9
Jake was up early Sunday morning. He always helped set up for the picnic, but he hadn’t been able to get Alyssa off his mind since he saw her running off in tears. Sean’s words echoed in his head, but he couldn’t force himself to go to her. Not until he sorted out all the s**t in his mind.
He showered and dressed in shorts and an Amavita polo shirt. He poured himself coffee and headed out into the cool morning before the sun could show itself.
Jake walked down to the lake with his coffee. He lived near the shore and had a chair with a firepit near the water. Many mornings he sat there, wondering what Alyssa was doing. If she was happy. If she was safe.
His mind went straight to her again, as it usually did, and he compared the girl he’d known with the woman who’d come back. The past
