by SR Silcox
Jo fell into step beside her and said, “How’d you go?”
Tess shrugged. “Okay. I guess I’ll find out soon enough once the results are posted.”
Jo nodded. “Congratulations on the IT prize,” she said. “Professor Ryan was pleasantly surprised I hear.”
Tess slowed her pace and said, “How do you know I got it? It hasn’t been announced yet.”
Jo shrugged. “I have my ways.”
Tess shook her head. She knew she shouldn’t be surprised that Maddie’s bodyguard was checking up on her. “Has Maddie been asking you to keep tabs on me again?”
“Nope. Maddie doesn’t know about the IT prize, or about your intention to change to an Arts degree next year.”
“How did you…?” Tess stopped dead. “Why are you checking up on me if Maddie’s not asking you to do it?”
“I’m paid to look after Maddie’s best interests,” Jo said simply. “And technically, you doing well at university is in Maddie’s best interests.”
“Really?” Tess wasn’t sure what to make of that. She guessed she should take it as a compliment.
“You have no idea how much she worries about you when she’s away,” Jo said.
“Yeah well, I worry about her too you know, and you don’t see me asking you to check up on her.”
“I get paid to check up on her,” Jo said. Tess thought she detected a hint of a smile but she couldn’t be sure. She’d never seen Jo smile.
Tess didn’t say anything more and let Jo direct her to the rear car park that was kept exclusively for the teachers and academics. As they approached a white four wheel drive, the rear passengers’ side window wound down and Maddie leaned across, a pair of over-sized sunglasses shading her face. “Going my way?” she asked.
Tess opened the door and jumped in. She planted a kiss on Maddie’s lips and said, “I thought you weren’t here for a couple of hours yet?”
Maddie shrugged. “I know the boss. She let me off early. Want to get something to eat? Just the two of us?”
Tess looked across at Jo, who rolled her eyes as she got in and closed the drivers’ door. Maddie laughed and said, “Jo can wait outside.”
“For sure,” Tess said.
As Jo pulled out of the car park and into traffic, Maddie asked, “Did you hear the interview?”
“Five times,” Tess replied.
“What did you think?”
“It was good,” Tess said. Maddie reached over and put her hand on Tess’s leg. Tess took Maddie’s hand in hers. “So,” she said. “This is serious, huh?”
Maddie pulled her sunglasses down on her nose and looked at Tess. “I wouldn’t ditch a marketing meeting for a fling.”
Tess grinned.
“So, what do you want to eat?” Maddie asked.
“I could really go for a cream bun,” Tess said.
Maddie laughed. “A cream bun it is.”
Click here to start reading the next book in the series, After Summer
For two young women, the spark of summer love is only the beginning.
After several years apart, Riley Fisher and Brooks Doherty find themselves in close proximity; thrown together once again in the small town of Roper’s Beach in the wake of unfortunate circumstances. Unwittingly trapped in the small town after the tragic loss of Riley’s mother, and the turbulent falling out of Brooks’ family, the two find refuge in the long lost friendship they once shared. Before long, a troubling storm threatens to drag young love out to sea.
When the island’s pristine beach is damaged as a result of corporate greed, Brooks and Riley find their romance stuck between the town and the ambitions of industry. Can young love prevail against the powerful force that controls their fate? In this new young adult romance from SR Silcox, two young women must put everything on the line for love, justice, and something much bigger than themselves.
See what happens after summer ends and life begins.
Thank you for reading Crush, the first book in the Girls of Summer series. If you want more information about the series, access to exclusive giveaways and competitions, and to be the first to know about new books and stories, head over to srsilcox.com/newsletter and sign up.
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Acknowledgements
Many thanks to everyone who assisted with the creation of this book. To my cheerleaders and Alpha and Beta readers, Linda Bayfield, Lisa Quinn, Jess ‘The Constable’ Domrow, Kirstine Hand and Rachel ‘Saff’ Morgan, your constant encouragement has kept me going during long caffeine-filled nights of rewrites.
To Alison Bedford, who has to be the best English teacher in Australia (if not the world), thank-you for picking on my poor sentence structure and grammar early on and steering me in the right direction when I had questions on plot and character. Thank you also for pushing me to get the word count up. Crush wouldn’t be the same book without your input. Every writer needs an English teacher in their team.
To my wife, Teresa Brecknell, for putting up with me reeling off random snippets of dialogue and scenes at dinner, and for laughing and crying in all the right places. I love you endlessly.
Finally, to my family and my cousins, who gave me the most wonderful childhood anyone could have imagined. Our real-life adventures on the farm are what fuel my fictional adventures.
