“Love you guys!” I yell back and head out to the front of the house, making myself comfortable on the front steps while I wait for Maggie.
She shows up ten minutes later in a Jeep, all the windows rolled down and a pop song blasting from the speakers. I stand and it takes all my willpower not to run to her. Hug her. Kiss her. Tell her how much I missed her. Would she even want that without our agreement in place?
I settle for slow steps instead, grinning when I get a glimpse of her singing along as she parks. Her long blonde hair is down for once, and falls in large waves down her shoulders and she’s wearing a pair of cat eye sunglasses. They’d look comical on anyone else, but on Maggie, they look perfect.
“Someone’s in vacation mode,” I say, leaning in as soon as I get to the window of her car. Maggie gives me a gorgeouslopsided smile and pushes her glasses to the top of her head. Her blue eyes sparkle with joy and my stomach gets a weird flutter. Is that joy because of me? Could it be possible that she feels even a sliver of what I do for her?
“I’m so fucking ready for this week. I really needed this, Ro. Thanks for inviting me,” she says, grabbing her purse from the front passenger seat and reaching for the door handle. I take the lead and open her car door, presenting her a hand to help her down.
The smirk she gives me goes straight to my dick and I bite my lip hard. When her hand touches mine, I get a little zap and even though I should let go, I don’t. I hold her hand tighter and rub my thumb over her knuckles. “It’s really good to see you, Mags,” I admit, taking a step closer until we’re chest to chest and eye to eye.
Her features soften and she gives me a shy smile, one that I don’t see often. One that I like to think is reserved just for me. “You too, Rowan,” she says, dropping her purse and bringing her now free hand to my face.
I can’t help but close my eyes at the touch and relax further, knowing she’s finally back in my orbit. My hand finds her waist and I touch my forehead to hers. We’ve never been this openly affectionate before and I don’t know what to do with this jackhammering, heart-pounding feeling I have in my chest.
Just as I gather my courage to ask, Maggie quickly drops her hand and steps back, her fingers slipping out from my hold. “What’s wrong?” I breathe out.
Maggie clears her throat and looks over my shoulder. “Looks like we have some company.”
I whip around and see Garrett and Boone walking down the road towards us and mentally curse myself for inviting them to the stupid bonfire. I should have just takenthe time to spend alone with Maggie. “Sorry, my friends don’t have a concept of privacy most of the time.”
She laughs easily, opening the trunk of the car and pulling out her suitcase. I rush to take it from her but she glares at me. “I got it.”
I smile and plant a kiss on her cheek. “There’s the Maggie I know.” Reveling in the way her cheeks flush, I take a step back and wave at the guys, introducing them.
Dinner is lively.The guys ask Maggie all sorts of questions—about tennis, about Stanford, about our friendship. Maggie takes it all in stride, laughing at Boone’s childhood stories of us getting in all kinds of trouble and nodding along with Garrett as he talks about his travel plans to Europe, chiming in with helpful tips for him.
We drink beer and seltzers around the fire and make plans to take Maggie out on the water, show her all the best parts of Charleston, and take her surfing. I can’t help but feel proud of how easily she gets along with Boone and Garrett, especially knowing she has a hard time making friends. I feel a prickle of unease imagining her all alone in California, with no one to rely on besides her sister.Without me.
At some point, the conversation dies down but the silence is not awkward. Boone dozes off in the large wicker chair and Garrett taps on his phone in one of the hammocks. I stand from my own chair and make my way to the large hammock that Maggie claimed for herself.
“Can I join you?” I ask, expecting her to say no since my friends are still here, but she surprises me by making room for me.
It’s a tight fit, so we sit side by side, our feet dangling over the edge of the hammock. I bring my arm around her shoulder and realize she fits so effortlessly in my arms. The peaceful sounds of insects buzzing and birds chirping lulls me to a state of complete and utter relaxation. When’s the last time I felt this happy? At peace?
My eyelids grow heavy and I barely realize that Boone and Garrett are waving at us, heading out.
“Nice meeting you, Maggie,” Boone says.
“You too.” She chuckles.
“See you tomorrow, guys.” I wave. As soon as they are out of view, my hold on Maggie tightens. I have so many things I want to say to her, so many things I want to do, but I’m terrified of losing her if it turns out that all she wants is the agreement between us.
I opt for a bit of honesty when I say, “I miss you all the time, Mags.”
Her head tilts to look at me, lips parted on a surprise exhale as she stares at me, unblinking. “I—” she says, but nothing else comes out.
Shit.
My shoulders drop and I face away from what feels like her rejection. “I get that our agreement was purely physical, but I’ve always cared about you. You’re one of my best friends. It would be nice to see you more than a few times a year, that’s all.”
She’s quiet for so long and I don’t know what to think. I can’t read her as well as I used to and even that small realization makes my heart constrict. Is she done with me? Ready to leave me behind and find someone better?
I swallow the lump in my throat and try to stand from the hammock but her hand curls around my bicep and stops me. I look down at her long fingers, fighting the urge to coverthem with mine.
“Rowan, can you look at me?”
That’s all I do, sometimes.
