A Glimpse of the Dream Read Online Free Page B

eating the crust with melted butter. Trying not to grin was hard as I watched Kane dig in and saw the anticipation on his face. It took a minute, once he removed the top crust, to understand. His eyes grew wide and he jumped back from the table.
    “You better run, dear,” Mrs. Marks said as Kane’s gaze met mine. I ran right out of the kitchen, down the hall, and through the front door. I didn’t get far before I felt his arms around me. He pulled me to the ground, wrestling me until he was on top. I tried to knock him off, but he was stronger and bigger.
    “Good one, Teagan.” I didn’t even get to gloat before he smashed a fist full of mud in my face. “That’s a good look for you.”

    After our showers, Kane and I walked down to the docks. He loved looking at the boats and I loved looking at the water.
    “I can’t wait to build my own boat one day,” he said as we sat side by side on the pier, our feet dangling.
    “Do you see it in your head—the boat you want?”
    “Yeah. And I’d like to do it in teak. I’ll drive it all over, from here down the coast.” Peering at me from the corner of his eyes he said, “You can come with me if you want.”
    “I want.”
    He seemed to like that answer. His lips turned up at the sides.
    “What are you going to call your boat?”
    “I don’t know, but the name of a boat is very important. It has to be meaningful, special, because the boat is like a part of you. I’ll figure it out.”
    In the next second, Kane jumped up and started jogging down to the end of the pier where an older man was trying to carry too much at once.
    “Let me help you with that, Mr. Miller.”
    “Thank you, Kane. You’re a good boy.”
    Kane flashed him a smile in reply. He did that a lot, offering a hand when someone needed it. He didn’t even need to be asked. Mrs. Marks said he had a big heart. They loved him, Mrs. Marks and the others. I envied the closeness they had with each other. They would do anything for him, and he would do anything for them. He had a family again and, even though I felt like an outsider sometimes, I didn’t begrudge him what he had found.

    I had been searching for Kane for almost an hour, retracing my steps because I couldn’t find him. When I circled back around to the beach, he was there, but he wasn’t alone. Camille Bowen had joined him. Had they just been to the island? Kane and I often spoke of that island and how we would explore it together. Had he forgotten that promise because his interest in Camille was stronger than his friendship with me?
    She was trying to hold his hand, and the fact that she was even reaching for it made it seem like they had held hands before. Were they dating? Had they dated? Remembering my first day of school, seeing the two of them talking, I couldn’t deny they had looked good together: friendly and comfortable. Maybe they were an item, and I had misunderstood him that day. Maybe it wasn’t disinterest in taking her for ice cream in general, just that day in particular, since he had already made plans with me.
    I hadn’t made a sound, and I was quite a distance from them, but Kane’s head snapped in my direction and his gaze seared me. Embarrassed for getting caught, I hurried back up the path to the house. He didn’t need his privacy invaded by me, especially since he had given so much of his time already to help me fit into my new life.
    “Teagan, where are you going?” I heard from behind me.
    Turning to Kane, I knew my cheeks were flushed because I felt awkward. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know you had company.”
    “Yeah, that.” He sounded disgruntled. “Camille and I—”
    “Kane, you don’t owe me an explanation. It’s none of my business.”
    “I know I don’t owe you one, but I’d like to give you one just the same. Camille sees us as a couple, but I’m not sure I want to go there with her.”
    “Why not? She’s very pretty.”
    “Yeah, she is—there doesn’t seem to be much more to her