“For the record, I loved it when you took control.”
She arches a questioning brow at me.
“At the library. I should’ve told you that before.” I lick my lips, remembering being on my knees for her and how good she tasted. “I loved it, and I hope you feel comfortable enough with me to do it again.”
Gratitude flashes in her eyes, and she offers me a sly grin, squeezing my hand one final time.
“Maybe I will.”
33
Riley
“Ican’tbelieveyoutalkedme into coming,” I grumble, as my mom tugs my reluctant ass across the sand with an arm hooked firmly through mine. The reluctance is mostly because I know Steph’s not going to be here today. Why the hell would I brave a busy town gathering full of annoying tourists, not to mention nosy locals—many of whom still give me the side-eye, I might add—without the promise of at least getting to see her? I mean, what am I supposed to do here without her? It’s not like I have many other friends, besides Bobby and Lola,and they’re both working Aroma’s booth in the food pavilion at the entrance to the waterfront.
“Oh, relax,” my mom chides. “It’ll be fun.”
It might have been, had Alex not come down with a late-spring flu and Steph been unwilling to leave him to fend for himself today. I can’t fault her for being a good mother, but I’m disappointed. The last summer solstice festival I attended was with her back when we were teens, and it doesn’t feel right showing up again for the first time solo. Well, besides my mom, but I already know she’ll ditch me for Jack and her other friends once the bonfires get going.
“Plus,” my mom continues, “Aidan and Piper are going to be here. We’re meeting them over by the regatta’s finish line.”
Oh, this keeps getting better and better. I’ve still yet to make any headway where my brother is concerned, despite Piper and me getting along great during my now-frequent visits to the library.
“Does Aidan know that?”
“Well, no …” She pauses at the edge of the temporary stands, which have been set up on the beach to watch the regatta. Bringing a hand up to shield her eyes, she searches the bleachers and crowd milling about below.
“But he will momentarily,” she adds cheerfully, raising her hand in a wave. I follow her line of sight to find Piper eagerly waving back from the top row. My brother sits beside her, arms crossed and glaring daggers in our—my—direction.
With a weary sigh, I follow my mom as she weaves through the crowd to join them. Piper jumps to her feet once we reach the top, throwing her arms around first my mom, and then, surprisingly, she hugs me as well. She gives me a reassuring pat on the back, whispering in my ear, “I think I might have finally softened him up for you,” before bending to move the bags and clothing she’d been using to save spots for us. I glance over at my brother as I take my seat on the other end with the two women between separating us, but he rolls his eyes.
Not so sure about that, Piper.
A few months ago, I was still jumping at any chance to be in my brother’s proximity, desperate for the opportunity to talk, to explain, to make amends. But after getting shut down at every turn, I’ve begun to accept that maybe not all the burnt bridges can be rebuilt, and maybe the fact I’ve been forgiven by both my mom and Steph is more than I deserve, and I should just be thankful for that.
My mom and Piper exchange pleasantries while I stare down the beach, in search of any approaching boats. I’m not all that familiar with the sport of rowing, but I lived in this town long enough to pick up a few things. In the spring and early summer most regattas are 2000 meters long—too far away for us to see the starting line, but I’m gathering from the crowd surrounding us that a race is already in progress.
“I’m so excited!” Piper squeals, drawing my attention back to their conversation. “Luke and Tessa are participating in thedouble scull rowing event. I think it’s up right after this one.” She cranes her neck to look over to where I think I spot the faint outline of a handful of boats on the horizon now.
I know Luke is a friend and colleague of my brother’s, though I don’t remember him from when we were younger, and we’ve never officially met. Tessa, on the other hand …
“Is that the new girl at The Bean?” I ask.
“Yeah,” Piper nods, and then smiles. “It’s so great of Lucy to help her out like that.”
Steph said something to that effect the other day as well, but I’d been too caught up in being out with her in public to give it much thought.
“I know,” my mom agrees. “The poor girl’s been through so much. I love to see Luke and the rest of the town rallying around her.”
“What’s that mean?”
My mom turns to me. “Oh, you remember I told you around Christmas about the woman they found shot at the side of the road? She’d been badly beaten as well.”
“That was her?”
“Yeah.”
“Wait, didn’t she have amnesia or something? She was in a coma, right?”
