Put Me Back Together (45 page)

“Right back at ya,” I reply as he pulls away, readying to dive back into the action.

“Hold on a sec,” I say, calling him back. “I was told I’d be rewarded if I made it here by halftime.” I hold up the sticky note and Lucas grins as he steps toward me again.

“Found that, did you?” he says, taking me in his arms. My body tingles as his chest presses against mine.

“So where is it?” I demand, looking up at him. “Am I getting the pony I always wanted?”

“Nope, just this,” he says. His lips meet mine, sweeping me up into a kiss that’s so much better than any present he could have bought me. I lean into it, taking his face in my hands.

“Oooooohhh,” the campers chorus before collapsing into giggles all around us. A high-pitched whistle directs my attention to Oleg, who waves at us from his spot in the crowd, sitting between Brit and Eric. As we wave back, I realize all eyes are on us. I am kissing Lucas Matthews, after all, former Golden Gaels MVP and all-around stud. Half the campers have raging crushes on him, and most of the female counsellors, as well. I know I should be blushing at the spectacle we’ve made of ourselves, but I can’t really bring myself to care. Reaching up, I plant one more generous kiss on him before smiling into his lips.

“Knock ‘em dead, or break a leg, or whatever the proper term would be,” I say.

“Thanks,” he says, kissing me again, and again, until all the counsellors are calling his name and he really has to go. “Watch closely, Hero,” he says just before he lets me go, “because the next basket is for you.” I smile like a lovesick idiot as he walks back to his team and the game starts up again.

When we were little, Emily and I liked to imagine what it would be like if we switched lives. It wouldn’t have been very hard, we thought—after all, we were identical—but we always lost interest when she realized she didn’t like the way my crayons stained her hands and I didn’t want to wear any of her frilly clothes. After Tommy died, when I was in high school, I used to spend whole days dreaming of the lives I could have if I was someone else, someone who wasn’t miserable all the time, someone who could stand to look at herself in the mirror, someone who’d never known Tommy or Brandon, or hurt, or lies.

Now, as I watch Lucas make a spectacular slam dunk—just for me—I realize how much things have changed. For the first time in what seems like forever I don’t want to be someone else. I like the life I’ve painted for myself, full of rough edges and bright colours, dazzling sunshine and dark shadows, a life filled with pain, but also love. These days, when I look at myself in the mirror, I see a girl who’s not quite in focus, a girl in transition, with wild hair and fingers spattered with paint, haunted eyes and a big smile. I’m looking forward to the day when that girl will be glued back together, when she’ll stand tall, when she’ll be whole again.

I think it’s coming soon.

The End

Acknowledgements

First and always I’d like to thank my husband for putting up with my first draft moods and my final draft excitement without once telling me to
calm down
. I love you more than ice cream (even if you don’t have dimples). To Arijana, thanks for creating a cover I can proudly display to the world. To Claire Grady-Smith and Veronica Monture, thanks for putting up with all my nagging questions about art school and helping me get the details all (pretty much) right. To my beta readers Maia Onno, Cathryn Baker, and Terri Corriveau, you guys are the awesome! Thanks for all your feedback, kind words, encouragement and for being willing to find the story behind the spelling mistakes. To Maia (again), thanks for formatting my ePub like a ninja. To Google Street View, thanks for all the details. To all the authors who inspire me, thanks for being brave enough to write and publish and fill me up with bravery, too. To any reader who took a chance on my book, thank you from the bottom of my heart. I wish you lots of love (even if you don’t think you deserve it), lots of desserts (even if you don’t think you should eat them), and lots and lots of amazing books to fill your days and nights. Even if they’re not my books. Though I hope they will be.

About the author

I’m Lola Rooney, romance writer and part-time hula hooper. For a long time I was a lonely girl who didn’t believe in love. Now I like to write about lonely girls and the boys who make them believe in love. I enjoy cupcakes, dimples, hula hoops (obviously), writing in my tree house and flirting with sexy men (who have dimples). When I’m not yachting the Mediterranean I call Montreal home.

I am represented by Samantha Haywood of the Transatlantic Agency

Visit me at:

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If you enjoyed reading this book, I’d be so grateful if you would Like it, review it on the site where you purchased it, or recommend it to a friend.