The Summer Before Forever

by Melissa Chambers

  I start to walk that way, just as the woman places a bill in my hand. I thank her and head toward Chloe.

  On my way, I spot Jenna building a sandcastle with two young girls who look like they just won backstage passes to hang with Taylor Swift.

  As I approach Chloe, the music spills from her earbuds. She must be playing it loud. Her lips move as she sings to the music, and as a heavy guitar riff takes over the song, she grins, and then creases her brow, pursing her lips as she feels the solo. It’d almost be a shame to disturb her in this moment…almost.

  I kneel down next to her and tug the earbud out of her ear.

  She sits straight up. “Shit!” She focuses on me, and her face relaxes into a smile. “That was my favorite part.”

  “I could tell. You were seriously into that, whatever it was.”

  “My Goodness,” she says.

  I furrow my brow. “Wow. I really must have startled you if you’re talking like my grandma.”

  She relaxes back on her elbows. “No, that’s the name of the band.” She puts her hand to the other earbud in her ear and presses it. “Wait, now this is my favorite part.” She hands me the other earbud, and I put it in my ear, which pulls me closer to her. She closes her eyes while a bridge builds. She clenches her fist as an epic buildup releases into chorus. There’s something erotic as hell about watching this music course through her, evoking such a visceral reaction in her.

  When the chorus trails off, she hits pause on her phone, and then meets my gaze. “Nothing? Really?”

  “Cool song,” I say.

  She shakes her head at me, her eyebrows knitted together in confusion. “I don’t know if I’ll ever understand this whole no-music thing of yours.”

  “Back off, stalker.” I turn to find Jenna headed our way brushing sand off the bottoms of a hot pink string bikini. “You’ve been M.I.A. all week. Is this what you’ve been doing? Stalking hot girls on the beach?” she asks.

  I stand. “Pretty much.”

  She nods at my shirt and shorts. “What’s with the outfit? Where are your swim trunks?”

  “I’m working.”

  She laughs. “Clearly. What do you do? Cabana boy?”

  I point to the top of the dunes. “I’m a tram driver for the resort.”

  She raises her eyebrows and puts a hand on her hip. “You mean we don’t have to lug all this shit back to the house on foot?” She snaps. “Chlo-Jo, get up. Let’s let He-Man here carry our junk for us. You ready?”

  Chloe nods and wraps the cords around her phone.

  As I gather their chairs I think about how jarring it must be for Chloe to have a tornado of a friend like Jenna.

  I load their stuff on top of the tram, and Jenna jumps in shotgun. “So where’s a good karaoke bar?” she asks.

  “For tonight?” I ask.

  “No, next Thursday. Yes, tonight.”

  I look at Chloe in the rearview. “Couldn’t you have been a little more selective in your choice of companion this summer?”

  Chloe stares off at the golf course we’re passing. “All the other reality show stars were busy.”

  “Oh, yeah. That’s right. I forgot. Jenna’s a star. Chloe, grab the red carpet from the back there.”

  Jenna rolls her eyes, but no doubt loves every second of the attention.

  “Do you sing, little sis?” I ask, determined to keep this relationship platonic, no matter what my dick wants.

  Chloe shakes her head fiercely.

  “She’s going to tonight,” Jenna says.

  “I can’t miss that,” I say.

  “Oh, yes you can,” Chloe says.

  I give her a smile.

  “Good, you can drive us,” Jenna says.

  Chloe gives her a glare, and the two of them have a stare-down.

  Jenna eventually lays her head back and closes her eyes. We ride in silence for a while. I come to a stop when I see a lady and a little girl on the side of the road waiting to cross the street. I motion them across, and the lady gives a wave.

  “How chivalrous,” Chloe says.

  “All in a day’s work,” I say.

  “Have you been doing this long?” Chloe asks.

  “This is my second summer. Beats the hell out of fast food.” And I don’t have to deal with a register and making change, but I don’t tell her that.

  She looks at the Your Tip Is Not Necessary sign.

  “Does anyone tip you?”

  “Sometimes,” I say.

  “Not this time,” Jenna pipes in.

  “That’s okay. I know where you sleep and where you leave your purse,” I say.

  “And I know where you keep your shampoo bottle,” Jenna says.

  I cut my eyes at her.

  “How much do you earn in tips a day?” Jenna asks.

  I don’t have a clue, so I just shrug.

  I pull up in front of the house and unload their chairs from the top.

  “Tell my mom not to hold dinner,” I say. “I’m working till seven.”

  “What time are we leaving for karaoke?” Jenna asks.

  “About eight. Be ready.” I hold up a hand in a wave and take off before Jenna can retort.

  I head around the corner toward the village and pull over in a parking space. I take my phone and set an alarm for seven thirty so I’ll be sure to get in the shower by then. Then I pull up a new text message to Pete.

  Hey man, sorry, I’ve got to bail on you dudes tonight. Another time.

  He dings me back right away.

  You sure? Monica’s going to be there. She’s hot, dude. Plus, this party’s supposed to be raw.

  I roll my eyes and shake my head at myself. I would rather be with Chloe at a lame karaoke bar than at a kegger with all my friends. I’m so screwed.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chloe

  Jenna points at the back of the cart, now in the distance. “That boy has serious issues.”

  “You like him,” I tease. I have no idea whether she does or not. I would have bet money on the fact that she liked those two guys at the beach by the way she was acting—right up until the point where she dismissed them like yesterday’s news.

  She waves me off, uninterested. I can’t imagine why. Typically, it doesn’t take much to get her interested in a hot guy. And no doubt, Landon’s hot.

  “Sorry,” I say. “I forgot about you and Mason.”

  She heads up the stairs to the house. “I broke it off with him.”

  I grab her arm. “Seriously?”

  She gives me an indignant look. “Of course I did.” She leans in toward me. “His friend tried to rape you. You can’t seriously think I was going to stay with him after that.”

  “Really?” I ask, the extent to Jenna’s loyalty surprising me for the umpteenth time.

  She stops, hand on the doorknob. “This is just insulting. I’m not going to date someone you don’t want to hear about or be around, even if by association.”

  I hold back a tear. “Thank you.”

  She rolls her eyes. “Please. He was a bad kisser anyway.” She comes at me with huge eyes, her tongue running wild all over the place. I giggle as I step back from her, and she opens the door to the house.

  The cool air of the house blows over me like a pool of water in the desert. I breathe in the dehumidified air and fling off my wet, sandy flip flops. Even though we showered off our feet, the sand never actually leaves your body. I’m coming to realize this.

  “How was the beach, girls?”

  I turn to find Cynthia at the kitchen table chopping cucumber into a large salad bowl.

  “Good,” I say. “Landon brought us home. He said not to wait on him for supper.”

  She lets out an irritated sigh and shoots me a glower. “I don’t like him missing family dinner.”
>
  For a moment I wonder if she is actually blaming me for his working late.

  “It will be ready around six if you girls want to get cleaned up.”

  We tramp up the stairs, and Jenna collapses onto her bed, sand and all.

  “Do you want the shower?” I ask.

  “Go ahead.” She pulls out her phone and starts flipping.

  I don’t know that a shower has ever felt as good as this. The grit and grime from the beach washes away, and I replace it with a coconut body wash. I’m finishing up with my hair when I focus on Landon’s guy body wash. I pick it up and give it a whiff. It smells like boyfriend—not that I’ve ever had one, but what I would deem that smell if it could be nailed down.

  I’m careful to put the bottle back exactly where I found it and turn off the water. I’m drying off when I hear Jenna talking on the phone in our room. I wrap up and open the door.

  “Yes, I am.” She rolls her eyes at me. “Yes, fifty. Yes, I’m reapplying. Let me talk to Dad, then I need to get in the shower.”

  Her face brightens. “Hey, Daddy.” She collapses back on the bed and flattens her feet on the wall beside her. “Yes, we’re having a blast. We went to the beach today.” She listens for a moment. “Yeah, Chloe’s new stepbrother is taking us to do karaoke tonight. I’m making her sing.” She turns her head straight back so she’s looking at me upside-down. “What song are you going to sing?”

  I shrug.

  “She doesn’t know. I’ll find something for her.”

  The conversation goes on for at least ten more minutes while Jenna and her dad discuss the most mundane details of not only her day, but of his day, apparently. They talk about what they each ate for lunch. Jenna tells him about meeting the boys from Memphis. She listens intently as he tells her something she seems to find interesting judging by her facial expressions.

  It’s the most foreign scene to me. I’ve never had anything resembling a conversation like this with my father. I would never dream of telling my dad about meeting those boys. That would be so weird. I don’t want him thinking about me with boys. I’m not sure why. It’s not like he doesn’t know I’m attracted to boys. But I don’t need him thinking about it.

  Jenna gets in the shower, and I head downstairs to see if I can help with dinner. I close the door to our bedroom behind me as my dad makes his way up the hallway from his bedroom.

  “Hey sweetie, I’m sorry but I’m going to have to cancel lunch tomorrow. I’ve got a lunch meeting at a jobsite. We’ll try for next week, okay?”

  He pats me on the shoulder and heads to the workout room at the other end of the hallway across from Landon’s room.

  My body deflates. I have no idea why I was so jazzed up for that lunch. It’s not like the two of us have anything to say to one another. Not like Jenna and her dad. But something about knowing he wanted to hang out with me gave me some ridiculous version of legitimacy.

  In the kitchen, Cynthia stands at the stove over a large pan of chicken breasts.

  “Feel better?” she asks.

  I cock my head to the side, before I realize she’s talking about my having taken a shower. I shake off the confusion. “Much. What can I do?”

  “Grab the loaf of French bread from that counter over there and cut indentions in it, then butter each one. Is Jenna in the shower?”

  “Mmm-hmm.”

  “Did you see your dad?”

  “Yeah.”

  “He feels terrible about canceling lunch.”

  I don’t respond. I honestly don’t know how to. It’s still strange getting used to this arrangement. I’m accustomed to my mother comforting me over my dad’s lack of interest in me, not virtual strangers.

  I grab a knife and begin to slice the bread halfway to the bottom to create breakable pieces.

  She turns around and rests against the countertop. “Listen, Chloe, I know we’re just getting to know one another here, but I hope you know I’m really looking forward to growing our friendship.”

  Oh, the awkward. She’s sweet, but she has no idea how weird her words are for me.

  “Thanks,” is all I can come up with.

  “Good,” she says with a hint of hurt in her voice and turns back to her chicken.

  I look heavenward and cringe. “Me, too.”

  She turns back around with big, hopeful eyes. “Really?”

  I smile and nod. “Yeah, totally.”

  She takes my hand. “Oh, I’m so glad to hear you say that. I’ve been so nervous about meeting you.” She covers a hand over her heart. “I hope you know I’m always here for you.”

  I nod again with a close-mouthed smile.

  She gauges me, and I can tell her wheels are turning up top. “I’d be happy to listen, say, if there was anything you couldn’t tell your mother or father.” She lifts an eyebrow encouragingly.

  I turn quickly back toward my bread, wondering what she knows. She can’t know everything, but she obviously knows something happened.

  When my mom picked me up from the boat slip at eleven o’clock at night, of course she was full of questions. She’d always told me if I ever needed her to come get me, she’d do so with no questions asked. I was all too quick to throw those words back at her, rendering her miserably speechless. But she’s not stupid.

  I’m pretty sure she told my dad. That’s probably why he canceled lunch. He has no freaking idea what to say to me. He probably put Cynthia up to this conversation. Coward.

  I realize there is pain in my right hand, and I look down to find that it’s white from gripping the knife so hard. I drop it on the pan with the French bread.

  I take a few steps backward. “I’m…going for a walk.”

  I head toward the door, drumming up enough sense to slip on my sandy flip-flops. “Be back at six for dinner!”

  I run. I have no idea where I’m running to, but I just want as far away from that house as my legs will take me. I hate this…all of this. I want to go back to when I was ten and had a mom and a dad, and moms with boyfriends and dads with fiancées didn’t exist, and there were no such things as crushes and best friends who tried to make you do karaoke, and first kisses held zero importance on the list of life.

  Landon

  Chloe sits on a bench staring trance-like through a tree across the street. I can only imagine what might have put her like this.

  I pull up beside her, and she looks at me with surprise.

  “Need a ride?” I ask.

  “I’m okay,” she says.

  I give her a minute, and then turn off the engine. “What’s going on?”

  She glances around like she’s just realizing her surroundings. She shakes her head and finally drops it in defeat.

  I want to kill this guy for doing this to her. But she doesn’t need anger right now.

  “Come on and ride with me. Keep me company for the rest of my shift.”

  She glances in the direction of the house. “I’m supposed to be at dinner at six. Do you know what time it is?”

  I pull out my phone. “Five forty-five. I’m off at six.”

  “I thought you weren’t off until seven.”

  “Family dinners aren’t really my thing.” I don’t need my mom judging my every look at this girl I’m clearly into, and then pushing more of her matchmaker agenda on me.

  Chloe climbs on and gets in the seat behind me. I want to encourage her to sit beside me, but she looks like she needs a little distance right now, and I’m fine to give her that.

  A handful of people flag me down and climb on with us. I check my rearview as I head toward the beach and find her resting her head backward, her eyes closed. I deliver people where they need to go. As I’m dropping off the last passenger, my phone alarm sounds, letting me know my shift is over. I’d drive around until dark if I didn’t set an alarm. I have no concept of block
s of time.

  I park the golf cart in its final resting place and run inside the office to turn in the key. She waits for me, standing by the front of the tram.

  “You want to go eat?” I ask her.

  “I probably shouldn’t leave Jenna home alone with them.”

  I raise an eyebrow. “Have you ever known Jenna to be uncomfortable in any situation?”

  She thinks about it a second. “No, not really.”

  “I think she’ll manage.”

  She pulls out her phone and shoots off a text. As she’s waiting for a response, she glances up at me and gives a little smile. I want to pull her into my chest and tell her everything’s going to be fine. I want to tell her I’ll go back to her hometown and kill this guy if I need to…at least threaten him within an inch of his life. Not that it would have a lasting effect on an asshole like that one, but it would damn sure make me feel better.

  Her phone vibrates and she reads the text. “I’m in the clear, but she’s going to make me pay later.”

  “That one’s all talk, isn’t she?”

  She tries for a grin but it falls short.

  We head past the tennis courts toward the village.

  She glances around at the restaurants, shops, and the manicured lawn of the sports area. “I didn’t know this was here.”

  “You want to play something?” I ask.

  She squints at me. “I’m the reigning sixth grade Cliff Ridge Elementary tetherball champion.”

  “I know a challenge when I hear it.”

  We head to the tetherball post, and I knock the ball her way fairly easy. She smashes it back at me, taking me by surprise.

  I lift my eyebrows. “It’s gonna be like that, huh?”

  She gives me a nonchalant shrug, but a grin creeps across her face.

  I chuck the ball at her with a little more power behind it. She smacks it back at me, and I duck as it whizzes past my head.

  “Damn!” I shout.

  “Quit playing like a wuss and put some muscle into it, big-time collegiate wrestler.”