“Camping?” He ticks his head back a notch as if I suggested we scan the corner for cockroaches and eat them for dessert. “This is as close to camping as I’ll ever let you get.” He gives a greasy smile. “And, in just a little bit, I’ll be giving you a massage you will never forget right in front of that kickass fire.” He flicks his tongue in the air, and I straighten in my seat.
Dear God, deliver me from Warren.
He picks up the wine and fills both our glasses to the rim. “Knock some back, would you? Tonight is special. We’re in New York City, baby. And, in just a little while, we’ll be working those mattress springs. I think it’s about time we take it to another level.”
I stare at the broken lobster and muse at the fact he feels like my only friend in New York right about now, and I suddenly don’t have the heart to eat him. For a moment I contemplate running to the bathroom and calling Ace to help figure a way out of this mess until I remember my phone has conveniently died. Besides, even if Ace offered to drive here to get me, he wouldn’t arrive until morning. I would never ask him to drive all night. It’s not like I’m some damsel in distress. I can certainly hold my own. I mean I’ll just get another room—
A gasp gets locked in my throat when I remember the fact my wallet is still snug in my backpack next to my bed. Perfect. I’m officially trapped in New York with Warren and his wandering hands while visions of mattress moves dance in his head.
I bet that’s what Dad meant by he and Beverly “took care of everything,” as in ran up my battery and hid all my credit cards. Nice. Not that my father would do that, but, dear God almighty, I sure like spreading the blame for my idiocracy.
“What’s up?” Warren is already on his fifth glass of imported vino which I’m betting is a good thing. Maybe he’ll pass out for the night, and he won’t have to face the world’s most expensive rejection. And I do plan on doling it out sooner than later.
“Nothing, really. I was just thinking I should probably hit the sack. My head has been on fire ever since we got off that thing, and I’ve got these insane cramps.” I double over and let out a horrific groan.
“Well then let’s get you to bed, little lady.” Warren does his best impersonation of a cowboy, and this mildly alarms me. He whips off his jacket and scoops me up in his arms. Before I can process what’s happening, he’s on top of me with his tongue halfway down my throat, and the mattress rodeo has officially begun.
“Get off!” I try to push him away, but he’s suddenly morphed into a wall of granite. “I can’t have sex with you. I’m on my period.”
“What?” He jumps off as if I were on fire. “Shit. That’s fucking disgusting.”
“It so is.” I decide to go with it. “In fact, I turn into a red fountain at night, so you might want to sleep on the couch.”
“Shit.” He hops off the bed so fast, you’d think I just gave him head lice. Warren examines his dress shirt, for stains no doubt. “We’re here until Sunday. You’ll be over that shit by then, right?”
Sunday?
“Nope,” I sag into the feathered bedding as if I were disappointed myself. “I’ll have it for another six days straight.” Okay, so I may have stretched the truth, but it’s really none of his damn business how long my body decides to punish me in advance for the luxury of having children.
Warren groans as if he’s having his balls mauled off by a rhino.
“Heavy—heavy, bleeding.” I nod.
“All right, all right.” He covers his ears. “I fucking get it.” He snatches up a pillow and heads to the couch.
There’s that.
The next day sucks. I mostly shop while Warren mostly tags along like he’s actually enjoying it which makes me feel horrible on several levels because, for one, he’s buying, but if I’m going to break things off with him, we might as well keep our friendship intact. He won’t even hold my hand due to the red plague that’s racking my body, so, all in all, it’s panning out to be a rather platonic experience—far more genuinely so than the one I’m having with Ace.
Early Sunday morning a helicopter picks us up on the roof, and we do the entire first day in reverse, only its Warren who drives us back to Loveless from our father’s legal offices.
I don’t have the balls to look at him all the way up the mountain. I keep waiting for a lull in traffic, or a lull in my panicked brain to break up with him officially, but it feels like that moment never arrives, and, before I know it, Kennedy is waving at me from the balcony of the house.
“Thanks for the trip, Warren,” I say, and he gives a brief nod, the look of frustration rife on his face. “It was a really nice thought.”
“Yeah, whatever. We’ll get it right.” He snarls into the window.
I get out and watch as he drives down the street before turning and glancing over at Ace’s cabin. His car is tucked in his driveway, and just the sight of that old Cougar warms me.
It’s so nice to be back in Loveless—even nicer to know I’ll be seeing Ace in just a little while.
Ace
The sun shines bright over the lake, pressing its heat over Loveless, hot and smothering as if someone stuck a magnifying glass in the sky just to intensify the torture. It’s been three long days since I’ve last seen Reese.
Brylee came over Friday night and let me know the tricks Warren had up his designer sleeve. She told me that Reese forgot her wallet, that her phone was dead. As soon as she filled me in I thought about heading to New York and trying to find her myself. That image Reese painted of Warren trying to force himself on her haunted me all weekend. But she handled him then, and I knew she could do it again if it came right down to it. There was obviously a phone in her room. She could have called the police if things got out of hand. I guess what I’m most worried about is that Warren somehow managed to rekindle the flame. Maybe Reese discovered that luxury hotels and helicopter weekends are something she prefers to a popup tent and a rusted-out Cougar.
Neva shuffles over to the kitchen and scoffs into the fridge, while I sit staring out at the lake.
“Warren’s back,” she purrs. She’s been rubbing their weekend getaway in my face every chance she gets. “But you already knew that, didn’t you?” She plucks out a soda and offers me one, but I refuse. She’s got on her death mask, with the white pancake makeup, the black soot rubbed in large, dark circles around her eyes. She’s head to toe in full Halloween mode with her thigh-high combat boots and a lace top with nothing but a metal studded bra underneath. I think she slept that way.
“Why don’t you put some clothes on?” I growl before darting a quick glance over at Reese’s house.
Neva comes in close until her head is practically on my shoulder, and we’re both looking out at Loveless together.
“Has she given you the finger yet?” She teases. “I bet little Miss Money Bags didn’t have many clothes on this weekend either. I bet she and Warren might even have some big news to share with everyone, real soon.”
“Doubt it.”
“Heard he’s having a huge party on the Fourth—he even invited me,” her voice rises when she says it. “I’m thinking that’s the perfect time to announce an engagement. Don’t you? Just think of all the fireworks that went off between those two this weekend. I think a sparkler is in order—I’m betting it’ll take at least five carrots of bling for Reese to even consider it. She’s got expensive taste. People like us could never please her.”
“Enough.” I shake my head. “If you think it’s making me crazy, you’re wrong. If Reese really wanted to marry the guy, I’d be at their wedding, cheering them on. This isn’t about me. It’s about what she wants.” I press my lips together because I’m pretty damn sure I just lied to this cartoon version of my baby sis.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Her voice booms through the cabin, rattling the windows and mugs. Dad stumbles out of his bedroom looking like a zombie with his hair spiked up in every direction.
“What the hell is going on?” His eyes are
downturned from dragging his ass out of bed far too early, no thanks to Neva’s morning riot.
“Nothing’s going on.” I spot Reese out on her balcony and turn from the window. My heart is already picking up pace. I can’t help it. My adrenaline spikes each time I think of her, let alone see her.
Neva shoves me in the arm until I look up at her. “Reese Westfield is cheating on her boyfriend with Ace. Just try to deny it.”
“I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.” I shoot a look to the fireplace as the memory of Reese’s tongue over mine, bumps through my mind. “We’re just hanging out once in a while. Nothing unusual about that.”
Dad’s chest expands. He pats his jeans down until he yanks out his wallet and replaces it in his pocket. He snatches his vest off the hook and slips it on.
“You got school in a few weeks,” he says, plucking a cigarette off the sink and sticking it between his lips. “Lots of girls over at Yeats. I wouldn’t mess with anything that Loveless has to offer.”
“Tell him to stay away from her.” Neva waits for Dad to follow her command, but he doesn’t. Dad needles me with a sorrowful look that suggests he might be siding with Neva after all. She speeds over to him, her hair bouncing in that rat’s nest she has it teased up in. “You never believe anything I say. Nobody ever does. They’re together. She’s using him, and he’s getting sucked in. She’s going to chew him up and spit him out. She’s going to break his heart.”
Dad looks up with a depleted smile. “Do yourself a favor, son.” His eyes plead with me a little too hard. “Find yourself a nice girl that has eyes only for you. It’s not worth it to fool around with someone who’s not willing to give you their full attention.” He steadies his gaze across the way at the Westfield’s house and sighs. “Neva’s right. She’ll only break your heart.”
My phone goes off. It’s a text from Reese. Can we get together? I would love to explain everything. I’ve missed you to pieces.
“I bet that’s her.” Neva shakes her head as if she’s readying for a fight.
Dad tips his hat over at us before flopping it on. “I gotta get to work. Try not to kill each other while I’m gone.”
No sooner does the screen shut than I text Reese back.
Let’s do it. Missed you, too.
Neva snatches the phone and examines it.
“What a joke,” she hisses before handing it back. “You’re nothing but a dirty little secret to her. Does she know you’re leaving in a few weeks?”
“Nope.” When the coach called and said practice started the second week of August, I figured I’d run down to campus and check into a dorm. I get my key on the first. I was going to ask her to come with me last Friday, but she said Kennedy was taking her out. I guess I’ll hang onto my surprise just a little bit longer. If Reese finds out I’m headed to Yeats in the fall, it could cloud the rest of the summer. Maybe part of the appeal is she won’t have to face me ever again if she wants. I’d hate to ruin that option for her, or more selfishly to the point, ruin things for me.
A polite knock erupts over the door, followed by the sweetest hello I’ve ever heard in my life.
Reese.
She’s back, and my whole world feels as if it’s falling into place again.
Neva pushes the screen into Reese as she zips past her. “You better watch your back,” she shouts before racing off toward the general store.
“Ignore her,” I say, pulling Reese inside for a moment. Leave it to Neva to ruin a perfectly beautiful morning.
“So, do you forgive me?” She bites down over her cherry-stained lip, and her eyes moisten with tears.
“There’s nothing to forgive.” I press out a grin that’s been vacant from my face since she left. Reese hops up on my hips and wraps her legs around me as if she wanted to be there all along.
“God, I missed you.” She lands her soft lips over mine and indulges in a kiss that tastes like cotton candy and strawberries. I let out a moan that swims toward the lake like a siren, so I shut the door and enjoy the hell out of the moment, running my tongue over hers like a promise of things to come.
“Missed you, too.” I pepper the side of her face with kisses that trail all the way up to her ear. “You have a good time?”
“Anything but.” She makes a face, and it’s only then I notice she has on her bathing suit under her shirt.
“You want to go for a ride?”
Reese gives a dangerous smile. I have a feeling she would let me take her to the edge of the universe if I wanted.
I drive us out past Pleasure Point to the dunes on the distal end of the lake where the roads turn to crap and you might have to consider four replacement tires after the visit. But it’s a private beach, and that’s the point of this afternoon, some serious and much-needed privacy at least on my part. Selfishly, I want Reese all to myself without Warren’s prying eyes, or anyone else’s prying eyes for that matter.
The white sand looks pale as salt, and the water glistens a glacial blue. I keep forgetting how gorgeous the Eagle’s Nest dunes are. Of course, Reese is the one who’s making its beauty spring to life. Without her here, it would be just another lonely trek to the desert end of the lake.
I park under a rolling oak and pluck out a blanket and a paper bag I filled with sodas and chips on the way out the door—a far cry from the five star meals she was no doubt treated to this weekend.
Reese wraps her arm around my waist as we find a spot under a spreading tree and lay out the blanket. The sunlight dapples around us just enough to ensure me I’d better keep the both of us hydrated just so we don’t pass out.
“You know what my favorite part of today is?” She stretches over the blanket before pulling off her T-shirt and shorts. Her hair falls around her tanned shoulders, and her eyes glow like silver flames.
Holy shit. I stare wide-eyed at her barely-there red bikini. Reese Westfield has a body that doesn’t quit and curves for miles in all the right places. She clears her throat, and my gaze pops right back up to her eyes. Caught red-bikini handed.
“What’s your favorite part of the day?” I take off my shirt before landing on the blanket next to her.
Reese glides in beside me, her cool thigh grazing over mine.
“Coming home and seeing you.” She lands her slender arms over my waist, and I lean my head into hers. Reese starts in on the whole story, and I give a sorrowful laugh when she tells me she felt like the lobster was her only friend.
“You’ll always have me.” I pull her in tight. “At least you caught a show and got some shopping in. It wasn’t a total loss.” And, yet, if she were there with me, there’s no way I could have taken her to see a Broadway show or outfitted her with a new wardrobe. We’d probably have to hit the dollar menu and hightail it to the library for entertainment. Not really, I’d empty out my bank account to show her a good time. We’d tour the city, climb to the top of the Empire State building—climb each other in a fit of passion.
“It was a total kidnapping. And I swear if that ever happens again, I’m not boarding the helicopter, or the train, or the cruise ship he’s commandeered. I’m through being nice.”
“Warren is just being Warren,” I say, as she slides over into my lap. Her skin warms against mine, and I drop a kiss over her forehead without putting too much thought into it. “We’ve both known him forever. Plus, your dads are linked at the hip, so keeping your distance isn’t a reality. I get it.”
Her mouth falls open as she glances up at me. Reese’s eyes are the exact shade of the sky today, and I want to always remember how she looks, nestled here in my arms.
“Ace”—she lowers her lids a moment—“thank you for understanding. A part of me wanted to knife my way out of that room and, yet, the other part of me wanted to be nice—I mean he made a serious effort. He apologized for what he did. But obviously he thinks we’re more than friends.” She shakes her head. “I pretty much gave him the cold shoulder anytime he came near me, so I think maybe he got the h
int. He was pretty frustrated when he dropped me off.”
“I bet.” I didn’t mean for that to slip out. That conversation I shared with him comes back to me. He mentioned being with someone wild and, at the time, I wondered if he meant Reese. “So, you and he…” I let the words hang in the air to see if she wants to go there. Really, it’s none of my business what they’ve done together.
“Nope.” She runs her finger over my chest. “I mean we’ve kissed. His hands have tried to score a touchdown all on their own, but I’m just not that into him.” Her lids hood over with grief as if maybe deep down she wishes she were. “It’s some twisted dream of my dad’s for me to end up with him. It’s ridiculous.” She shakes her head.
“Sounds like a lot of pressure.”
“Oh, it is. Most of the time the only reason I don’t tell Warren to stay the hell away is because of my dad. I know he really likes the synergy our families have—the businesses, the countless vacations we’ve taken, and, now, it’s like some fantasy to have Warren and I both at Yeats.”
She buries her face in my chest a moment. Her lips brush against my skin, and I take in a breath at how damn good it feels.
Reese leans up and brushes her lips over mine. “I wish you were going to Yeats.”
“What would change?” I cinch my lips in a crooked smile.
“I don’t know.” Her eyes widen a moment. “We could continue to do things like this.” She leans up and sears a kiss off my lips. Her eyes remain closed long after she pulls away.
“That would be amazing.” For a moment I contemplate telling her I was accepted, that I made the rowing team right alongside Warren, but I don’t want to complicate what we have, so I keep it to myself. “So what’s it like at Yeats?” I run my fingers over the length of her arm before landing my hand flat over her belly.