Caisey Quinn - Storm Warning

Kyle

SUMMER. For most people my age, it was synonymous with freedom. Free from school, free from obligations, free from bells ringing telling us where to go and when. Long days and even longer nights. Parties. Drinking too much and hooking up. For me, it meant work.

For as long as I could remember, summer equaled busting my ass with my familys landscaping business, Mason Landscaping & Lawn Maintenance. This summer would be a little different since Id graduated and would only be working part-time. But Id be working all the same.

I could still remember the day the letter came that held the key to my future. The one that determined whether or not Id finally be able to get the hell out of Hopes Grove, Oklahoma.

Kyle, it came! Its here! Open it! My sister Ella Janes bright blue eyes shone in the sunlight as she practically mauled me by the mailbox.

Jesus, EJ. Easy, girl. I took the envelope from her and tucked it in the back pocket of my jeans. My best friend Coop grinned and shook his head. We both took serious pleasure in teasing my little sister damn near to death. Had since we were kids. In my mind, EJ was still a kid. Always would be. But I wasnt blind. I had my suspicions that Coop was starting to see just how much of a kid my sixteen-year-old sister wasnt.

Kyle Ryan Mason! You are not serious! Get that envelope out of your pocket and open it right this second. She glared at me with her hands on her hips and I had to work to keep from smiling.

I think we should wait for Dad to get home. Dont you?

If I could change anything about that day, its that moment that I would do differently. If I had the power to go back in time, back before everything went straight to hell, I wouldve ripped that envelopethe one with the news of my full football scholarship to Oklahoma State Universityopen right that second.

I wouldve given EJ that last happy memory. Wouldve wrapped her in my arms and spun her around at the end of our dirt driveway. Wouldve let Coop thump me hard on the back in our congrats, dude sign of affection. I might have even let him hug EJ, though I wouldve been watching closely to make sure his hands stayed north of the equator.

ButI didnt. I held out on EJ because I thought that would make it more fun. Build the suspense. Id always enjoyed being the center of attention. It had always come easily for me. My little sister was the shy one. The one who stood quietly in my shadow, in my corner, cheering me on in whatever I did.

What I didnt know was that my dad wasnt coming home. I didnt know that my mom would sit us down at the dinner table that night with tears in her eyes and tell us that hed moved out while we were in school that day. That hed checked out of our family for some city bitch named Valerie that hed dated in high school or some bullshit. Hed been having an affair. Cheating on my mom. Cheating on our family.

I didnt know that Id be opening my letter alone in my room that night. Listening to Ella Jane cry softly in the next room as I did.

So this summer would be different. In more ways than one. I graduated from Hopes Grove High School. Got into my dream college. And Id be attending football camp pretty much all summer long. I only had one major lawn account to deal withsome family in Summit Bluffs was out of town for the summer so I had to take care of their lawn and their pool on the weekends when I was home.

When summer ended, Id be leaving my mom and sister behind to handle the family business all on their own. I was getting everything I ever wished for, and yetthe thought made my entire world spin in the wrong direction. I felt like a linebacker twice my size was headed right toward me. And I was powerless to do anything about it.

IM not saying that we should break up exactly. Cameron Nickelson glanced in the mirror at the reflection of her boyfriend of two years, who was still lying shirtless across the bed in his room. She applied a thin layer of slick gloss to her perfect pout before adding, I just think with you going to stay with your grandparents for the summer and me going to St. Tropez, we should take some time apart. You know, like a break. Not a break up.

She studied the feigned look of concern on Haydens face. A part of her wanted him to reject her suggestion because the idea of being important to someone was a driving force in her way of life, but she knew hed agree to the break.

Sure, she loved Hayden. But she knew as well as he did that they werent in love. They were together because that was the way it was supposed to be. Popular guys and popular girls from the same financial standing were supposed to be together. At least thats what her parents had raised her to believe.

So, when they were freshmen in high school and their peers were pairing off into couples, Hayden and Camias she was known as by those closest to herdecided it would be in their best interest, and most beneficial to their reputations, to become the it couple at Summit Bluffs High School. They had based their relationship on the friendship theyd developed growing up in the elite circle their parents forced them into, complete with built-in wealth, status, and popularity.

Cami and Hayden understood the pressures that came with being expected to be perfect. Both of them had parents that pushed them to excel and achieve even when they didnt want toCami with pageants and Hayden with lacrossenot to mention the 4.0 GPAs they were expected to maintain while climbing the social ladder.

Okay, Hayden finally answered. I mean, if thats what you want, he added. She could tell that he was just saying it to soften the blow to her ego and that he would be just fine without her this summer. She smiled, noting that Hayden Prescott did have a sweet side, despite his arrogant faade. She also admired the way his chiseled stomach remained tight as he sat up and scooted to the end of the bed. How about one more round for old times sake? Before she could say a word, he grabbed her thighs and pulled her back into his lap. The popularity and reputation boosts werent the only benefits to their relationship.

Theyd been each others firsts and definitely enjoyed the benefit of each others company. Or at least, she was pretty sure shed been his first.

Well, Cami began, turning in his lap to face him. If you insist.

He ran his thumb across her lips, removing the gloss shed just applied. Oh, I insist. He chuckled before kissing her, giving her the cocky smirk that had practically every girl she knew eager to be in her place.

But as nice as kissing Hayden was, even though he definitely had mastered making out and more, Cami had yet to feel the spine-tingling, stop-you-in-your-tracks, leave-you-breathless type of kiss she had seen in the movies and read about in the romance novels shed snuck from her moms secret stash. Which was one of the main reasons shed suggested the whole break thing.

She was off to the sunny beaches of St. Tropez for the summer, and the idea of having a whirlwind fling that actually left her breathless was all she could think about. Even though she knew shed start the next school year back on Haydens arm, three months of doing what she actually wanted for once sounded nice.