage door. He fired his up first, slipped the gear into reverse, and backed out. Once outside, he turned it off and walked back into the garage. The three men started maneuvering the ATVs around in an attempt to back them out of the garage.
Excitement coursed through my veins when it was my turn to start my own my four-wheeler. It was always such a sweet, sweet sound that I would never get tired of hearing. I carefully backed it out onto the driveway and parked it next to Kyle’s.
We all quickly took turns getting dressed in our gear in the mudroom, so we wouldn’t ruin our street clothes. We all exited through the garage door before Kyle closed it with the remote. Then, he tucked it into the front pocket of his riding jacket.
I glanced up at the sky, taking in the hot sun and warm air. I inhaled a deep breath, loving how the heat was beating along my face. It was a perfect day to go for a ride.
“So, where to?” Jason asked. “I assume you know the trails around here?”
“Yes, almost eighteen acres surrounding my lot are open. If we head northeast for about six miles, it backs up into a couple of public trails we can cruise on.”
Jason and Damon both nodded in understanding at Kyle’s description, but I was terrible with directions. I just planned to follow Kyle until I knew my way around.
“Lead the way,” Jason commanded.
Each taking our seats and putting on our helmets, we all revved our engines to life, ready to go. First, Kyle took off around the side of his house, staying on the far edge of his property. Jason motioned for me to go next, so I hit the gas to trail behind Kyle. Jason and Damon followed, bringing up the rear.
As we passed through Kyle’s backyard, I recalled how beautiful it was with the small lake. Once we reached the other side, Kyle turned left toward what I assumed was the way to the trails.
The path was fairly flat for about three miles before we approached some rougher terrain. The ground was dry, so I could feel each and every bump. Five minutes later, we came up to a heavily wooded area.
Kyle slowed and gestured to his right before making a sharp turn in that direction. He slowed to a stop, climbed off his four-wheeler, and walked over to us as he lifted the front shield of his helmet. We all raised our shields, too, so we could hear him.
“These will be much rougher paths with sharper turns and steeper inclines than you’re used to. The four-wheelers on average only have about six inches of leeway on either side, so be careful not to go too fast, or you’ll smack into a tree.”
“Got it,” I said.
We all nodded in understanding and then lowered our shields.
Kyle returned to his ATV and hopped on, and we started moving again. Within less than a minute, I knew exactly what he had been talking about. The trails were so narrow. We neared a steep drop-off that had a swift curve at the bottom. I put on my brakes and leaned back to counterbalance my weight with the machine. The adrenaline rush was exhilarating.
Kyle started to pick up speed, so I knew we must have a few easy miles ahead of us. I opened up the throttle, feeling the wind brush across my gear. I loved riding. I could blow off steam and just have some good old fun out in nature. Out here, no chores needed to be done and no phone calls or emails had to be answered for work. It was just wide-open miles begging to be ridden.
After a couple of hours of exploring a few of the routes, we stopped on top of a huge hill to take a breather. We all climbed off our four-wheelers and stretched.
Kyle and Damon started walking along the far side of the trail. Kyle was explaining the surrounding paths and how they interweaved with each other. I strolled to the edge of the trail to take in the sight before me. I didn’t have the slightest clue where we were, but it was incredible.
Jason came to stand next to me. “Wow, I can’t get over the remarkable views and trails you guys have here.”
“It is beautiful, isn’t it? There are so many pine trees, too,” I said. From the corner of my eye, I could see Jason had turned to look at me. I rotated my gaze to meet his eyes. “What?” I asked quietly.
Jason slowly shook his head from side to side. “Nothing.” He paused. “It’s just been a long time since I’ve seen that glow in your eyes. You look so happy and at ease here. It’s a very gratifying sight.”
I smiled affectionately at him, praying I would not cry. Jason could always say the most heartfelt words and catch me off guard.
“I am happy,” I breathed.
Jason sidestepped closer, and he wrapped his arm around my shoulder. I leaned my cheek against him as we admired our surroundings.
After a moment of appreciation, I broke the silence. “So, are you really thinking about moving to Lake Tahoe?”
“Yes,” Jason replied. “Are you okay with that? The three of us working together?”
I nudged his shoulder. “Don’t be silly, Jason. I’m more than pleased that you all will be working together. It’s great to see the three of you getting along so well. I wish Blake could be here, too,” I added sadly, missing my third cousin, who w
as still active in the military.
“So do I,” Jason said. “Sometimes, I’m surprised he joined whereas other times, it seems to fit him so well. He’s really changed these last few years,” Jason added fondly.
“I could see that in the short time we spent together,” I said, remembering the half day when I’d seen him in Colorado. It seemed like so much time had already passed since that day.
“The military has a way of changing people. I think some change for the better, and others need help finding their way back,” Jason said.
I could hear his concern for Blake in his voice. Jason’s words truly had a powerful meaning as my thoughts shifted to Kyle. I was relieved that Kyle had been strong enough to find his way back, and he was slowly working toward letting me into that part of his life that had once been closed off. I smiled lovingly, thinking about his progress.
Kyle and Damon made their way back to us, and Jason and I turned to face them.
“Damon wants to head west and ride along the river for a bit. Sound good?”
“Sure,” Jason and I answered at the same time.
I had not seen that area either. This was all new to me as well. After putting on our helmets, the four of us took off to explore the terrain. These trails were vastly different than the ones in Colorado. As we covered mile after mile, I was continually in awe of the landscape.
At a quarter past five, we pulled up into Kyle’s driveway. I turned off my four-wheeler and stood. My legs felt like Jell-O. That had been the longest trail ride I had been on in many, many years.
After shutting off his ATV, Kyle came to stand next to me. “What did you think of the trails out here?”
“I can’t believe how much extra space you have,” I said in awe as we started stripping off our gear in the garage. “I didn’t think those trails were ever going to end.”
“Oh, that wasn’t the end.” Kyle chuckled as he shucked off his riding pants, and then he gathered me in his arms. “You can go on for days on those trails. They all back up to other routes.”
“Jeez.” I laughed as he kissed my forehead. “And I thought I had it made in Colorado,” I said in reference to how many paths we had traveled there. Trails in Lake Tahoe were every kid’s dream. “We will definitely be getting good use out of our toys here.”
Kyle chortled from deep in his throat. “For sure.”
Jason and Damon came over toward us after they had removed their riding clothes, and we all made our way into the house. Once in the kitchen, I opened the freezer to find us something quick to eat since we were all hungry. I grabbed two extra-large pizzas, and then I turned on the oven to preheat it.
Walking to the fridge, Kyle offered to grab a beer for everyone. I declined having one since beer was not my thing. Kyle pulled out three beers, strode over to Damon and Jason, and handed them each one. The three of them sat down at the kitchen table while I leaned my elbows on the counter, waiting for the oven to warm.
Jason struck up a conversation about the offer they had made on the building yesterday, saying he felt the agreed-upon price was a steal. The other two quickly agreed. Kyle added specific repairs that were needed right away to get it off the ground and running, and he estimated prices about the work it would require. Damon offered architectural suggestions to make the building more appealing.
I was fascinated while I listened to them put their ideas together to make the best office possible. It seemed like they would all work really well together, and it gave me confidence that they had made the right decision.
I placed the pizzas in the oven, set the timer, and then joined the men at the table. Kyle asked me what I thought about all of their planning, and I had to agree that they had thoroughly worked through all the possible details.
I felt a rush of excitement when Kyle told me their goal was to have the building up and running by early next spring. Since it was nearing the end of July, March was only a short seven months away. With so many renovations needed at the new building, it amazed me that they could finish so quickly.
Jason informed Kyle and me that Damon and he were going to be checking out condos and apartments tomorrow before they flew back on an evening flight. Kyle shared a few good places that he knew were on the market. Part of me was taken aback at how rapidly things were moving, but I was nevertheless overjoyed that I would have my family nearby.
When the oven timer chimed, I got the pizzas ready and brought everyone a plate. By the time I finished my first slice, the three men had devoured an entire pizza plus half of the second. I hurriedly snatched another piece before it was all gone.
After our unhealthy yet superb dinner, Kyle proposed we have a bonfire out by the lake, and we all jumped at his suggestion.
The bad part of my cousins was that they knew all of my most embarrassing childhood memories.
“And when her snowmobile rolled down the ditch, it luckily landed upright at the bottom. When it wouldn’t start, she batted her eyelashes at my friend, Gary,” Jason said as the fire crackled in the pit.
We were sitting in a circle around the fire. The evening sky was slightly illuminated from the bright moon. We had even lucked out with no wind tonight.
“When he stepped in to help her, I think her whole face turned beet red—and it wasn’t from the cold.”
Jason chuckled as I gave him a death stare.
My gaze shifted to Kyle sitting next to me. His eyes were filled with wit as he tried to stifle his amusement.
“That was, until you barged in and shoved poor Gary out of the way, so you could take over,” I retorted while stretching my legs out to put my feet onto a wooden log in front of me.
“I didn’t want him helping you,” Jason countered playfully. “He was the biggest player, and you were practically swooning over him.”
“I couldn’t help it. He was fine on the eyes.” I laughed at the memory. “But I am glad I came to my senses. Didn’t he end up cheating on that one girl he dated for a whole three months?”
“Yep,” Damon said from his chair next me. “Bethany was heartbroken.”
“See?” Jason smirked at me. “I saved you in the long run. You just couldn’t see past what you thought was a pretty face. Those butterflies in your stomach were distracting you too much. I’m sure Kyle over there appreciates my thoughtful gesture.”
Kyle let out a laugh. “Yes, I do. Otherwise, I would have had to hunt him down and beat his ass myself.”
I rolled my eyes at Jason and Kyle.
“My favorite Lily admirer was that Drew kid who transferred to our school in eighth grade,” Damon said.
“Don’t even talk about that fucker,” Jason snorted.
“That’s because you got played,” Damon said, laughing and shaking his head.
Kyle looked at me with a perplexed expression, so I decided to fill him in.
“Drew used Jason, befriending him, so Drew could hang out with me. Jason is a tad sensitive about the topic.”
Kyle tried to stifle his laughter, but he failed miserably. “Now that I would have liked to see.”
“Go to hell,” Jason said jokingly. “I can’t wait to meet this sister of yours, so she can give me some good dirt on you, and we can even the playing field.”
“Why would I let you do that?” Kyle said with hilarity. “I like things just the way they are.”
“Since she works for you, I’ll get to meet her eventually, and I’m sure some sibling rivalry will come out. Then, she’ll willingly give me the upper hand.”
“Don’t be so sure of yourself, Jason,” I retorted. “Abbey is quite the woman. She’s very strong-minded.”
Jason’s eyes gleamed with the challenge. “All the more reason to meet her then,” he said before changing the subject. “Well, kids, it’s been fun, but I have an early morning tomorrow.”
He rose to his feet, and so did Damon.
I stood as my cousins walked toward me. “Will I see you guys in the morning?” I asked between the two of them.
“Probably not,” Jason responded first. “We plan to get up by seven, so we can pack and then have time to stop along the way for some breakfast before we start looking at housing in the area.”
“Good luck house-hunting. Let us know how it goes.” I smiled at Jason.
He leaned forward and embraced me with his usual bear hug. “I’ll miss you.”
“I’ll miss you, too. Thank you for visiting,” I said as we parted.
“Anytime. You know that.” Jason smiled fondly.
I rotated to face Damon, who looked bummed by the upcoming departure.
“We’ll see you soon?” I asked.
“We will be back before you know it.” Damon grinned, hugging me with a farewell.
After saying good night to Kyle, my cousins made their way up to the house, leaving Kyle and me alone together. I was sad to see my cousins leave, but they had many things to sort out in their lives with such a big move. As I watched them walk up to the house, I wondered how Aunt Lucie and Uncle Dan would take their departure.
“Bring those sad eyes over here, beautiful,” Kyle said as he outstretched his hand for mine.
I interlocked our fingers and moved to sit on his lap. Perching sideways with one arm over his shoulder for balance, I leaned into him, so I could feel his warmth.
“You heard them say they’re coming back, right?” Kyle asked.
I let out a deep sigh. “Yes, but saying good-bye is hard, and March just seems so far away.”
While the fire continued to pop around us, Kyle let out a soft chuckle, and I dipped my head to look at him in question as I lifted my other arm to hug him.
“I just had this funny vision of you badgering me to make them go away because they are driving you mad,” he said.
I laughed quietly. “That’s probably exactly how it will go,” I said, feeling a little better. “Family has a canny ability to get under your skin one minute and make you smile the next,” I said fondly.
“Yeah, they do,” Kyle chortled. “That’s why we love them so much.”