by M. A. Foster
Brad raises his brows. “I guess you saw the goddess. I’m sorry I slipped up. Sort of.”
I shoot Brad a pointed look.
Cole holds up his hand to me and turns to Brad. “The what?”
Brad shakes his head and averts his eyes as he brings his cup to his mouth to keep from answering.
Cole turns his attention back to me. “Don’t get pissed at me. She told me not to say anything.” His gaze moves past my shoulders. I look around and notice we’ve caught a few curious looks. “Let’s go take a walk.” He jerks his head to the side, gesturing for me to follow.
“You guys aren’t gonna fight, are you?” Brad asks as we turn to walk away.
As I’ve said before, Brad can be a bit dramatic. Cole and I have never fought, much less argued throughout our entire friendship.
Cole shoots Brad an annoyed look before we head to the far side of the pool deck.
Cole stops and turns to me. “What is going on between you and Jay?” he asks at the same time as I ask, “How long has she been here?”
“She got in last night. Why?”
“Why didn’t you tell me she was in town when I asked about her earlier?”
“She asked me not to tell you because she wanted to surprise you.” He shrugs. “I thought you guys were friends.”
“Yeah, well, I thought so too.”
“Why are you so pissed off right now?” He chuckles.
I shake my head. “I’m not pissed off. I’m just…. You should’ve told me she was coming today. She probably thinks I’m the biggest douche bag.”
“Why?” His playful expression turns serious.
“Because I was in the bathroom with Piper helping her fix her bathing suit top and Jay was standing outside the bathroom door when we came out. She probably thinks I was in there hooking up.”
“Why would she care?” Cole narrows his eyes. “You guys hooked up in St. Thomas, didn’t you?”
I nod once.
“I knew it.” He shoves my shoulder. “I’ve been trying to get one of you to admit it but you’re both too fucking stubborn.”
“I’m sorry. You know I would never do anything to hurt her. Everything was good until she went back to California and blew me off.”
Cole clasps his hands behind his head and blows out a breath. “She didn’t blow you off, Zach. Her dad was dying.”
“I know. But that doesn’t explain why she blocked me from contacting her. Why did she do that? Or was it her parents.”
He shakes his head. “I don’t know. If you had come to me, I could’ve asked her. Look, I get that you’re pissed and you have a right to be. But you have no idea what she’s been through. They were close. She was by his side until he took his last breath. Imagine what that’s like. She screamed and cried for days.” He shakes his head and tilts it back to take a deep breath. “I meant what I said earlier. She took his death really hard and she’s changed because of it. Her whole life has been flipped upside down and she’s a little fragile right now, so give her a break. I’m not saying you have to be her friend. You don’t even have to talk to her. Just don’t be a dick.”
I nod. “How long is she here for?”
The corners of his mouth quirk up. “Indefinitely. Oh, and she’s Jay Mackenzie now.”
“She lives here?” I ask, incredulous.
He gives me a slow nod, eyeing me skeptically. “You should’ve talked to me.”
“I wanted to. I was going to tell you when she came for Labor Day weekend, but then she wouldn’t take my calls or answer my texts. And she never showed up, so I figured that was it. It was over, so there was no point in bringing it up. It wasn’t worth ruining our friendship over. Plus, I was afraid your family would hate me.”
“That’s bullshit, Zach. We’ve been best friends our whole lives. You don’t think I knew about you two crushing on each other all those years? My whole family knows. Even Uncle Marcus knew.”
“He did?”
He shakes his head again. “I should punch you in the junk just for being an idiot.”
It takes everything in me to fight back the excitement burning in the pit my stomach. Am I surprised to see her? Of course, I am. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever see her again. Am I happy she’s here? Fuck, yes. I feel like I’m dreaming. And the fact that she’s here for good is amazing. But it still doesn’t change the fact that she broke my heart and cut me out of her life. I want to know why. She owes me an explanation. I think I deserve that much.
My jaw clenches when I see Evan’s brother, Grayson, talking to Jay.
I hate that guy.
“You know he’s gonna try to get in her pants,” I inform him.
Cole laughs and turns to me. “Watching you sweat over her will be much more fun than punching you in the junk.”
“You’re such a dick. Why are we friends?”
“Because you love me, Zachy.” He laughs again, smacking me on the back, and I punch him in the arm.
“JAY, THIS IS Grayson, Evan’s brother,” Lexi says, and I turn to face Mr. Tall, Dark, and Ha—holy shit! “Grayson, this is Jay. She’s Cole’s cousin.”
“Hi,” I say with a smile, holding out my hand.
Grayson smiles and takes my hand. “Very nice to meet you.”
“Grayson, are you hitting on my cousin?” Cole says from behind me. Turning, I see him standing with his arms crossed and beside him is Zach, minus his little blonde girlfriend.
He’s still gorgeous. Taller. And his body is perfectly sculpted, like he’s been in the gym all summer. He’s wearing aqua-colored board shorts and a backwards baseball cap with the ends of his wavy hair peeking out along the edge.
Jesus. My stomach flutters.
Glancing at his wrist, I see he’s still wearing the leather bracelets I bought him last year in St. Thomas. I lift my gaze to his face and notice he’s looking down at my toes, specifically the toe ring he bought me. I wiggle my toe and he jerks his gaze away.
Busted. I laugh to myself.
A group of guys come walking up from the beach and begin filling their cups. “Guys, this is my cousin Jay. Jay, these guys are my teammates, Dex, Carter, Justin, Derek, and, of course, you already know Zach,” he says, a mischievous twinkle in his eye. It’s unlikely I’ll remember all their names. With Zach standing so close, I’ll be lucky if I remember my own name.
Screw California.
It’s like hot guy central around here.
Florida is where it’s at, people.
Cole hooks his arm around Zach’s neck and opens his big mouth. “Zach was Jay’s first love.” I make a mental note to kill Cole Matthew Mackenzie.
“Yeah, when I was like six,” I say with a careless shrug as if it’s no big deal, but inside my heart recognizes its owner.
Zach frowns, but doesn’t say anything. He looks almost… crushed.
An older version of Brad walks up to the group and puts his hands on his hips. “Brad, why is Hannah here?”
“Because this is a party.” Brad rolls his eyes. “Don’t worry about Hannah. She knows your pee-pee is off-limits.” A chorus of laughter erupts from the group.
“Yeah, until she gets drunk and tries to grab my dick,” he retorts and rolls his eyes. “As if. Not even a bottle of liquid curiosity could get me near that cat.” Another round of laughter rings out as he jerks his head from side to side and pushes out his lips, pretending to pout. His eyes flick over to me and his eyebrows rise high above his sunglasses. “I’m Brice Manning.”
“Hi. I’m Jay.” I lift my hand with a small wave.
“Oh, I know who you are, gorgeous.”
“Zach,” Lindsay calls out as she walks up, holding a cup that looks more like a mini-keg with a handle, and a couple of girls trailing behind her. “We’re going down to the beach. You wanna come with?”
Zach flicks his gaze to Cole, then to Grayson briefly, and then to me before he says, “Sure.”
“I’ll meet you down there in a minute,” Cole says. “I gotta t
ake a piss first.”
Classy.
I’VE BEEN AT this party for close to an hour and so far, no one else has recognized me. If they have, they haven’t said anything. It’s not like I’m some big-time celebrity. I’ve caught a few curious glances here and there, but I think it’s because these people are all familiar with each other and I’m an outsider. I’m hyperaware of people around me holding up their cell phones, but as I study the groups of girls and some guys, I realize they’re too absorbed in each other, posing for selfies and posting them on social media.
Walk the Moon’s “Shut up and Dance” plays over the outdoor speakers as I watch Cole through the glass doors talking to a blonde girl inside. She’s pushed up against him and he looks annoyed. As if he can feel my eyes on him, Cole turns his head and I quickly look away. “So, Grayson’s hot,” I say before taking a sip of the frozen nonalcoholic drink that Brice whipped up for Lexi and me. The guys are down at the beach while Lexi and I hang out at the bar with Brice.
“I love Grayson to death because he’s Evan’s brother, but he’s a dog. A major manwhore.”
I laugh. I like Lexi, a lot. Not once since she realized who I was has she asked me anything personal about my life or my dad. It’s comforting and I feel like I can trust her, which isn’t easy considering the lifestyle I’ve lived. But with Lucas on tour and Evangeline traveling all over the world, I could use some new friends.
And I just know in my gut that Lexi would be a good friend.
“So, you and Zach?” Brice asks with a smirk, leaning his forearms on the bar.
“What about us?” I smirk back.
Brice chuckles. “Sweetie, I could smell the tension between you two.”
“Ewww!” I smack him on the arm and he laughs louder.
“It’s true,” Lexi confirms. “I saw the way he was looking at you. I think I might actually be pregnant.”
This girl is a trip.
I snort, inhaling the frozen drink and ending up in a coughing fit. Oh God, brain freeze. “Zach and I were close until things got complicated.” I pinch the top of my nose. This shit hurts.
“Girl, there is nothing complicated about Zach. He’s a good dude, laid-back and—”
“Unless you piss him off,” Lexi cuts in with a laugh.
I want to ask her what she means by that, but Brice keeps going. “He doesn’t whore around like Mackenzie—no offense.”
I wave him off. “None taken. Cole can be a handful, but he’s family and I love him by default. And I’ve seen Zach with two different girls since I got here.”
“Zach wasn’t hooking up with Piper in the bathroom. I was just messing with him,” Lexi defends. “I saw the expression on his face when he saw you. It’s the same one he had on his face last night when I showed him the magazine cover. I didn’t understand the look at first because I didn’t know he knew you, but now it makes sense. He’s got feelings for you.”
“What about Lindsay?”
“He’s not with Lindsay,” Lexi says, waving me off. “Trust me.”
A tall blonde girl walks around the bar and wraps her arms around Brice’s waist. With her is Piper, the girl from the bathroom, and another girl with long reddish hair, pale skin, and a bored look on her otherwise pretty face.
“This is my sister, Brooklyn,” Brice introduces and gestures to the other two girls. “This is Piper and Hannah.” Brice says Hannah’s name with a hint of disgust in his voice and I have to bite down on my bottom lip to stifle a laugh. “This is Jay.” Brice gestures to me. “She’s Cole Mackenzie’s cousin. She just moved here from California.”
Brooklyn smiles and I see a flash of recognition on her face before she says, “Hey,” while Piper and Hannah exchange a quick glance before Piper says, “we met earlier.”
“Where’s your little friend Reagan?” Lexi asks.
Brooklyn snorts. “Reagan knows you’re out here, Lexi. She’s not dumb enough to come anywhere near you after last night.”
“That text wasn’t even meant for Evan,” Hannah adds, rolling her eyes. “She’s just trying to make Zach jealous.”
Lexi and Brice shoot a glance my way while I sip my drink and keep my expression neutral.
“I don’t care,” Lexi says. “She shouldn’t even have Evan’s phone number in her phone. And she needs to get over herself. They broke up months ago and Zach doesn’t give a fuck about her.”
“Where’s Brad?” Hannah asks, moving the conversation along.
“Beach,” Lexi answers at the same time Brice gives a snarky reply of “Staying as far away from you as possible.”
Hannah rolls her eyes again and stalks off toward the beach.
“Let me go after her before she starts her shit with Brad,” Brooklyn sighs, before she turns to me and winks. “It’s nice to meet you, Jay.” Then she and Piper hurry after Hannah.
“What’s up with Hannah and Brad, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“She’s Brad’s ex,” Lexi informs me, twirling her finger beside her head, the universal gesture for crazy.
“She’s crazy all right,” Brice adds. “She crawled into my bed last week, grabbed my dick and said, ‘Let’s see how gay you really are.’”
My jaw drops and I blink in disbelief. “You’re gay?”
Brice winks. “I’m the rainbow sheep of the family.”
I burst out laughing and tap my temple. “My gaydar must be off today.”
“Can’t really blame the girl, Brice,” Lexi adds. “You’re a hot piece of ass.” She wiggles her eyebrows.
Brice purses his lips and waves a hand in front of him. “Don’t I know it.”
I laugh. “Who’s Reagan?”
“She’s Zach’s ex. He dumped her for being a whore,” Lexi explains.
I can’t help but wonder if Reagan was the girl who answered Zach’s phone that night.
“Were they together long?”
Lexi shrugs. “A few months. But she’d been after him since the party last summer.” I want to push for more information but I decide to leave it for now.
“And she was texting your boyfriend, Evan? Aren’t he and Zach friends?”
“Yep, and I confronted her ass last night. There may have been shoving and definitely some hair pulling.” A satisfied grin stretches across her face.
“Man, I wish I’d been here to see that.” Brice grins as well.
“HE LOOKS MISERABLE,” Brice says with a laugh, nodding to Zach who is looking in our direction. The three of us are now sitting on the beach, looking out at the water where Zach, Lindsay, Cole, Brad, and a bunch of other people are sprawled out between two oversized floats anchored about twenty feet from shore.
I’m a little ticked off at Cole because he pretty much ditched me for Zach and Brad and the rest of his football friends. If it weren’t for Brice and Lexi, I’d probably be sitting here on the beach by myself.
I snort a laugh. “Good.” Zach’s reaction to me being here wasn’t at all what I expected. Oh, he was surprised all right—it was written all over his face when he came out of the bathroom with Piper—but he was clearly not happy to see me. I’m not gonna lie; I’m disappointed and a little hurt. It’s only been a year since we’ve seen each other, but it feels like a lifetime ago. He’s obviously pissed at me. Probably for blocking his calls. But what did he expect? He had a girlfriend.
“I don’t get it,” Lexi says as she picks up a seashell and inspects it before tossing it back into the water. “Why is he still out there with them if he’s just gonna stare at you all day?”
I don’t get it either. I’m not his girl anymore. Clearly, he’s moved on. Lexi swears he’s not with Lindsay, but he hasn’t left her side all day.
“So, Jay,” Grayson says, dropping down in the sand beside me. He and Evan just finished playing a game of beach volleyball. Evan sits in the sand behind Lexi and pulls her to his chest. “How long are you here for?” he asks.
“I live here,” I reply. “Do you go to the academy, too?”
Grayson smiles. “No, I graduated in May. I go to the University.” He nods to the tattoo on my ribs. “What’s your tattoo say?”
I’m so lost in Grayson’s hotness that it takes a moment to sink in that he asked me a question. “Oh.” I lift my arm and look down at my tattoo. “It says, ‘Trust your gut. Follow your heart. And never, ever settle for less than you deserve.’” I don’t need to look at the tattoo to know what it says. I’ll never forget my father’s last words for as long as I live.
“What’s that from?” Lexi asks.
I give her a sad smile. “My dad.” Standing up and brushing the sand off my butt and legs, I say, “I need to check my phone. My mom’s probably blowing up my phone,” before walking over to my bag and pulling out my phone. Yep, I have eight missed calls. It’s nearly four o’clock already, so I shoot off a quick text telling her that I’m heading home. She replies immediately with OK. Then I text Bass asking him to pick me up, to which he replies, Be there in fifteen minutes.
Funny how he didn’t even ask me for an address.
“You leaving?” Grayson asks from behind me.
“Yeah, I think so.” I pull my cover-up from my bag and slip it over my head. “The sun is kicking my ass and I’m kind of tired.”
“Jay, are you leaving?” Lexi asks.
“Yeah. My, um….” Shit, what do I call Bass without sounding like an ostentatious asshole? “My ride will be here soon.” I yawn. “Sorry, I didn’t get much sleep last night.”
“Didn’t you come with Cole?” Evan asks.
I look out to the water just in time to see Cole with his head back, laughing. As irritated as I am with him, I don’t want to pull him away from his friends. “Yeah, but he’s having a good time and I already have a ride home.” Turning to Brice, I ask, “Do you mind if I grab a water before I go?”
“Of course not,” he says, holding out his arm. I like him. “Come on.”
I slip my bag over my shoulder and snake my arm around Brice’s, before turning back to Lexi, Evan, and Grayson. “Are you guys coming?”
Grayson shrugs. “Sure.”
