by Sally Henson
Roan spoke up. “This is Madi. Tommie’s younger sister. She’s a freshman.”
“It’s nice to have you lovely ladies. Please come on in.” Mr. Lowe stepped back to allow us in the house.
I wanted Roan to go first, but he ushered Madi and me in. My stomach clenched as soon as I stepped inside. What was I doing? This was such a mistake. Did I think I could just dive into the shark-infested waters of James Lowe and teenaged gossip?
Madi nudged me further into the house, whispering, “Keep going so he can shut the door.”
I heard Mr. Lowe ask Roan in a low voice, “Both your dates?”
Roan chuckled, but Shawn Nelson came speeding toward us, and I didn’t hear what else they said.
“My man,” Shawn said, rushing Roan for a bro hug. Shawn was hyper tonight. I imagined they all were after such a big win.
Roan didn’t get ruffled too much, but he was talkative with Madi on the way over.
“Ladies,” Shawn said, checking me and then Madi out. He whistled and started to say something, but Mr. Lowe cut him off.
“Mr. Nelson,” Mr. Lowe said in a reprimanding tone. “That is not how you behave toward a lady.”
I stifled a scoff, wondering if he thought himself exempt.
Shawn cleared his throat. “Yes, sir.” He bowed his head, placing a hand over his heart. “Forgive me. Your beauty stunned me.”
Madi giggled.
“That’s better,” Mr. Lowe said with a chuckle. “Roan, Shawn, show our guests outside, will you?”
Oh, my gosh. James acted more like his dad. Although, James wasn’t nearly as formal, he could be arrogant too. But wow, he was more handsome than his dad. Better built too. His dad may have been a lady's man in his day though.
Roan led us through the house to the living room French doors. It was similar to Logan’s house with the colors and beachy style, but more formal.
Summer and Gabe were standing at a wall of windows. They were so close as they could have been mistaken for conjoined twins. The way Gabe focused on her, held her close, was what I craved from Roan. She didn’t even notice when I waved.
After the door was closed and all four of us were outside, Shawn turned to us. “Sorry if I embarrassed you or anything. Mr. Lowe is…”
“Different,” Roan finished. He touched my upper arm, letting his hand slide down before he shoved it in his pocket. “Want some food?” he asked.
I wasn’t hungry but nodded and answered, “Sure.”
“Madi?” Shawn asked.
Her smile brightened. “Yes, please. Whatever is fine.”
Roan and Shawn headed toward the outdoor kitchen.
I scanned the backyard as the salty ocean breeze blew the strands of my hair. With my hair down, it made me feel ten degrees warmer. “It’s so hot,” I mumbled to Madi. “I should have put my hair in a ponytail.”
“Nuh-uh,” she barked under her breath. “No ponytail. You look good with your hair down.”
I pursed my lips. It wasn’t the heat that made me cranky. I sighed and said, “Not sure I belong here.”
She hooked my arm in hers and started across the lawn. “Don’t be silly. Can you believe this place? It’s gorgeous. And this backyard is huge compared to ours. Could you imagine having the beach right behind our house?” She sighed and opened the gate for us to walk through from the yard to the sand. “We could run every day right here.”
I snickered, imagining it. “Yeah, it would be nice.”
“Look,” she said. “Tonight is going to be a good night. Relax for once. Remember how much fun you used to have doing stuff like this? You’d come home, and I begged you to tell me everything.”
I gave her a pointed look. “Yeah, then you’d start a fight.”
She shrugged. “I was jealous.”
“It’s not as fun as it used to be,” I said as I put us in motion toward the water. Evan, Carter, and another baseball player passed us going back toward the house. They all had shorts and a Lion’s baseball shirt on. I looked down at my dress. “Are we overdressed or what?”
“Uh, no,” she said quickly. “Roan dressed nice. Did you see what Mr. Lowe was wearing?”
I shrugged. “A white shirt.”
“Not just a white shirt. An Armani white shirt. And the cut of his shorts…I’m sure they were Dolce and Gabbana.”
My eyebrows rose on my forehead as I looked at her. “You know Armani and Dolce and Gabbana when you see it?”
“Don’t make fun. I like fashion.” Her grin spread across her face as she dipped her head.
She was good at picking clothes out for me, that was for sure. “So, Shawn Nelson?”
“Yeah,” she giggled. “It’s new. He’s sweet. And funny.” She let out a little sigh.
“Did you just sigh?” I teased, squeezing her arm to my side.
“Shut up,” she groaned, leaning into me with a smile that said she’d been caught. “Did you see how heads turned when we walked through the house and yard?”
“No, but that always happens when you’re around,” I said. “They probably feel sorry for you that you have a jock for a sister.” My words came out short and snippy. It wasn’t a revelation Madison was prettier than me. I’d always known that. It was easier to deal with when she wasn’t trying to compete with me though. But I was the one failing at the moment.
She steeled her eyes. A growl rumbled in her throat before she said, “You’re so stupid sometimes.” She turned and fled toward the house.
My stomach sunk. Great. I circled my arms around my middle. Was this how the night was going to be? I squeezed my eyes shut and listened to the waves rushing the shore. Jealous much, Tommie?
She was right. I was on track to ruin the night. Roan asked me to come, and I needed to stop being afraid. If he didn’t understand what I meant about not wanting to be one of the guys, I would show him. Even if there was a risk of a prom kiss repeat.
The sun warmed my back as I listened to the waves rolling in. The scents of charcoal and grilled meat wafted through the air. It was late for supper, but I supposed people who lived in the big houses on the beach worked long hours to afford such places.
My skin prickled as if someone was watching me. A hint of a familiar sweet cologne swirled around my nose. I opened my eyes to turn around and bumped into a hard body. “Oh!” I jumped. It startled me to see James at my side.
I took a step back. My eyes darted away from him to the sand, and I apologized, “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t know you were there.”
He chuckled. His gritty voice rang out, “It’s okay.” He handed me a clear plastic cup full of ice and a dark liquid. “I thought you might like some sweet tea.”
I glanced at his blue eyes. The heat on my face amplified. I took the glass. “Thank you.” He brought me a drink? Did Roan send James with it? My head was full of questions and no answers.
I took a sip, sneaking an inconspicuous look at James. He wore a custom Sweet Water Lions baseball jersey. Much nicer than the school’s baseball uniform. His shorts seemed fancy like his dad’s.
“My parents insisted on having this party. I preferred a bonfire down at the beach. No parents.” He grumbled the last part and took a drink of his own cup.
My heart had inched itself up to the base of my throat. One by one, my muscles tensed from my head to my toes. Even though I toyed with the idea of asking him to try kissing me again, I never would have had the guts to do it. I didn’t want to face James again.
All I could think about was prom and that stupid kiss and running away from him on the dance floor. How I never apologized for doing that. I blurted out, “I’m sorry.”
He looked down at me, eyebrows scrunched together. “It’s not your fault they wouldn’t let me do the bonfire.”
I shook my head and swallowed down my nerves. “I mean,” I turned my gaze to the ice in my glass, “about prom. That was so humiliating.”
“Yeah.” He chuckled. “Speaking of that, here.” He handed me the official p
rom photo we had taken at the dance.
My stomach automatically sunk, thinking about that night. I’d forgotten all about the photo booth setup with the photographer. Any fun we had was overshadowed by my fish-lips plastered all over the screen. My face heated as the image burned my brain.
“Why did you leave without saying anything?” he asked. “I’ve been wanting to talk to you about it, but you’re never alone.”
“Tommie?” Roan’s voice called out from behind us.
James mumbled, “See. Never alone.”
Thank god Roan showed up. I turned away from James and gave Roan a look that said he got there in the nick of time.
“Roan,” James said. The inflection came across as if he didn’t want him to be there.
Roan carried a cup and a plate of food. His warm amber eyes questioned me. When he was close enough, he handed over the plate, and stood on the other side of me.
“I already brought her a drink,” James said.
“Yeah?” Roan asked, looking between us. He took a stuffed mushroom off the plate I was holding and popped it in his mouth.
I shuffled my feet so close to Roan, my arm pressed against his. We stood there without talking. My stomach tightened, and then my chest tightened, and the thought of eating any of the fancy food on the plate made me nauseous. What the heck was going on?
“James. Roan,” Mr. Lowe called out.
I kept my eyes focused on the ocean, willing James to leave and Roan to stay.
“Dad probably has some speech he wants to give,” James said with a huff. “We should go.”
I felt him brush my elbow, and I stiffened.
Roan chugged the contents of his cup. They both stood still as if each was waiting for the other to make a move.
The sunlight filtered in rays that streamed across the water. I leaned a little closer to Roan and breathed in deeply, hoping to catch a whiff of his sweet, musky scent. Just a hint. My fingers brushed his in hopes he would lace ours together, but he didn’t move.
Mr. Lowe called again. James groaned and turned, waiting for us to join him in the short trek back.
“Let’s go,” Roan said softly. And we turned to follow James.
James opened the gate to their backyard and motioned for me to go ahead.
I made an excuse to check on Madi to escape the weirdness that was going on. What was James’ deal? Was he setting me up for something?
26
I stood next to Madi along the wall of windows that faced the beach in James Lowe’s house. The sky across the ocean was a deep blue as the sun began to set. All the baseball players gathered around the backyard listening to toasts from Mr. Lowe and the coaches.
I glanced at my sister. We both held plates with weird food on it. Slimy stuffed mushrooms, toasted bread with green relish-looking stuff on top, and tiny quiches. The quiche didn’t look so bad. She took a bite of one. A soft giggle bubbled out of her as she covered her mouth and chewed. Her long golden hair was perfect as usual. The soft smile on her lips twitched before she glanced down and refocused on someone in the crowd.
I scanned the guys to see who she might be looking at. Roan, James, Shawn, the pitcher, and Davis the shortstop took turns looking our direction. Ugh, London was there with Tommy Styles, the jerks who loved to make fun of me. They wouldn’t dare do anything at James’ party with Roan here. Not after Roan’s threat in the hallway at school.
My stomach hadn’t stopped aching since my snippy comments to my sister on the beach. She was probably trying to be nice, but it was just a lie. The guys didn’t turn their heads to watch me when we walked through. They didn’t do things like that for me. They did it for Madi.
I got jealous of her and didn’t even realize it.
“Hey,” I said, waiting for her to look at me.
Her eyes flitted to mine. Looking at her was not like looking in a mirror. Her eyebrows arched, but no words escaped.
“I’m sorry about earlier. I didn’t mean to be such a…rip.”
One corner of her mouth lifted before she shrugged. “You were a rip. It’s frustrating that you think like that about yourself.”
“You’re my sister. You’re biased.” I waved it off. “Anyway, I’m sorry.”
She nodded toward a seating area near the grass. “Let’s go sit.”
The sun was setting, casting dark shadows onto the backyard from the house. Lanterns and lighting scattered throughout the seating area and walkways flickered on as we weaved through people.
Mr. Lowe announced a special highlights video in the media room. The coaches and most of the players filtered inside, including Roan. An old Lions baseball game played on the television in the outdoor living room near the house. A TV mounted outside by my patio would be nice. I tucked that in the back of my mind to drop a few hints to Mom about getting one. Probably wouldn’t happen soon since the living room was a wreck.
When we made it to the sitting area, the game playing on the TV was replaced by a blue screen. I ignored it and sat down in an empty chair next to Madi. This fancy food was gross. I only carried my plate around because I didn’t have anywhere to put the photo. I sat the plate on the table, making sure the picture was underneath.
“This place is beautiful,” Madi said. “This must be like an outdoor kitchen and dining.”
The grill was built into the bar along with a griddle and refrigerator. “Yeah, it’s really nice.” I knew James’ family had money, but I didn’t realize how much. I scanned the backyard, taking everything in.
Some of the players came back outside. I caught sight of Shawn heading our way. A tinge of jealousy clenched my chest. He was the star pitcher, but he came over to sit with Madi. They weren’t even dating yet. Madi didn’t have problems talking to guys.
Not long ago, talking to boys wasn’t a problem for me. If we talked baseball, or any kind of sport, I could go all night long. But if I was attracted to them, I clammed up. At least my senior year, anyway. And especially after being humiliated at prom. Now I felt like a pariah.
My phone buzzed. I pulled it from the small pocket of my dress and ducked my head to see who was calling. Dad. My chest tightened.
I looked up at Madi and interrupted her conversation. “Dad’s calling.”
Her eyebrows rose.
We both stood at the same time and I answered, “Hello?”
“Hey, Tommie girl,” he said. “How’s it going?”
Madi stepped closer so we were inches apart. Worry haunted her expression.
“Is everything okay? Are you okay?” I asked. Dad rarely called out of the blue. He had been injured before, and that played at the forefront of my mind.
“I’m fine,” he said. “Don’t worry about me.”
I closed my eyes and let out my breath. The tightness in my chest released. “He’s fine,” I whispered to Madi.
“Hi, Daddy,” Madi said.
“Hi, kiddo.”
“Hold on, Dad. We’re going somewhere quiet so we can hear you.” I nodded to the darkened corner of the yard that looked to be empty and quiet enough for us both to hear him.
Madi looped her arm around mine as we hurried our pace.
“Where are you? It better not be a party,” he warned with a playful tone.
“It’s parent-approved,” I promised as we reached the quiet area. I tapped the speaker button. “Can you hear us okay? Is there too much noise?”
“Ah, I can hear the ocean. I miss that,” he said.
“What’s going on, Dad?” Madi asked. A light from the back of the house cast a soft glow on her smooth cheek. Worry held her expression.
“I have a new unit coming in next week. I’m sorry, Tommie. It doesn’t look like I’ll make it home for your graduation.”
My eyelids fell closed, and everything from my heart to my stomach seemed to follow suit. Tears instantly stung my eyes.
Madi’s hand touched my forearm. She asked, “What about the week after that?”
“Not with a new unit,”
he said. His voice wavered a bit. “Maybe at the end of summer. I really miss you, but there’s nothing I can do to change the situation.”
I swallowed and tried not to breathe, hoping that would keep the tears in place. “It’s okay,” I muttered. “I know it’s not your fault.”
The Marines was all Dad had ever done since he graduated from high school. He loved it. Sometimes it felt like he loved it more than me. It took all of his time. Time he could have spent at home on the weekends or evenings. Even if he weren’t deployed, he would be gone a couple weekends a month.
“Tommie girl, I wanted to be there. I’ll make it up to you.” His voice was soft and pleading and how could I get off the phone without him knowing I was about to cry?
Madi pulled me into a hug.
After I said nothing, he added, “Okay?”
Whooping and laughter erupted from the outdoor television area where we had been sitting.
I cleared my throat to speak, but Madi’s gasp stopped me.
She pulled her arms away. I opened my eyes and saw her hand covering her mouth. “Don’t look,” she whispered.
“Tommie? Madison? Are you still there?” Dad asked.
I followed Madi’s line of sight. People gathered around the TV by the seating areas. A few people pointed at the television, snickering. Some glanced back at us. Two bodies blocked the screen.
“Yeah, I’m here,” I said as I stepped back to view what was so funny. “It’s o—” I caught a glimpse of the TV screen and my words disappeared. The official prom photo of James and me was side by side with the one of me swallowing James’ lips like a guppy fish.
My gut twisted. The gelato curdled in my stomach, which threatened to empty its contents on the lawn. I swallowed it down. “It’s okay, Dad. I’ve got to go. Bye.”
I hung up just as London slithered out from the small crowd of people. She shot me a smirk before her mouth formed an O and she did a Betty Boop pose with her finger poking her cheek and her butt sticking out. I had to get out of there.
Summer came into view, heading my direction while Gabe split toward the TV. “Tommie,” Summer said.
