“Did I do okay?” She glances up. Her eyes are watery, and I’m praying to God it’s not tears of regret forming in her eyes.
“You did better than okay.” I press a kiss into her hair. “Don’t ever do that again.”
“What if I want to?”
“You won’t,” I tease, stroking my fingers down her back. “If you ever want to venture there again, I’ll pull you out of the line of fire, and, if not, feel free to spit.”
“Spitters are quitters.” She scratches at my stomach, and our chests rumble with a quiet laugh.
“You know what I can’t quit?” I tuck a kiss in just behind her ear.
“What’s that?” A lock of dark hair glides over her face, smooth and glossy like a ribbon. I pull it back and take in her beauty.
“I can’t quit you.”
Last Dance
Reese
The lake rises and falls as a steady stream of boats glide over the water. The smoky scent of the grill infiltrates my senses.
Last night, Ace and I stayed at the Eagle’s Nest long after the sun set. We held each other and talked for hours. I told lame jokes, and he was nice enough to laugh. It was comfortable. That’s the best part about being with Ace—everything always feels so natural. There’s never an awkward moment, no forced conversation, even the long gaps of silence feel easy as breathing.
Kennedy convinced me to head over to her beach party this afternoon. I know for a fact she invited Ace to come down because she told me so herself. She called him the special guest of honor just for me.
I spot Brylee down by the waterline. She’s already set up a place for us by the edge where we can dip our toes to keep cool, so I head over and plop down beside her. The sun shines its harsh glare right over the lake, turning the water into one giant spotlight. The entire shoreline is crawling with Greeks from Yeats who made the trek up the mountain. I spot Warren walking over with both Gavin and Ace, and my stomach turns.
“Looks like things are about to heat up.” Brylee tickles my foot, and my entire body jerks.
“Here’s the old lady.” Warren lands on the towel next to me, a beer already in his hand. “Take it.” He tries to pass it to me. “You need to mellow out a little.”
“No thanks.” I guess he hasn’t thawed out since I put the freeze on his balls last weekend. I suppose his next plan of action involves large doses of alcohol and the hot afternoon sun. Come to think of it I haven’t eaten anything yet, so I suppose it wouldn’t take much to get me wasted.
Kennedy bounces over in her teenie-weenie barely-there bikini, and I cut a quick glance to Ace to see if he’s noticed. But Ace’s eyes are firmly planted on me, with a warm smile on his face to boot. Ace has a way of making me feel like the only girl in the world simply by looking at me.
“So you guys have to be social.” Kennedy is quick to chastise us. None of this ‘we’re locals’ shit. Our friends hauled ass to Loveless to spend time with us. I want to show them that we know how to entertain.”
“Turn up the music.” Brylee cranes her neck up at my sister. “Give them enough beer, and they’ll entertain themselves.”
“I’ve got a killer speaker you can use,” Gavin offers.
“Bring it,” Kennedy barks, still in drill sergeant mode.
Gavin hops up and disappears toward the parking lot. Gavin is a nice guy and hot as hell—but not in the “for me” kind of way—for Kennedy. Maybe this is the year we both leave the country club boys for some downhome decent mountain loving.
“Hey, we should play chicken.” Brylee nudges into me.
“We shouldnotplay chicken.” The last thing I want to do is wrap my legs around Warren’s neck in front of Ace. Wait, who says I have to choose Warren? “On second thought, I call Ace.” I glance up at him, and his eyes widen a moment, his lips tug upwards, but he’s slow with the smile. Ace is perfection with his deep-set dimples, those glowing eyes that give the blue of the lake a run for its money, and that dark, thick hair, I could lose all day running my fingers through it, burying my face in it like a pillow.
“And”—Brylee kicks into me with her knee—“I call Warren. Come on, McCarthy.” She yanks him up by the fingers. “Get ready to dominate out there.”
“You wish,” I say, dusting the sand off my thighs as I jump to my feet.
“Wewilldominate.” Warren pulls me in by the waist and smirks over at Bry. “Only you’ll be on the losing team. It’s my old lady and me.” He slips his fingers over my left boob and gives a squeeze like he expects it to honk.
I suck in a quick breath and glance back to find Ace looking like he’s about to murder someone.
“Would you stop calling me your old lady?” I push Warren back a good foot.
