Susan's Summer (9 page)

But there was also something familiar about him, and as I eyed him I tried to figure out what it was. It only took me a few seconds to realize that I had known this guy years ago. He was a friend of Samuel’s, maybe in his mid-twenties by now. For a few seconds I stared at him, shocked, then I thought,
Oh, man, I need to wake up.

“Susan,” I said out loud. I had totally avoided the Winter Courts for months, and here was my former crush’s childhood friend, his really cute childhood friend, grinning back at me. “I guess you already know who I am. You’re an old friend of Samuel’s, aren’t you?”

His grin widened. “Yes, and I guess I do already know you,” he said. “Can I walk you back?”

Teegan Hamilton ran with a different, slightly older and very wealthy crowd, exactly the kind of people Samuel’s mother liked him to associate with, and around whom I was uncomfortable. But Teegan seemed nice and down to earth.

I looked back the way I had come. It was a long walk and I wanted the company, but knowing the uneasy relationship that usually existed between Summer and Winter Courts, I didn’t want to ask for trouble from the Arsenals by bringing a Marchell to their place. On the other hand, Teegan was being kind; what could go wrong?

“Do you spend much time at the Arsenals’?” I asked. My mind searched for what I had heard of the Marchells recently, but the memory flitted just out of reach.

“None at all,” he said, shaking his head sadly. “I have permission to study the land. Other than that, Seth Arsenal has made it very clear I’m to stay away. Well, not just me. Everyone. I’m honestly shocked you’re staying there. Are you a friend of Katie’s?” He gave me a curious look.

It didn’t surprise me Seth didn’t want good-looking older young guys coming around. Most weren’t any good and he had a little sister to protect. I thought that was sweet. It was strange, though, that he didn’t want anyone around at all.

“So, you’re just offering to walk with me out of the goodness of your heart?”

“As it happens, I have an invitation to deliver,” he said. He fell into step next to me and I didn’t tell him not to. I didn’t want to. There was a heat between us, a flutter in my stomach when he stepped closer, that I recognized but wanted to ignore. The trouble was, I couldn’t ignore it. He reminded me of Samuel, and even though I was reminded of Castleton I didn’t feel the ripping pain I normally had for so many months.

“How often are you on Arsenal property?” I asked.

“Every few days,” said Teegan. “Seth said I could come as often as I liked,” he added as if to prove he really was allowed to be there. “How is it there, anyhow?” he asked.

“It’s fine,” I said. “My friend and I just got there. I don’t think we’re staying long.”

“That’s too bad,” he said. “I hope you’ll stay at least until tomorrow night.”

“What happens tomorrow night?” I asked. I couldn’t help it. I was curious.

“We’re inviting the Arsenals, and of course any guests they may have, to dinner,” he said. The amused twinkle in Teegan’s eye proved my point that he liked a good laugh and a good time. It had been there since he set eyes on me. He gave me a hot smile, and I started to forget about the fact that he was Samuel’s friend and think of him as the attractive guy that he was. The two of them had always been going off with a bunch of other guys to do who knows what, probably causing trouble, and I had always wanted to tag along. But first, I was a Summer Fairy, and that made it less than appropriate for me to hang out with them. Even worse, I was a girl.

But now here we were, and there was a whole different dynamic in play.

“Oh, I see,” I said. I wondered what Seth Arsenal, the famous recluse, would think about that. I imagined he wouldn’t be happy.

“I knew your parents,” he said. “You remember?”

I frowned. Unlike Seth Arsenal, whom I only had only seen on a couple of occasions as a child, Teegan had been around more often, mostly because of his close association with the Cheshires.

“Not very well,” I said out loud, not wanting to grant too much familiarity. “Mom and Dad were really social, so there were a lot of people coming and going.”
That’s where I got it from
, I thought a little ruefully.

“Well, anyway, I remember our parents hanging out a lot,” he said. “But I was a few years older than you. I was at their funeral.”

I nodded. “I don’t really remember that day.”

“No,” he said. “But I’m still sorry.”

“I remember one time when my parents came back from dinner really happy,” he continued. “My mom said that they had made some deal and were really excited about it. I never did ask them what it was about, though.” He shrugged. It wasn’t something he was very concerned about, he was just trying to tell me something about my parents.

But his words hit me like a ton of bricks. “Wait, what? Where are your parents now?”

“Mom accidentally got hit by a spell a few years ago,” he said. His voice had gone softer, sadder. “She stays on the Marchell land, but she can’t really remember much. Dad is traveling around America trying to find a cure for what happened to her. Sometimes he surfaces and sometimes he doesn’t.”

“Can you ask your mom about the deal?” I said, trying not to sound too enthusiastic, like I would run over hot coals to find out what it was. Maybe Teegan Hamilton was the man to whom my parents had betrothed me, and what luck, his parents were alive!

Wow
, I thought,
that would be crazy
.
What if I had planned to spend all summer searching for someone and he had found me instead! Well, run into me anyway.

“Um, sure, but really, she doesn’t remember much. She’s still Mom and everything, she’s a great help around Marchell, but her memory isn’t what it used to be.”

“What about your dad?” I asked. “Can you call him?”

“Ha, he never bothered to learn the concept of a cell phone. Sometimes I hear that he’s staying at this or that court, but it’s hard to know for sure where he is on any given day. He left his note-stone here. Sometimes I think he wants to pretend that he’ll come back and Mom will be her same old self, even though we both know very well that she won’t be.”

I remembered a strange conversation I had had with my mother not long before she and my dad died. She had asked me how I wanted to spend my life. Since I couldn’t answer that question now, I definitely couldn’t have answered it then. I had stared at her blankly, growing more and more worried, until she laughed and hugged me and told me I didn’t have to decide now. In fact, she said, I could wait years to decide if I wanted to. She said that she and my father were doing what they could to keep me happy and safe and that they had made a deal with a nice boy and his family to do so.

At the time I had no idea what she was talking about, but now I knew she had been talking about my betrothal, and I was almost sure it had happened right after my parents came back from a weekend spent with the Hamiltons. A strange feeling crept over me as I wondered if Teegan was the guy I had set out to look for, and my quest was going to be over almost before it began.

“I was going to try and visit your family this summer,” I said. “but I didn’t know you were in Vermont.”

“We moved here a couple of years ago,” he said. “My dad thought it would be good for my mom to be around friends, and she grew up here. Besides, Fairies have a hard time living in the city for very long. This is way better.”

“So, your dad had you move here just when you came of age?” Mortified, I clapped my hand over my mouth. How could I have just said that out loud!

Teegan came to a halt. “Came of age for what? Marriage?”

I was relieved to see that his eyes sparked with amusement. Most guys his age would have run and hidden themselves, especially ones who didn’t have a crown to think about, like Teegan. Teegan wasn’t royal, but his family was very successful and his parents were well respected. He was an oldest child; at least, I thought I remembered a brother or a sister or something. But he didn’t have the weight of a court behind him.

“I, I mean, um,” I felt my face turn a bright red. No way could I bring myself to look at him. Instead, I walked ahead, hoping that he would follow behind instead of turn right around and go back to Marchell. I was totally mortified. Why couldn’t I just keep my mouth shut sometimes?

“Hey, wait, I know it’s a natural question,” he said. “You’re surrounded by Fairy Princes.” He caught up to me and reached out and touched my arm. I felt goose bumps form on my flesh where his fingers had touched.

“Less than I used to be,” I muttered. To his credit, Teegan looked stricken. “Look, Susan, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to remind you of that pain.”

“It’s okay,” I said.
No one needs to remind me, it’s always there
, I thought.

“How is Samuel doing?” Teegan asked. He was trying to change the subject, and I was grateful.

“He’s good,” I said. “He and Autumn are good.” Teegan nodded encouragingly. He had fallen into step next to me again and I found myself uncomfortably aware that I might be walking alongside my future husband. I also realized I might not mind the idea.

His next question surprised me, maybe because my mind was still flowering at the idea that I might at long last have found my betrothed. Or rather, I suppose, that I had found my betrothed so early in my trip, and not only that, it was someone with a longstanding connection with the Cheshires.

“Are you sure you should be staying at the Arsenals’?” he asked haltingly, as if he was afraid of offending me.

“Yeah,” I said with surprise. “Of course. I mean, well, no, it’s not like that. I, well. . . .” My voice faded. How could I explain that I had drunkenly picked a fight with two guys at a bar and Seth had saved me from having to reveal myself or worse?

“Yeah, we aren’t staying for long,” I finished lamely.
Then again I might be willing to extend my stay if it meant having more time around Teegan. . . .

When we got to the house I walked slowly up the front steps. I hadn’t seen the place from this direction before and it was just as breathtaking as looking at it from the garden. The building was stone, set comfortably into the side of a hill. The steps winding up to the front were massive and I needed three strides to get up just one of them. As we were moving closer to the door it was flung open and Katie came bounding out, followed more slowly by Mae and Seth.

“Teegan,” said Katie, grinning from ear to ear. Her blue eyes lit up with happiness and I suspected I knew why. “It’s been a long time!”

“Not my choice,” he said, grinning back. “Believe me.” His eyes flicked for just a second to Seth. So, there was an issue between these two.

“Teegan,” said Seth. His hands were tucked into his pockets and his eyes were stormy and churning, like the ocean when rain was coming down. “I can see you found our house guest.”

“Yeah, we went for a walk together,” said Teegan.

I didn’t think that was exactly true, but given the heat in Seth’s glare I didn’t bother to argue.

“What do you want?” Seth asked, his words clipped.

“You are cordially invited to a party at the Marchell Court, to take place in two days’ time,” said Teegan. He made a point of addressing Katie, who blushed at the attention.

I could see Seth’s jaw working. He himself had said the Arsenals needed to be more social, so I couldn’t see what his problem was.

“Thank their highnesses for the invitation. We’ll think about it,” Seth said. If his jaw had been clenched any tighter, he would have chipped a tooth. Meanwhile, Teegan’s hands were balled into fists. He didn’t like how Seth treated him, or something. I wasn’t sure what.

“Oh, no way. We have company, and they’re staying, and we’re all going,” Katie gushed, barely looking over her shoulder.

“We’ll talk about it,” said Seth. He had passed irritated and now sounded angry.

“You NEVER let me do anything fun,” Katie huffed.

“Katelin,” said Seth, that one word filled with warning.

Seth shook his head. “Teegan, did you have to deliver that message in person?”

“In fact, I did,” said Teegan, his words smug.

“We haven’t decided if we’re attending yet,” said Seth.

“Your guests are free to do as they please, and if I know anything about Susan it’s that she never turns down a party,” Teegan said, his eyes twinkling. I blushed. That was my old reputation, the one I had when I was happy. Apparently it had spread more widely than I knew.

“Let’s talk about this on the way to the market,” said Katie. Turning to me she said, “I’m glad you’re back. We were about to head to the farmer’s market. Teegan, you should come too.”

“I’d love to,” he said, smiling at me.

I thought I saw Seth grit his teeth, but he didn’t say a word.

It was a brilliantly sunny afternoon, and even though I had been walking around all morning, I was happy to check out the small town of Everton, population one thousand.

“It doubles to two thousand in the summer,” said Katie. “I think it’s kind of like a smaller version of Castleton.” The coastal Maine town where the Roths and the Cheshires spent their summers was certainly touristy, but everyone felt like they belonged. That’s part of why I loved it so much. If Everton was anything like Castleton, it would be another little gem of a place to get to know.

“This driveway is so long we’ll barely be there by nightfall,” Mae muttered to me as we walked. The Arsenals’ driveway was unpaved, with pine trees looming on either side. There had been a lot of rain already that summer, so not a lot of dust kicked up when we walked.

“This must be insane to plow in the winter,” said Mae.

“It is,” said Katie. “The whole fairy thing helps, though.” She grinned at Teegan. “Winter Fairies can be very useful.”

I couldn’t help but watch Teegan and Seth warily. It was clear they didn’t get along, and I was confused by both of them. They were making an effort to be polite, but why? Because Katie insisted on it, or because Mae and I were there? I knew this little trip to the market wouldn’t be happening if we hadn’t been around.

There was definitely something strange going on between the Summer and Winter Fairies here. Luckily, it wasn’t my problem.

~ ~ ~

Katie was right: Everton was tiny. There was one main road that led into a small village center with a handful of buildings. One sign read, “General Store,” while another announced the post office, and a white house sported a sign that said, “Everton Library.” The farmer’s market occupied most of the tiny town square, at one end of which was an old-fashioned bandstand
—
for a very small band. The bar Mae and I had been at wasn’t in the center of town, which didn’t surprise me. Locals probably didn’t want their kids exposed to it.

“This is so cute,” I said, smiling. The sun shinning on every rooftop and the perfectly cut grass didn’t hurt.

One thing I noticed instantly was the stares we were getting, especially from women. Well, Teegan and Seth were getting stares, Mae, Katie, and I were getting dirty looks. Katie got fewer of them than Mae and I did, I supposed because some of the women staring at us were locals who knew she was Seth’s sister and not competition for the guys’ affections.

“It’s a great place to be,” said Teegan warmly, dropping back to talk to me. “I was glad when my parents decided to move here.”

I nodded. It wasn’t as colorful as Castleton—most of the buildings were either white, green, or a dark blue—and there were definitely fewer of them, but that didn’t matter. It was wonderful.

“No wonder so many Fairies come here,” I murmured. “There isn’t much chance of getting caught.”

“Exactly,” said Teegan, watching me closely. “I’m glad you like it.”

“Here we are,” said Katie, stopping near the first of the farm stands. “Seth, what should we get?”

“Just get some of everything,” he said with a wink as he examined a crate of tomatoes.

“How are the Arsenals this morning? Long time no see,” said the woman at the stand. She had gray hair and wore a broad-brimmed hat covering a face that looked like it had spent years in the sun.

Seth, Teegan, and Mae wandered a little way down the line of stands to look at some woven baskets.

“Pretty well,” said Katie. “How’s the farm this year, Lucy?”

“Well, we really needed the rain,” Lucy said. Then she leaned forward. “You have company?” She tilted her head first in Mae’s direction and then in mine. In a town this small, new people would always stand out.

“Yes,” said Katie, beaming. “So exciting!”

“That brother of yours should find a pretty local girl,” she said scornfully. “One who knows the area.”

“All I want at this point is for my brother to look,” said Katie wistfully, plucking at some of the bags available to put fruit in. She cast a sad glance in Seth’s direction, but he didn’t see it; he was busy examining loaves of bread.

Lucy snorted and said, “At first I thought that other girl was a guest of yours, but she’s not, is she?”

“What other girl?” Katie asked, frowning.

The woman leaned forward conspiratorially. “There’s a girl been around these parts recently,” she murmured, her face filled with intensity. “Dressed all in black. Little thing, but fast. Whenever I get close enough to look she darts off.”

I remembered the girl Seth had chased after and wondered who she could be. Definitely fairy, but if the locals had noticed her then she wasn’t exactly hiding. Strange indeed.

Katie showed no sign that she had any idea what the woman was talking about. “I’m sure she’s just a tourist,” she said, smiling kindly.

Lucy sniffed again. “Maybe and maybe not. Tourists usually wear bright color combinations of pink and blue or pink and green or blue and yellow or blah blah. At least in the summer, they don’t wear black.”

“You’re very cynical,” Katie commented, still smiling.

The woman stood back as she rang Katie up. Katie had followed her brother’s advice and gotten a bright array of vegetables. “You watch. I won’t turn out to be wrong.”

I had a feeling that this woman was indeed right. Whoever was sneaking around the Arsenal property surely wasn’t a tourist. All the more disturbing, it didn’t sound like she was even trying to stay out of sight.

“Katie, come look at this,” called Mae from a few stands away.

As Katie moved down the line I found myself eye-to-eye with Seth. He smiled, but there was something guarded there. Teegan, noticing, said, “It’s great you could both come and see the town.”

I nodded, and the moment between Seth and me passed. I sighed. I had started a road trip to clear my head, but instead everything had was just getting stranger.

I felt a distance from the Roths now, but I still wondered what was happening with them—especially Logan. I was worried that he had gone off to do something stupid. In fact, I was almost sure he had.

When I rejoined Seth and Teegan after a quiet stroll along the row of tables piled with produce, a local girl had come to talk to them. She was around Mae’s height and had long blond hair and blue eyes. Her white t-shirt fit her perfectly, showing off her ample curves. I tried not to be jealous as she held a basket filled with bagels and offered them a sample. That probably wasn’t all she wanted to offer them, but Teegan was simply being polite while Seth was being distant.

“Are you sure you don’t want to try some?” she asked the heir of Arsenal, batting her eyelashes. I couldn’t really blame her. If I lived in Everton and the most eligible bachelors in town showed up, I would probably have flirted with them too.

“No, but thank you,” said Seth, giving her a polite smile and wandering away. Her eyes watched his back for a breath before they returned to focus on Teegan. Irritation was clear in her face even though she seemed determined to hide it.

“We don’t usually see you around here,” she said. “Bagel?”

“Don’t mind if I do,” he said, taking a small piece. “No, I don’t make it this way much, but special occasions, or people, call for it.” He looked at me and beamed. When he didn’t look away the girl huffed her annoyance, spun around on her heel, and walked away.