by Violet Paige
“That’s what you call spying? Summer fun?”
Maggie stared at him, horrified.
“This is my life, Maggie! I’m not some pawn in your daddy’s plan to make money. You thought he could just buy my little business, and I’d be ok with that? Who are you?”
“But that’s not what happened at all!” She knew there were tears streaming down her face, but it was pointless to try to stop them now.
“You used me!” His voice roared through the landing.
Blair stepped in front of him. “You’re done, Reid. Out!” She pointed at the stairs.
He stared at Blair. “I don’t like being played.”
“Go.” Blair ushered him away from the landing. Maggie could barely hold it together.
Blair followed him down the stairs. “I know you busted in here like some raging bull because you found out Maggie’s a Zeal, and maybe you are slightly justified to be mad at her, but she didn’t deserve that. I never pegged you for a total asshole.”
“I’m not getting into this with you. Does Justyn know what you’ve been up to this summer?”
He wasn’t yelling any longer, but his words were strong.
“Like I said, you’re an asshole. Get out.”
Maggie heard the door shut and dissolved into a fit of sobs as her back slid against the hall wall to the floor just outside her bedroom door. Blair rushed toward her.
“Oh, G,” Blair coaxed. “You’re going to be ok. He’s gone. I kicked him out.”
“How does he even know?” Maggie managed through loud sobs. She wiped the tears falling relentlessly. She tucked her arms around her knees and put her head down. I should have told him last night. How many opportunities did I have? What was I thinking? She continued to cry and berate herself.
“It doesn’t really matter how he knows, does it? He was a dick.” Blair patted her back. “Aww, I think he needs time to cool down.”
“Did you see how he looked at me? Like he was completely disgusted. Oh my God. This is terrible, worse than terrible. What have I done?” Maggie didn’t know how Reid had pieced together her identity, but Blair was right, it didn’t matter. He knew the truth and it wasn’t because she was the one who was honest.
“If you are seriously considering talking to him after that, then give him time. I know how these island boys work. Believe me. Give him some time.” Blair hugged her harder. “Come on. Let’s get you in bed. You can cry all you need to.”
“Sweetheart, are you home?” a familiar voice called up the stairs. “Maggie? Blair?”
Maggie shot Blair a panicked look and whispered, “Is that my dad?”
“Stay here. I’ll go see what’s going on.” Blair left Maggie standing in the hallway. Instead of going in her room, she lingered on the landing where she could hear what her dad had to say about this unexpected visit.
“Mr. Zeal, what a surprise.” Blair used her rehearsed television reporter voice.
“Hey, girl. How’s your summer been treating you on the island?”
“Oh, you know, lots of beach trips—the usual summer stuff.” Blair answered. “I didn’t know you were coming for a visit today. Let’s go to the kitchen. “Can I get you some tea? Maggie will be down in a second.”
“Tea sounds just right.” Denny said. “Blair, maybe you can help me with something while we’re waiting on Maggie.”
“Sure. What is it?” Blair asked.
“I just had the strangest experience at the boathouse I was assessing for a portfolio pitch. Who exactly are the boat builders Maggie wanted me check out? Did she mention it to you?”
Maggie heard her friend almost choke on the tea. Shit. She didn’t want Blair to have to get involved in this.
“Daddy.” Maggie smiled as she approached the kitchen island.
“There she is.” Denny stood and wrapped Maggie in a big bear hug. “Sweetheart, you ok?”
Maggie buried her face in her father’s chest. “No, I’m not.”
“I’ll give you two some time to catch up,” Blair said. “It was good seeing you again, Mr. Zeal.” Blair reached for her glass and trotted up the stairs.
“Maggie, why don’t you tell me what’s going on?” Denny removed his daughter from his chest. She knew he hated seeing her cry because it made the usually strong businessman feel powerless to help.
“Oh, Daddy, I screwed up.” She wiped the tears from her face. “And look at your shirt. I got mascara on your logo.”
“Don’t worry about that. Tell me what I can do to help. What happened?”
Maggie slumped onto the bar stool. She felt relieved to have her father listen as she recounted the events of the summer that had led up to the worst morning of her life.
“G, are you sure about this?” Blair strolled into the room where Maggie was furiously throwing shorts and tank tops in a suitcase. Books and magazines were scattered across the floor. “We can talk to him. I can even get Justyn to intervene. Don’t leave yet. Don’t let him run you off before our summer is supposed to be over.”
Maggie headed to the bathroom, where she pushed all of her cosmetics into another bag. “I have to. You heard him. He was cold. He thinks I’m some kind of manipulative business spy.” She could feel the tears forming again. She would not cry. At least not right now. She had to get off the island. She had to get away from him. Then—what was she going to do then?
Maggie shook her head and twisted a lock of hair around her index finger. “I’m sorry to abandon you this last week,” she apologized to her best friend. “This isn’t how I wanted our last summer together to end.” Her voice broke.
“Me either. But stay and we can figure out a way to make it work,” Blair tried again. “You’re going to miss the wedding and you worked so hard on those centerpieces. Missy will want to see you.”
“There’s no way I could face Reid at the wedding now. He doesn’t want to be anywhere near me.” Maggie sighed. “I can’t be on the same island with him.” She tried unsuccessfully to stop the floodgates. Through tears, she continued. “Plus, I don’t want to ruin your last week with Justyn. You two deserve to enjoy the rest of the summer. If I stay, it will just cause drama. It’s best this way.”
“But where will you go?” Blair asked.
Maggie gathered her collection of sundresses from the closet.
“Home, for now, I guess. My dad is downstairs booking us a flight out of New Bern. I’ll be in Charlotte by dinner.”
As if on cue, Denny appeared at the bedroom door. “Sweetheart, what can I help you with? We’ve got to hit the road in the next twenty minutes if we want to catch our flight. You know how busy these beach roads are on the weekends.”
“I’m almost ready. Can you give me a second?”
“Of course.” He smiled. “I’ll just take this first suitcase downstairs while you girls say your good-byes.” He picked up a tightly packed piece of luggage and left Maggie and Blair alone.
“We are not doing this.” Blair put her hands on her hips. “I’m not ready to say good-bye yet.”
“I’m already a crying mess, so I can take it.” Maggie walked over and hugged Blair.
The dreaded moment of the summer had arrived in the most unexpected way. It was time to say good-bye, time to end four years of living together, time to face the lives that were ahead of them.
Blair squeezed Maggie. “I don’t want you to go. This is so shitty. I’m going to kick Reid in the Strait family jewels.”
Maggie laughed for the first time all day. Leave it to Blair to turn their emotional moment into a giggle.
“Maggie! Time to go!” Denny hollered from the base of the stairs.
Maggie looked at Blair. “Have fun at the wedding. Tell Missy I said congratulations. I’ll call you later.”
“You better.”
Maggie hated leaving her best friend alone standing on the other side of the screen door.
Maggie pressed her head to the cool passenger side window and looked out at the sparkling blue-green
water as she crossed over the Harkers Island bridge in her dad’s car.
How could the day be so beautiful when she felt like this? She felt like the crystal blue sky and summer sunshine were mocking her. It wasn’t even a slight bit humid. Last night’s storm had clearer the usual August mugginess from the air. Missy and Josh were going to have the perfect day. She looked ahead and tried not to think of the wedding that would be taking place less than a mile behind her.
“Sweetheart?” Denny looked at his daughter with concern.
“Yeah?”
“You sure you’re ready to leave? I can try to talk to the young man again. I shouldn’t have dropped in on him like that. Would it help?”
The car rolled onto the mainland. The island was behind her. “No, it wouldn’t. It was my fault. And if you don’t mind, I really don’t want to talk about it anymore.”
“Of course, darling. Let’s just get you home. Your mother is going to be so excited to have you home for a week before you head to Charleston.”
Six
Blair
Justyn pulled Blair in close, pressing his palm into the small of her back. The band had finally switched to a slow song, and he had been able to coax her on the dance floor.
“Aren’t you having a good time, darlin’?”
Blair knew what Justyn was trying to do, but it wasn’t working. Nothing could pull her out of this funk. Her best friend was gone.
“The wedding was great. I’m fine. You can stop worrying.” Knowing he could probably see right through her flimsy attempt to appease him, she wrapped her arms a little tighter around him.
“I’m not buyin’ it,” Justyn whispered in her ear.
The music stopped and the wedding guests applauded. “We’re going to take a ten-minute break. Be right back,” the lead singer announced before hitting play on his prerecorded playlist. The guests dispersed back to their tables.
Blair walked toward the seats where she and Justyn had been assigned for the evening.
“I’m glad looks can’t kill, because you have shot Reid more death stares in one night than any man deserves.” Justyn sat next to her and reached for his beer. “Maybe you could ease up on him. Doesn’t look like he’s having a good time.”
Reid was sitting at the head table with the rest of the wedding party.
“Maggie should be here,” Blair responded. “The only reason she’s not is because of him.” She glared at Reid again as he pounded his fifth beer of the night. She had been counting.
Justyn slid his hand under the table and along the hem of her blue dress. “We agreed we weren’t going to get in the middle of it. Remember?”
Blair’s bottom lip extended. “I know, but I want it fixed. Maggie should be here. We should all be here together and getting ready for a cruise around the island as soon as the bride and groom head out. Don’t you want that too?” She turned to face her date. Didn’t he agree that this was a huge injustice?
“If you can see past the misunderstanding, why can’t he?”
Justyn’s eyes gleamed a little more than usual with the candles flickering from the centerpieces. “Because, one, I’m an amazing guy.” He winked. “And two, I know why you are spending all your nights with me, and it’s not to get top secret boat intel.”
Blair smiled. Maybe he really was Mr. Perceptive.
He added, “It doesn’t hurt that your last name is Emory.”
“If it had been the other way around and I was a Zeal, would you have—?”
Justyn’s thumb rounded to the inner softness of her thigh. “We need to get out of here.” He kissed her on the cheek and stood.
“But they haven’t cut the cake or tossed the bouquet.” Blair searched his face for an explanation.
“Come on. They won’t even know we’re gone.”
Blair hesitated. All her favorite parts of the wedding were about to happen. She also had a feeling that it was her job to give Reid as hard a time as humanly possible. She couldn’t do that if Justyn sweet-talked her away from the reception.
He leaned down and whispered in ear, “I want you.” A smile formed at the corners of her full lips. “So, let me take you home.”
Blair reached for her beaded purse and pushed away from the table. Glaring at Reid all night suddenly seemed like a bad use of her time. Justyn glanced over his shoulder at his cousin while he steered Blair out of the reception.
“Baby, for what it’s worth, I don’t like what happened to Maggie, but I can tell Reid’s hurtin’. I just thank God I’m not the one sitting in the corner drinking my heart whole tonight.”
Blair couldn’t say it, but she was thinking exactly the same thing.
Seven
Justyn
Justyn’s leg dangled over the side of the swing. “I swear I was going to take you inside the house this time.” He laughed as he and Blair swayed across the porch.
She cuddled into the nook under his arm. “I’m not complaining. I’m sorta getting addicted to porch swing sex.” She giggled.
“I know what you mean.” He kicked off the floor with his foot.
He had seen the wheels turning in her head at the reception. He knew that everything was completely fucked up now since Maggie had left, but he also knew it had nothing to do with Blair and him. The only way to keep it that way was to get her away from Reid tonight, before her hotheaded mouth flew open after a few glasses of champagne. He didn’t want to take sides.
“Do you think anyone saw us leave? I feel bad not saying good-bye to Missy and Josh.” She sounded slightly remorseful. “Or your mom. Oh God, I didn’t say good night to your mother.”
Justyn rolled Blair under him. “I don’t care if the president was looking for us.” He kissed her neck. “Swing sex comes first.”
“I’m being serious. Your whole family was there. What if they say something to you tomorrow?”
“Then, I guess I’ll have to hide out here. That ok with you?” He grinned.
She propped up on her elbow, and he recognized the look she got when she was about to pitch an idea. “Hey, what if—?” her words trailed off as Justyn kissed her stomach.
“Are you trying to talk to me right now?” He growled a heated breath along her belly button.
“No.” She relaxed under his touch. “Uh.”
“Good.” He kissed the soft skin against her thigh, smiling as she responded to him with faint whimpers. He loved it when she did that. He had never heard anything so hot in his life.
She wanted to talk and he didn’t want to disappoint her, but he loved how she felt underneath him, how she moved every time he touched her. Right now, he wanted her to hear what he had to say with his hands—words didn’t matter. They still had one week together.
Eight
Blair
Blair looked up at the house where she had spent the summer. The breeze blowing off the sound skirted through the wind chimes. Three months ago, she had thought she was going to hate the island. And maybe for the first month that was true, but looking out across the sound to where the lighthouse stood, she knew she had grown to love this place and all its quirks.
It didn’t seem possible the wedding was only a week ago. Faced with the prospect of an entire week in an empty house had scared the crap out of her. She had never liked being in the house alone and luckily had managed to avoid it the entire summer. It was old, creaked at night, and was possibly inhabited by the nonliving. When she asked Justyn if he wanted to stay with her during her last week, he didn’t hesitate. He didn’t freak out either.
“Darlin’, I think this is the last one.” He jogged down the porch with one of her suitcases. He shoved it in the trunk and closed it with a thud.
She handed him the keys that Mrs. Buttons had entrusted Maggie and her with at the beginning of the summer. His fingers closed around the key chain.
“Tell Mrs. Buttons we had a great time.” She smiled at him.
“I’ll do that.” He kicked at the tire.
“Thanks.”
Blair turned toward the driver side of her car. “Oh, and tell her that there might be a leak under the kitchen sink.” She tossed her purse in the front seat. She knew she was stalling, but everything about this moment was surreal. It felt like she was walking through a fog.
“I’ll take care of the sink before she comes over. Ok? Plus, I’ve got some laundry in there I need to grab. I’ll lock everything up for you,” Justyn offered.
He wrapped his arms around Blair and pulled her against his chest. She knew this was coming. Blair held on tightly, willing the tears not to form. They had agreed—no messy good-byes, no drama, no teary scenes in the driveway. This was the deal. It was always the deal.
He kissed her on the forehead before opening the car door for her. “Good luck in Dallas, Carolina girl.”
Blair slid into the seat and turned the keys in the ignition. She rolled the window down as Justyn propped his arms on the frame. Smiling, he leaned through the car and kissed her. For a second, she let herself forget this was a good-bye kiss and pressed her mouth against his, tasting the saltiness of his lips. Maybe if she could hold on to him a little longer … There wasn’t anything else to say.
His eyes flashed open and he looked at her with the gray-green eyes that shook her soul. Blair exhaled and put her foot on the break. It was time.
“Bye.” She put the car in reverse as Justyn backed out of the window.
“Bye.”
Nine
Justyn
Justyn shoved his hands in his pockets as the blonde steered the car out of the driveway and onto Island Road. Oh hell. This must be what those summer girls feel like when I cut them loose. He reached down, picked up one of the rocks from the driveway, and tossed it toward the pier. Clutching the keys in his hand, he walked up the steps to the porch, glared at the swing rocking in the breeze, and ducked in the house to pack up his week’s worth of clothes.
