“We all knew you wanted him, and he didn’t want you.”
“I don’t even know what you’re talking about, Talia.” Mia presses her lips together, and I hold on to her hand tightly before rubbing her lower back in a circular motion.
“What? Like you didn’t have a crush on him in high school? Like you didn’t tell the whole world that you thought he was going to be your husband?”
“I was a teenager then, and now I have Luke.”
“True. I guess when you can’t get the first prize, you settle for second.”
I press my lips together at her words. I’m not going to let Talia offend me. I don’t care what she thinks, but the words still sting.
“I’m not settling for anything,” Mia says and squeezes my hand back, her eyes searching mine. “You know that, right, honey?”
“Yeah, of course.”
My heart aches though because I know the fact of the matter is that it’s true. Mia always had a thing for Rex, not for me. She wanted to be with him. She talked endlessly for months about how she could attract him, about how amazing it would be if she married him and if she became my sister—which, at one point, made me want to gouge out my ears and my eyes, but of course I didn’t say anything to her. How did you tell your best friend that you didn’t want her to become your sister? How did you tell your best friend that the last thing on your mind was helping her to catch the attention of the brother you couldn’t stand? There was no way on earth I wanted her with him. The very thought of it made me feel sick.
“So, anyway, Luke,” Talia says, almost purring, “do you remember that time when you were in college and you came back one summer and we all went skinny-dipping down at the beach?”
Fuck, why is she bringing that up now?
“What?” Mia suddenly steps back, her expression pissed. “What are you talking about?”
My back stiffens as I see the hurt in her eyes.
“Oh, he didn’t tell you?” Talia says, giggling and touching my arm, like she’s trying to claim me. “Luke, you didn’t tell your girlfriend aboutthatnight?” She speaks seductively, and I can tell that she’s trying to rile Mia up.
“I guess not. I don’t even remember.” I look over at Mia tononverbally tell her that it wasn’t a big deal. It wasn’t a big deal, though I know, to Mia, it will be.
“Really, Luke? You don’t remember us skinny-dipping?” Talia giggles and looks down at the front of my pants. “I certainly haven’t forgotten one moment of that night.”
“You went skinny-dipping with Talia?”
“To clarify, it wasn’t just Talia there. There were some other people.” It’s how I know she doesn’t naturally have double Ds, but I’m not going to say that.
“Where was I?” Mia presses her lips together. She looks furious now.
“Um, I’m not sure where you were. Maybe you and Juniper were hanging out and doing something.”
I don’t tell her that I knew exactly where she was. I don’t tell her that I knew she went on a date with some surfer from California who was in town for the surf competition. I don’t tell her that his name was Jake and that his dad worked in Silicon Valley. I don’t tell her that I can still remember how blue his eyes were and how blond he was. I don’t tell her that I can hear the way she went on and on about what a great surfer he was. I don’t tell her that I saw the way that he stared at her, the way he played with her blonde hair, the way she wrapped her arms around him as she sat in his lap and kissed him on the cheek. I don’t tell her how she ignored me when I wanted to chat with her about college because she had her summer dalliance with some surfer she probably wouldn’t even remember now.
I am certainly not going to tell her that when I was invited to go to the beach party that night, I went because I just wanted to forget about her and what she was doing. I don’t tell her that Talia and some of the other girls jumped on me naked and that they tried to entice me, but I wasn’t even interested. I don’t tell her any of that because I don’t even want to think about it. I don’t want to acknowledge that the entire night, I thought about her.
“It was fun. Wasn’t it, darling?” Talia strokes her fingers down my forearm and eyes me in a way that would make anyone watching think that we had been intimate, even though we never had. “We were naked and … well, I don’t know that you want to know everything that happened.” Talia giggles coquettishly and looks at Mia. “We almost had a threesome, but I suppose he didn’t tell you that either.”
Mia looks more pissed than I’ve ever seen her. “No, he didn’t. I’m going to go and speak to Juniper. You can find me over there.”
She stomps off, and I let out a low sigh.
“Really, Talia?”
“What? It’s not my fault your girlfriend is jealous. But why didn’t you tell her?” she says, gazing at me. “Is it because you wish that something had happened that night? Maybe you’re looking at me right now, wishing that it could still happen?”
“No, Talia.” I shake my head. “That’s the furthest thing from the truth.”
“It still can, you know?” She licks her lips slowly, the tip of her tongue darting like a snake slithering in the sand. “I’ve always wanted to have a Haverbrook brother. And to be honest, I’d rather have you than Rex. You know, you’ve always been the talk of the town.”
“I’m not sure what you’re saying.” I frown.
