“And the liquor law.” Connor set down his beer and nodded at Marco. “Ditch the fruit juice, Álvarez. We’re not twenty-one yet.”
Marco showed us his cup; only sliced orange, apple, and lemon remained, the red wine punch gone. Part of me didn’t blame him; I’d taken a sip and it’d been delicious.
The other part shook my head. He’d pay for it in the morning.
Marco clapped his hands together. “Shall we promenade?”
***
“Hey,” I heard someone distantly whisper. “Hey, sweet tart, wake up.”
“Mmm?” I mumbled before blinking until I clocked Marco crouched by the side of my bed. “What…time…is…it?”
“Five thirty,” he answered. “I thought—”
I groaned. Five thirty meant I’d only been asleep for three hours. Connor went to bed after our walk, but Marco and I’d hung out a while longer. “Why are you here?”
“I thought you might want to see the sun rise. I tried waking Connor, but…”
“Thereisno waking Connor,” I told him. “Only Connor wakes Connor.” I glanced over at Carina’s window and saw starlight slipping through her blinds. “But yeah, I’ll come.” I sat up in bed. “Give me two minutes.”
There were several other people and some dogs on the beach when Marco spread out a towel for us to sit on, but they seemingly disappeared the moment the sun broke on the horizon. Blazes of red, orange, and yellow streaked across the sky, giving the clouds a heavenly glow. The ocean had never looked so blue. Marco whistled. “Best one this summer.”
“This feels like a dream,” I said.
“It’s not,” he said, flashing me a smile.
I would’ve taken a picture if his grin hadn’t been so quick; instead, I settled for a photo of the sunrise.
“How do you not have a hangover?” I asked Marco on the walk home, sun now bright in the blue sky.
“My mom has a pineapple juice–based witch’s brew that wards them off,” he said. “I drank some before bed.”
I wrinkled my nose. Pineapples werenotmy favorite.
Marco chuckled, and I blinked when we ran into Connor inthe driveway. Red-blond hair tousled from the morning breeze, he was holding a white bakery box. BREAD AND CHEESE CUPBOARD, its orange sticker read.
“I was first in line,” Connor said. “Yesterday you said you haven’t had a sticky bun in a while.”
I could barely do more than nod, amazed that he’d set such an early alarm. Bakery hours were not Connor waking hours.
He winked and held up the box.
I felt something blossom in my heart, and in that moment, I realized no one knew me better. Connor and me? Why had I been hesitating? We weren’t Austin-and-Samira; we were Connor-and-Mads. It was so obvious, soright.
Do it, I told myself.Shoot your shot!
“I hope a dozen frosted is acceptable—shit.” Connor handed the box of pastries to Marco so he could dig his chiming phone out of his pocket. “It’s Lauren. I’m sorry. I should talk to her.” He accepted the call, smiling a little. “Morning, Laur…”
And just as quickly as my heart leapt, it sunk and hit me all over again: I’d totally and truly blown it by procrastinating. Connor and I couldn’t be together.
Because he had a freaking girlfriend.
Sixteen
After getting home from Stone Harbor, I texted Katie and the bridesmaids that I was ready to resume Ready-Set-Date, and they couldn’t have been happier.Okay, I’m game, I’d texted our chat.Bring on the boys!
Because I needed to stop thinking about Connor.
