by Beth Reekles
Right now, Melvin and one of the college girls were just arriving. They passed Lee at the door, saying hi to him and then to me.
And not far behind them came the start of the dinner rush. At this time of day, it was mostly families with little kids, just finishing up on the beach and needing to fill hungry bellies before they headed home.
I spotted May seating one all-too-familiar family over in Melvin’s section and grabbed him. “Hey, you mind if I take that table?”
“Uh, sure.” He looked where I was pointing and a knowing smile dawned on his face. “Isn’t that the guy you broke up with Flynn for?”
I groaned. “I told you, that was just a stupid rumor.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yes, Melvin.”
His smile stretched even wider. He pushed his round glasses up his nose. “So why’s he staring at you?”
“What?” I turned to look over my shoulder, but Levi was studying his menu carefully. His cheeks were a little pink. I rolled my eyes at Melvin, who just kept grinning at me till I grabbed a water pitcher and marched over to the table.
I announced myself with a bright and unnecessary, “Hi! My name’s Elle and I’ll be your server today,” then started to pour their water.
Becca, Levi’s little sister, giggled. “We know who you are, Elle.”
“Didn’t expect to see you guys here.”
“Couldn’t waste an afternoon like this,” his mom said cheerfully. “My husband couldn’t get the time off work, so it’s just us three today. Levi keeps talking about you working here, so we thought we’d give it a shot.”
“Mom!” he hissed.
I bit my top lip, trying not to laugh as I saw Levi squirm out of the corner of my eye.
“Besides,” she said, unfazed, “we haven’t seen you around in a while.”
She said it with a certain gravity, like she was trying to make a point. A point I got loud and clear. Throughout senior year, I’d spent a lot of time hanging out with Levi. He’d come over while I babysat Brad; I went to his place while he was looking after Becca. A lot of the time we just hung out together, for no other reason than that we were friends.
And yeah, maybe we hadn’t been hanging out so much lately.
“Mom,” he hissed again.
“Well, you know.” My smile faltered and I shifted my weight to my other foot. “I’ve been busy with this job and…Noah’s home now, so…”
“Ah, yeah. The boyfriend.”
She shot a glance at Levi, which seemed to say something I really didn’t get, and he let out a sharp, exasperated sigh. “Mom!”
Okay, well…
This was weird.
“Shall I give you guys a couple minutes to decide? Or, um…uh, would…would you like to order drinks?”
They ordered drinks. Levi was slouched right down in his seat by now, although I wasn’t so sure what he had to look so embarrassed about.
“Are you gonna come hang out again soon, Elle?” Becca asked me, pouting, with puppy-dog eyes that were way more effective than Lee’s.
“I, uh, maybe. I’ll try! It’s just a little crazy around here right now. But I’ll come see you soon, okay?”
“Sorry,” her mom said to me. “She just really liked having another girl around to hang out with. You’ve had quite the influence on her, you know. And on Levi.”
“Right…”
Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to make of that. And I wasn’t totally sure it was a good thing, even if she made it sound like it was.
“And Harvard! Levi told us. Congratulations, sweetie, that’s such an incredible achievement. Your dad must be so proud of you. It makes me wish Levi had applied to college. He graduated with such good grades.”
I coughed. Talking to other people’s parents had never really been my strong suit (not counting June and Matthew, of course), and it was uncomfortable to talk to Levi’s mom about his decision not to apply for college during senior year. Frankly, I couldn’t get out of this conversation quickly enough.
“He’s just figuring things out,” I said lamely, and snapped my notepad shut. “One veggie burger, one hot dog, one cheeseburger, and a side of onion rings coming right up.”
* * *
• • •
I was taking a thirty-second breather at the bar when I felt someone standing beside me. They cleared their throat.
“I’m sorry, sir, I’ll be right— Oh, Levi.”
“Hey.” He gave me a stiff half-smile, with only one side of his mouth, and raised his hand in an equally awkward wave. “I just, um, I…”
“You…?”
He cleared his throat and tried again, running his hand through his hair. “I’m sorry about that earlier. If my mom made it awkward. It’s just, you know, I mean, Becca’s asked a couple of times if you’re coming over, and I’ve been telling her you’ve got a job here and you’re spending time with Noah and Lee. So…yeah. That’s all.”
“Right.”
God, when did it get so awkward hanging around Levi? When had this happened? My palms felt clammy and I had a weird squirming sensation in my gut—the kind that made me wish someone would spill their drink or drop their food and yell for me to fix it.
Was this what happened when we didn’t hang out face to face for a couple of weeks? (The Slurpee contest didn’t count, not really.)
Was this what was going to happen to me and Lee, after time apart at college?
Or was this because Noah was back home and it had shifted the whole dynamic between us?
“Right,” Levi said, nodding.
“I’m sorry I haven’t been around much,” I said. “Not…not just for Becca, but…I know we text, like, every day, and we talk on the phone, but we haven’t hung out properly, and that’s…that’s on me.”
Levi shrugged. His smile was soft even if his eyes were a little sad, and he laid a light hand on my arm. “It’s okay. I know you’re busy.”
As if on cue, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I slipped it out to check it.
A text from Dad. Don’t forget to pick Brad up from soccer practice later!
I groaned. “Shit. Shit.”
“What’s up?”
I kneaded my knuckles between my eyes, scowling at my phone. “I hounded May to give me a double shift today, but I’m supposed to pick Brad up from soccer. Shoot. How…” I sighed. “I’m gonna have to ask May to—”
“Well, we can pick him up,” Levi offered. “What time does he finish?”
“Six-thirty.”
“That’s perfect; we’ll be heading right by there. We can pick him up, take him back to your place.”
“No, Levi, I can’t ask you to do that.”
“You didn’t,” he told me with a grin. “Seriously, Elle, it’s no problem. I’ve got your dad’s number; I can let him know. Spare key’s under the flowerpot by the gate, right?”
“Yeah,” I sighed, giving him a quick, grateful hug. “Thanks. You’re a real lifesaver. He literally just needs a ride home. My dad had a late meeting and his office is on the other side of town, so…thanks, Levi.”
A late meeting I had a sneaking suspicion was with Linda, but hey…
“Like I said, I know you’re busy.”
My shoulders sagged. At least the weirdness between us had evaporated—for now. As Levi turned to go back to his mom and sister, I grabbed his arm. “Hey, look, we’re planning a day at the water park in a couple of days. Jon Fletcher’s brother works there and he managed to pull some strings for us. It’s gonna be kind of crazy. Could do with an extra few recruits.”
Levi’s lips stretched into a smirk. “Does this have anything to do with the bucket list?”
“You know it.”
“Text me the details. I’ll be there.”
I smiled, breathing a sigh
of relief. Maybe it’d be in a group setting, but it’d be good to hang out with Levi again. Seeing him today made me realize just how much I’d missed him.
Levi went back to his table and I glanced over again—just in time to see him looking away, scowling at something his mom was saying and looking embarrassed.
Well, whatever that conversation was about, I was glad I wasn’t a part of it.
Chapter Sixteen
When I got home, I found the beach house empty. Lee and Rachel were out on date night, I remembered, but there was no sign of Noah. The light was on in the kitchen and lounge, but the doors to the backyard were ajar, so I went outside to look for him.
It was only as I got farther down the path from the house to the sand that I heard his voice drifting toward me. He hung up the call just as I got near, looking up at the sound of my footsteps.
“Hey, gorgeous,” he said, smiling.
My cheeks grew warm. “Gorgeous” was the last thing I was right now; sweat was making my hair feel greasy, I had various stains down my shirt, and my arm was still sticky where I’d spilled soda on it. But even so, I’d never get tired of hearing Noah compliment me like that and mean it.
I flopped down on the sand beside him, lying flat on my back, not caring about the sand that got in my hair and clothes. “Long day?”
“Long day. I saw Levi, though.”
“Oh yeah?”
“His mom took him and Becca to the beach. They came by Dunes for dinner on their way home. I had to get him to pick up Brad from soccer because I forgot when I asked May for the double shift, so I’m expecting a call from my dad any minute now to tell me how disappointed he is in me.”
Noah lay down beside me. I turned to face him, the sand scratching at the side of my cheek. He didn’t have a shirt on and my eyes drifted over his broad shoulders, his toned abs. “So Levi picked him up?”
“Well, him and his mom and sister. I really owe him one.”
“You could’ve called me. I could’ve picked Brad up.”
“Well…”
That was a good point.
“Well, I didn’t think about that,” I told him. “And Levi was there. He offered.”
Noah gave a quiet grunt. I couldn’t tell if he was annoyed, but I didn’t mention it. Levi had ended up being a source of contention when we’d broken up around Thanksgiving, especially after I’d gone to the Sadie Hawkins dance with him and Noah had seen us kiss.
It wasn’t like Levi was the only problem we’d had, and I’d thought the air was all clear now, but even so, I decided not to push it.
“Who were you talking to anyway?”
I saw Noah bite the inside of his cheek for a second before he twisted to face me. “Amanda.”
Ah, Amanda. Another source of contention in our relationship last fall. Again, she wasn’t the only source, but…Well, it hadn’t helped that I’d found out Noah was keeping a secret from me that she knew all about. I’d thought he wanted to be with her (a theory backed up first by a photo online of her kissing his cheek and then by Noah bringing her home for Thanksgiving), but it turned out he’d just been struggling with his classes, and she was helping him out—something Noah had been too embarrassed to tell me.
Despite what I’d initially thought about Amanda, I liked her. She was British, with a permanently bubbly attitude as far as I could tell, which made her impossible to hate. The fact that she looked like a catalog model for “classic preppy college girl” had made me pretty jealous at first. Still did sometimes. I’d seen her when I visited Noah over spring break, and she’d been nothing but welcoming and friendly.
They had the kind of easy, platonic relationship that Lee and I had. It was still weird, though, for me to get my head around Noah having someone like that in his life.
“Oh yeah?” I asked, just like he had about Levi.
“Turns out she’s gonna be in town for a while. She gets here day after tomorrow. Her folks are here. Some business deal her mom’s working on. I told her she could crash here for a couple of days. Is that cool?”
“Sure, Noah. I guess we’ve got the space, with Lee’s and my old room.”
“You sure?”
I shrugged into the sand and offered him a reassuring smile. As jealous as I got of Amanda, I did at least feel confident that she wasn’t a threat to Noah’s and my relationship. “Why wouldn’t I be? Did you know she was coming or was this her idea of a surprise?”
He smirked. “Her idea of a surprise.”
“Hey, if she’s around, you should invite her to the water park with us! Levi’s gonna come, too. Lee and I figured we could make it a whole group thing; it’ll be so much cooler that way. Lee was gonna ask Rachel, and Jon wanted to get involved, too, since his brother helped us organize the whole thing, so…”
“Oh, right. Cool. Uh, sure. I’ll…give her a heads-up.”
I realized then that we’d never actually formally asked Noah to get involved with it and laughed, swatting a hand lightly across his arm. “Obviously we want you to be part of it, too, you big doofus. Lee’s got your costume planned and everything.”
His eyebrows knitted together and one side of his mouth quirked. “No thanks, Elle. I’m sure you guys will have a blast, but…nah. Not my thing.”
“Oh, come on! Please? The only reason we’re even allowed to do it is because we’re filming it and raising money for charity as some, like, PR promo for the water park. Please? It’s for a good cause.”
He laughed. “Why does this feel like that time you asked me to be a kisser at your kissing booth?”
“So?”
“I don’t think so, Shelly.”
I pouted, spinning onto my side and wriggling closer, so my face was nearer his. “What did you say last time?” I racked my brain, trying to remember the house party when I’d asked him to do the kissing booth for us, at the request of all the girls. “I think you said something like, would I go down on my knees and beg?”
Noah groaned, pulling his hands over his face and laughing. “Don’t give me that look, Elle. You know I never meant it like that.”
“Please?” I wheedled, my fingertip tracing patterns over his bare chest.
“I just don’t think it’s my thing.” He sighed. “I’ll come along to…support you or whatever, but there is no way I’m putting some stupid costume on.”
I could see there’d be no convincing him tonight, so I gave up. Maybe Lee could give it a shot—heck, even Amanda might be able to convince him. Sometimes I forgot that where Lee and I could get carried away with the crazy, Noah was a lot more down-to-earth. Sighing, I settled for just resting my head on his shoulder, tucking into his side as he moved his arm around me and kissed me between the eyebrows.
“So what’re your plans tomorrow?”
“Hmm…” I pulled up my mental calendar. “Breakfast shift, then I’m taking Brad to the dentist, running a couple of errands for my dad and back here all evening.”
“No bucket-list stuff?”
“Nope.” Then I added, “Lee’s going to a movie with Ashton.”
“Huh. And you’re…” He trailed off, but I heard the words he didn’t say: You’re okay with that?
I shrugged, burrowing my face into his shoulder. “Yeah, I’m okay with it. Why wouldn’t I be? I…I have to be,” I mumbled. “Lee’s allowed to have other friends. Same as me. He didn’t get mad when I started hanging out with Levi.”
“You don’t sound so okay.”
“Shut up. I’m fine.”
“Mmm-hmm.”
“And if Lee ever asks, I’m fine with it.”
“I think it’s cute you’re jealous.”
Before I could stop myself, I said, “Did you think it was cute when I got jealous of Amanda?”
Noah stiffened. Then his arm tightened around me, his hand stroking up
and down my spine and sending a shiver through me. He pressed a kiss to the top of my head. “No. But I will admit I think you’re kind of sexy when you’re shouting at me.”
“Only kind of?”
“Very,” he corrected himself in a murmur.
“Is that why you disagree with me so much?”
“Absolutely.”
I softened, smiling, and pressed a kiss into his shoulder before shifting so I could kiss him properly.
The way Noah kissed me, the way he held me, it was with such total adoration, holding me so tenderly, with a grip like he couldn’t ever bear to let me go. I could feel how much he loved me, and I knew that whatever had happened last year, I had nothing to be jealous of now.
I only hoped he could tell how much I loved him.
Chapter Seventeen
“Hello, hello, strangers! Anyone home?” a voice sang, ringing through the house. “Do you guys really leave your front door unlocked?”
There was no mistaking that peppy voice with the English accent. I heard someone moving around in the kitchen. Lee and Rachel’s bedroom door opened. I launched myself out of Noah’s and my bathroom, toothbrush still in my mouth.
Amanda was standing in the doorway. Her blond hair was cut short, hanging in chin-length waves that framed her face. She didn’t seem to be wearing makeup, but her smooth skin had a dewy glow. She wore a cropped white T-shirt that hung off one shoulder and pink denim shorts. I could see a pink bikini top through her shirt and the ties of it around her neck.
Laughing, Noah dashed forward to draw her into a bear hug that lifted Amanda clean off her feet. She giggled, mussing his hair when he set her back down. “All right, muscles, no need to show off. Rachel! Elle! Hey!”