I’m lying on the couch in the living room, legs kicked up, wearing my usual around-the-house outfit: tiny sleep shorts and a faded tank top. The house is too quiet with just Mom, Dad, and me home for the summer. College is out for a few months, and I’ve been catching up on sleep and bad reality TV. My phone buzzes with some group chat nonsense, but I’m only half paying attention when the front door opens.Heavy footsteps. A duffel bag hits the floor.I sit up fast. Landon stands in the entryway in his uniform, tan combat boots dusty, the fabric stretched across shoulders that look twice as broad as I remember. Four years. He's still twenty-six. No, thirty? Time got weird. His face is sharper, his jaw carved from stone, and a new scar cuts through his left eyebrow. Dog tags rest in the dip of his collarbone.“Annabelle,” he says. His voice is rougher, like it’s been dragged through sand.“Landon.” My throat goes dry. I stand, suddenly aware of how short my shorts are. “Holy shit. You’r
Mehr lesen