Chapter 1
Winnie, 17 years old
“Come on, Win!” Angel, my best friend, waves me over to where she’s standing next to a fair ride that I’m pretty sure will twist my insides. I’m late like always, having to fight with my parents to be able to do any activity outside of the house. I spent the past hour explaining why I should be allowed to come to the county fair tonight, and they only relented when I told them that Jered Fairfax would be there. Little do they know that Jered is here, but it's to see my best friend.
Running up to Angel, I throw my arms around her, and we swing in a circle, giggling. “Sorry I’m late,” I tell her, my lips popping out.
She rolls her eyes. “Please, girl, I know your parents. I’m surprised they let you come at all.”
I shake my head, my mood sinking slightly. I love my parents, but they take overprotectiveness to the next level. Deep inside, I know it isn’t about me, that their grief and worry come from losing my older sister ten years ago. I was seven at the time, and Georgiana was fourteen. My parents blame themselves for being too lenient on her and letting her go off with her friendsto stay the night for a sleepover. No one could have known that the girls planned to sneak out, or that alcohol would be involved, or that my sister would decide to walk away with a boy and end up falling into a river. It was an accident, one that affected her group of friends, the town, and my family.
Georgiana had been the best older sister, and I miss her all the time. It didn’t matter that I was seven years younger than her. If she was painting her nails, she painted mine. If she tried a new braid style in her hair, she gave me the same one. Whenever her group of girlfriends came over, I was always allowed to hang out with them, becoming a little sister to the whole group. I wish Georgiana were here while I navigate my own teenage years. She would have been in her early twenties and probably enjoying life at college, a legacy at the same sorority our mom went to, with a boyfriend, and planning her life. I miss her. I also miss having the normalcy around the house that I see in other homes. My friends aren’t constantly being questioned about going to a movie, or meeting after school for ice cream before a lacrosse game, or turning down sleepovers at their homes.
“You know how they are.” I sigh, grabbing her arm and linking it with my own as we move farther up in the line of the ride she wants to go on.
“I know. I just wish they’d let you experience life a little. You aren’t your sister, and it was an accident.” Angel gives me a small smile and squeezes me encouragingly.
I nod because she’s right. And as much as I love my family, I can’t wait to turn eighteen and escape for a while. I want to breathe and not have to justify the need to leave the house.
“Anyways, who else is here and where is Jered?”
Angel’s cheeks pinken with a blush. “He and his buddies are playing one of the games. They thought the line was too long to stand here.”
My brow rises. “He has friends other than Russ?”
Angel laughs loudly, and a few people in line turn back to look at us. “Russ is his best friend. He also has a cousin, Noah, who’s visiting from out of town with a few guys from his lacrosse team.”
She winks at me like this should be exciting. I roll my eyes in return, knowing she wants to play matchmaker. Between the two of us, I’m the one who has never dated, never hugged a boy where it wasn’t because we’re related, never been kissed. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever had a crush on any of the guys we go to school with. The only guys I’m friendly with are Angel's boyfriend and his friend, Russ. While Jered Fairfax may be my parents’ idea of the perfect guy for me, I don’t see it. Sure, he’s nice, he doesn’t party, and he attends church every Sunday with his family, who are like royalty in this town, but he’s always been more of a brother figure to me. Besides the fact that he’s head-over-heels for Angel, and she is just as gone for him.
“You look cute, by the way.” She reaches out and twirls a curl of my hair before she lays it over my shoulder, while eyeing my favorite knee-length summer dress, jean jacket, and pair of white cowgirl boots.
“Thank you.” I pop my hip a little and give her a sassy smirk. “You already know you look gorgeous and that I love those jeans.” I point at the dark denim that hugs her long legs, and the ripped country music t-shirt she has on that’s tied at her waist.
Angel and I are opposites in looks and style, although I wish I was as daring as her. My hair is blonde and long, while hers is deep brown and cut short. She’s 5’10 like a model, and I barely come to her shoulders at 5’4. Her eyes are a vivid, bright green, while mine are a deep, chocolaty brown. Our most matched trait is our attitudes. As her boyfriend likes to point out, we both can make people laugh and be at ease, but we are also very fierce and protective when we need to be.
She pulls me in, and we take a selfie, smiling brightly with the lights from the fair rides behind us. We’re about to take another when I feel it. A slight change in the air. The voices and the laughter around me become muted, and my heart seems to pause. My body is jostled as Jered wraps an arm around Angel, and others join us. I don’t see them, though. I only seehim. Blue eyes, the color of ocean waves, are waiting for me. In the span of a few seconds, I swear my heart reaches for him, a spark of recognition, a whisper offinally.
He steps around a few of the other guys nearby, friends of Jered’s cousin, I would guess, until he’s right in front of me, in my space, not caring at all. My head is forced to tilt back since he’s more than a head taller than me. A warm summer breeze ruffles the thick waves of his short brown hair, so dark it looks black. Shivers dance over my skin at his nearness, at the way heat radiates off of him and sinks past the thin material of the summer dress and jean jacket I’m wearing. I’ve never let a guy get this close to me. I’ve never had anyone hold my attention the way he is. His lips tick up in a smile like he’s reading my thoughts.
“Hi.”
My brow rises and I bite my lip. “Hi.”
He watches me, those eyes I’m lost in move over my face, taking in every detail, before sliding down my body quickly, and meeting my gaze again. “What’s your name?”
A laugh escapes my lips at the brazen way he asks, almost demanding. He isn’t acting like most high school boys; he’s not flirting to get the information. “Winnie.”
His eyes widen a second before his smile grows bigger, and I notice the little scar on his right cheek. Somehow, that slight imperfection that sits right next to his plump lips makes him even hotter. My eyes fall to his square jaw that looks strong andis dusted with the faintest black stubble against tan skin, right as he says, “Well, Winnie, want to ride the Ferris wheel with me?”
My eyes shift from him to the ride we’re in front of, the one that I secretly would never choose to go on, but I know my bestie loves it. Usually, I keep my eyes closed on it, my hands clenching around the caged doors. “You don’t wanna go on The Zipper?”
He never takes his eyes off mine, just shakes his head no. “I want to take you on the Ferris wheel.”
I can hear the teasing scoffs and low whistles of the rest of the group. I can feel Angel’s elbow nudge me in my back, silently supporting that I take this guy up on his offer. My heart beats fast against my rib cage, and my stomach swirls with butterflies while my gaze searches his. I don’t know what it is I’m looking for or what I thought I’d see, but I can feel his determination.
“Okay,” I manage to say, and he smirks, clearly happy that I agreed.
His eyes lift from mine to his friends. “We’ll see you later.” They slap him on the back, but he pays zero attention to them; instead, he gently takes my hand, sending tingles all up my arm and over my body, making me gasp lightly. His body stiffens for a split second, and I know he felt it too. He leads me away from the line and the crowd, across the way to where the Ferris wheel sits.
