Summer Breeze Kisses

by Addison Moore

Marlin ticks his head back, amused by my actions. “You’ve changed.” He gives a little wink. “It’s as if you’re suddenly happy or something.”

  My mouth opens as I glance toward the poolroom. “I am.” I pull my sister into the seat next to me, and she hesitates before falling hard on her bottom. “So what’s new with you? Rush here is being extra secretive.”

  Serena looks to Rush and snarls at him. My heart breaks seeing the action because I know Serena is simply modeling the behavior she’s seen me do a thousand times. Maybe it’s a good thing I’m finally happy. I’m hoping to model that behavior for Serena, too. The last person I want her turning into is me. Heck, I don’t even want to be me anymore.

  “Nothing’s new,” she grits it through her teeth at her cousin, and every alarm in me starts to go off. “I’m fine.”

  Serena looks anything but fine. In fact, I’ve never seen her dressed in a T-shirt that reads Black Bear Saloon, and she rarely wears her hair in a ponytail. It’s a style I’m not used to seeing on her, and come to think of it, that all too familiar notepad she’s accessorizing with seems a bit suspicious.

  “Serena?” My throat grows parched because for once I hope I’m wrong. “Why are you doing your best impersonation of a waitress at the Black Bear?”

  Before she can open her mouth, Sunday shows up and gasps. “My God! You told them you’re a waitress?”

  “Waitress?” Marlin ticks his head back. “Since when?”

  Serena gives a weak shrug my way. “Since the beginning of the semester?”

  I take in a breath that never seems to end. “Serena Maxfield! You are not even allowed in this bar, let alone allowed to wear a T-shirt of theirs with pride—let alone find employment in this establishment!” The sentence strums from me so fast it sounds like one long word.

  “Why not?” The veins in my sister’s neck distend. “I know for a fact you’re working as a waitress at The Sloppy Pelican! If it’s good enough for you, it’s good enough for me!”

  I take in another quick breath.

  Both Marlin and Rush study me with curiosity before my brother leans in, his badge shining in the light as if its sole purpose were to sweat the truth out of me. And it’s working.

  “Why are you waiting tables?” Marlin shakes his head at me, truly confounded by the idea.

  “Because I lost my job. It’s a long story.”

  Rush grunts as if I were just sucker punched in front of them. “Dude, did you get fired from your old job?”

  “Of course, she didn’t get fired,” Sunday is quick to defend me. Sunday is forever believing the best in everybody. As much as I admire it, I also find it her biggest fault.

  “I got fired.” I wince her way. I’ve never been one to lie to anyone at this table. Anyone in general.

  The table erupts into a cluster of chaotic conversation, accusations and all around incomprehensible melee until Serena finally stands and shouts, “I’m a waitress at the Black Bear! Get over it!” She looks over at Sunday and shrugs as if unsure of what comes next. “And I dropped out of Barnes.”

  The air around us stills as the sounds in the bar all warp together into one slow demonic burp.

  “What?” Marlin and I cry out in unison.

  “Relax.” She flops back in her seat, and that tiny tennis skirt those perverts who run this place make her don flies up, exposing her underwear. “I transferred to Briggs.” Serena ducks behind a menu.

  “You did not!” I pluck the menu fort away and toss it onto the next table, and a group of girls break out into an obnoxious giggle. I loathe the Black Bear’s underage populace with a vengeance right now. “You agreed with me that boys were nothing more than a distraction, remember? Barnes is a reputable school. It’s practically an Ivy!” I scream.

  “Well, it’s not an Ivy!” Serena screams back. “And I happen to like boys—a lot.”

  Marlin groans as he sinks in his seat. “And the two of you knew?” He looks to Sunday and Rush, and they both remain silent in their guilt. “Why did it take you two months to fill us in on this non-news?”

  “Non-news?” I kick my brother from under the table. “We’re on the same page, remember? Barnes equals no boys equals safe and happy Serena!”

  Sunday grunts, “Please. You tried that on me, and I wouldn’t have it. I’m shocked she went along with it for as long as she did.”

  Marlin shakes his head at me. “It didn’t work for you, did it?”

  Marlin knows all too well what went down between Axel and me. He was sort of a supporting role in our not-so great demise.

  I make a face over at him before turning to my sister, my younger doppelganger whose eyes are filled with tears.

  Serena spears me with her rage. “I was so afraid of disappointing you I had to go. No sooner did I do the campus tour than I realized it was a huge mistake. I can get a great education at Whitney Briggs, too, you know. Plus, I won’t run the risk of having five thousand cycle sisters. Rumor has it, the PMS alone in that place was enough to make you crave the inside of an insane asylum.”

  I close my eyes a moment. “Okay, so you got me there.” My entire person sags at the thought of my baby sister subjected to drunks and frat boys. “They might have been a run on tampons around the twelfth of every month, but I’m neither confirming nor denying the fact. Barnes wasn’t that bad.” Sunday and Serena share a laugh in contrast to Marlin’s and Rush’s groan. “Are you sure this is what you want?” I glance around, and to my surprise the Black Bear looks mostly harmless in nature.

  “Yes, it’s what I want. It’s better than bookstore detail, and the tips are wild. You would never believe how much I’m hauling!”

  “I sort of would. The tips at The Pelican aren’t that bad either.” So much so that I haven’t bothered to pursue the mortgage assistance. And I’ve taken a charge under my roof to boot.

  “So are you okay with it?” Serena nods as if coaxing me to say yes. That conversation we had a few months back comes rushing back to me. Serena told me she was a waitress at the Black Bear, and I thought she was kidding. I insisted that she was kidding.

  Shep struts by along with a younger crowd—more of Teagan’s friends, I assume.

  “How about we revisit this conversation? I’m sort of throwing a birthday party in the next room.”

  Teagan shakes her head, clearly ticked off that I’m not warming to her bright idea of boys and booze. “Excuse me, but I’ve got a shift to finish. I’ll talk to you guys later.” She leaves in a huff, displacing her chair in a loud manner as it scrapes against the floor.

  Marlin shakes his head at me in disappointment while rising from his seat. “I’ve got a crap ton to finish, too.”

  “Why are you looking at me like that?” I stand to meet him while silently demanding he side with me.

  “Because it’s not a big deal, Lex. You’re making it something more than it is. To be honest, I was shocked when she was headed to Barnes. Heck, I was shocked when you went to Barnes.”

  My mouth falls open as my brother walks over and gives me a quick embrace. “Chill out, would you?” he whispers before taking off, and all the barflies scuttle around him until he hits the door. A man in uniform gets them every time.

  Rush offers up a quick embrace and heads over to his friends at another table.

  “Hey.” Sunday pulls me back into the moment. “How about we check on that birthday bash? You don’t mind if I crash, do you?”

  “Not at all.” I lead her to the poolroom where the party seems to be raging at top teen decibels. Teagan has a tiara pressed to her head, and she’s dancing with an entire circle of boys. Great. Axel is going to hate me for pimping out his baby sister to a bunch of future frat boys—at the infamous Black Beer no less.

  Shep steps up, and his eyes light up as soon as he sees Sunday. “Who is this, and how fast can you introduce us?” he teases. Or at least I think he’s teasing.

  “She’s family, and she’s way too young for you.” I look to Sunday. “On second t
hought, you don’t have to hang out with a bunch of teenagers. Why don’t you hang out with your girlfriends instead?” I glare over at Shep. “This room is suddenly swimming with piranhas.”

  Sunday laughs as if it were the funniest thing in the world, but her eyes linger over Shep’s a moment. My God, now I’ll have to worry nonstop about the fact both she and Serena are hypersexual. When did chastity belts ever go out of style, and how fast can I bring them back?

  Sunday disappears as if she read my mind in a thought bubble floating above my head.

  Shep smacks his lips with disappointment. “You do realize I’m not a predator.”

  “I do realize you work for your father.” I change the subject on a sexual dime. The truth is, I need a reprieve from all things hormonal. “Hey—are you up on all your father’s new acquisitions?”

  “I should say so. I was at the meeting this afternoon. He’s grooming me to take over one day.” A waitress offers him a drink—pineapple-tini, a nonalcoholic drink Teagan had her heart set on. It’s nice to see the bartenders here are willing to play along and make all of our Freedom Fest fantasies come true.

  “Really? Do you remember the idea Abby Wilcox pitched? A blonde about yea high, with a perverted look in her eyes and a panache for Collins boys? Ten bucks says she’s already gifted you her best line.”

  “I do know Abby.” He squints at my uncanny ability to detail her, no doubt. “And yes, I might have a date with her later this evening.”

  “Never mind your nasty bedtime habits. What was she pimping?”

  “Some restaurant review site called Epilates or something.”

  My stomach bottoms out. “Epicurean Elite?”

  “Yeah, that’s it. Axel said it was genius, and he was right. It’s brilliant is what it is.” Shep cranes his neck past me in Sunday’s wake. “Hey, is she single?”

  “Like I said, she’s family.” My body slaps with shock as I try to grasp what might be happening.

  “I get it.” Shep holds his hands up in surrender. “By the way, if you have any questions for Abby, you can ask her yourself. She’s right out there.” He points his beer in the direction of the bar. “Every time I hit the Black Bear, I find her glued to a stool. She’s quite the fixture.” His brows pitch as if she were a fixture he wouldn’t mind decorating his body with. And knowing Shep, I’m right.

  But I’m too blind with fury to even think about Shep or what he does with his body. I’m so blind with rage I’m about ready to eviscerate little Miss Wilcox right here at her favorite point of interest. I’m about to hang her by her heels on the nearest light fixture and have Teagan and her guests use her as a piñata.

  I speed out into the bar thick with coeds, the band playing a little too loud as I weave my way through bodies, and I stop cold.

  Standing less than ten feet away is a familiar head of dark hair with his arms wrapped around a petite bleached blonde. Her skirt is so short it hardly qualifies as the proper accouterment. He looks up and carefully peels her off of him because he’s simply a gentleman. It’s an all too familiar scene, and it sends the bile rising in the back of my throat.

  Axel darts for me. “Lex—it’s not what you think.”

  “That’s what you keep saying.” I bolt through a crowd of bodies and right out into the ice-cold night.

  “Lex—wait!” Axel catches me by the wrist and spins me into him, his face transformed with agony. “I swear to you, this wasn’t what it looked like.”

  “It never is. Save your excuses.” I yank my hand free. “Just tell me this. Did you approve of Abby Wilcox working with your father?”

  “Yes.” He nods so enthusiastically as if it were something I should want, too. “She’s on her way. I’ve signed off on everything. I’ve even asked Teagan to get the copyright rolling so she can move things along. I don’t want her anywhere near my restaurant. Or us.”

  My mouth falls open. “You approved of this? Have you lost your mind?” I push past him as I speed to my car. “Go back inside and help yourself to that strumpet that’s attached herself to you. You haven’t changed one bit. And don’t think you’re doing us any favors.” I hop into Frank and start the engine. “There is no us.”

  Axel

  Six Years Earlier…

  “Lex! Lex—please! Come back to me, Lex. I love you! ” I shout so loud my voice saws along my throat like a razor.

  The beefed-up gym rat holding me back shoves me against a wall. “All right, dude. I know it hurts, but you need to relax. Do yourself a favor and give her some space. Now, I gotta ask you to leave.”

  “Believe me, this is the last place I want to be.” The Moulin Rouge is a joke of a club that I’ve visited for a beer now and again, mostly sitting along the bar wishing it would magically morph into the Black Bear. In my fantasy, Lex would be there, long tan legs, huge red curls dripping down her back, and that ear-to-ear dirty grin going just for me. But this is New York, not North Carolina. Manhattan, not Hollow Brook. A pile of crap I’ve landed myself in, not paradise.

  Keith O’Malley—the jackass I let talk me into meeting his sexed-up roommate, Charlize, struts over, laughing as he spills his beer. It’s Charlize’s birthday. One drink with his roommate. It was his gift to her. She has a crush were his ridiculously convincing words. She pulled me in, and the next thing I know her arms are around me, telling me a freaking knock-knock joke of all things. I was going to leave—alone. One beer and out. A favor for a guy I’ve known less than six weeks.

  “Dude, that was a twofer. Thanks for making my roomie’s night. She says if you need any Southern comfort her bed is waiting for you.”

  “I’ll pass.” I take off running up the stairs and out into the cold dark night, nothing but a steady stream of yellow cabs speeding by. An army of pedestrians throbs along the sidewalk in throngs.

  “Lex!” I call out running left then right, spastically landing myself in the middle of the street, cars honking, every third person flipping me the bird. “Lex! Come back! I love you, Lex.” I let those last words die on my lips.

  All night I text her to no avail. I hop the next plane to Hollow Brook, praying I’ll be on her flight. No such luck. Shep picks me up at the airport, his driver’s license not even a week old. Lex is living in north Hollow Brook with her little sister, Serena. We make a beeline for their apartment, and I bang on the door like a maniac until the manager calls the cops on me. We hit Hallowed Grounds, Barnes, the Black Bear looking for clues, but Lex is a ghost, the invisible woman. She won’t pick up the phone. She won’t text me back. Lex has never subjected herself to social media, no check-ins, no locations attached to a single picture that might lend me a hand. Nothing. After three days of torment, I head back to New York. The new me. Single and hopelessly mourning the only woman I will ever love, Lex Maxfield.

  Present Day

  Axel

  “Lex! Wait! Let me explain this!” I shout into the dark, and a vivid memory of that night back in New York comes flooding back to me. Lex had come to visit—surprise me, and I believe in my heart she was there to restore what we had. And for a time, we had restored it—made it better, made it shiny and new. But we’re barreling back to square one, and I can’t help but let out a roar into the night as I kick the tire on a neighboring Mercedes.

  “Crap.” I head back into the Black Bear where the bodies seem to have multiplied.

  I head to the back where Teagan’s party is still going strong. She’s out there dancing with her friends, laughing, having the time of her life, and as much as it warms me to see it, I’m frantic to find Shep. I caught a glimpse of him speaking to Lex moments before Abby pulled me over to thank me for getting her upstart off the ground. She was so enthusiastic she offered me an embrace, and I took it. No harm, no foul—that is, until Lex spotted us and became unhinged.

  “Shep.” I wave to him through the crowd and speed my way over to where he stands with a group of girls. He excuses himself politely and takes a step toward me.

  “Dude, whe
re’s the fire? Can you relax? You look like someone just crapped on your pillow.”

  “Lex just took off. She’s pissed. She said something about Abby Wilcox working with Dad. What was she saying to you?” My heart does its best to kick its way out of my chest and go looking for Lex itself. But I need to know what I’m up against. Why would Lex care what Abby did with my father?

  Shep sobers up. “She was asking me the same thing. I told her what I knew.”

  “And what’s that?” I lean in, holding my breath so I can hear him above the riotous music.

  “Something about the Social Elite. Hell, I don’t know what she’s calling her company. Dad liked it. So did you. Teagan said you gave it a green light, and she pulled out all the stops. Abby is in. That’s all I told her.”

  “Social Elite?” I rack my brain trying to make sense of any of this. “Why does that sound familiar?”

  Crap. A horrible thought occurs to me.

  I head back into the bar, scouring the Black Bear from top to bottom in hopes of finding Abby. I don’t have her number, but The Pelican has it on file. A thousand thoughts crash through my brain. Head to The Pelican. Screw The Pelican—head to Lex’s place. Stay away from Lex’s place. Give Lex time. That’s what the bouncer at the Moulin Rouge suggested that fateful night. It didn’t work. I gave her six long years, and she’s still running from me.

  I head back into the poolroom where I find Teagan swinging her hips into two wasted boys that I’m positive are far too young to drink.

  “Teagan”—I gently pull her aside—“I need to ask you a question.”

  “Hey!” She looks longingly to the drunk boys I just dragged her from, and she cries out in frustration. “What do you want? Things were just getting good.”

  “Abby Wilcox,” I growl her name out like a curse. “What kind of company did Dad partner with her in?”

  “What?” Teagan looks pissed at the fact I’ve pulled her aside on this, the most important night of her life. “Who the hell cares! Jason Roderick is here!” She stomps over my toes with her high heel. “I swear, you are certifiable. Pull me aside once more to see what time Dad picks his nose, and I’ll make sure you won’t walk for a week.” She tries to take off, and I block her path.