Page 29 of Tangled Up In You

He raised his eyebrows as a question.

“I know that you two … you know.” She hesitated to admit her knowledge of their intimacy.

“You know, what?” he prodded, clearly amused by her shyness. “Fuck? Is that it, Sophie? You know that Felicity and I fuck now and again? That’s all there is to it. She can go wherever she wants, and I’ll do the same.”

“Wow.” She watched him curiously. He was playing some kind of game by saying this, she knew that much. Because she’d seen the tenderness that existed between them, like that time she saw him brush Felicity’s hair away from her face and then let his fingers trail over her cheek as if he were tracing her freckles when he didn’t think anyone else was watching. But now he was dead set against admitting even the possibility that he might like Felicity as more than an occasional hookup. Maybe he was taking a page out of Gavin’s book and resorting to denial as self-protection.

“Wow, what?” he pressed.

“I don’t believe you, is what. And also, you and Gavin have more in common than I thought.” She squeezed his bicep. “You’ll take care of him after I leave?”

“What do you mean? What do we have in common?”

“There you are, darlin’,” Gavin said, appearing by her side before she could reply. He pulled her dramatically to him, making her laugh as he perfectly timed singing along to the current song blasting from the back garden. It was Westlife’s cover of Billy Joel’s “Uptown Girl” and the line he sang was about her looking so fine. And then he dipped her backward and captured her mouth with his. She got lost in his kiss before the whistles and shouts all around reminded her they had an audience. He pulled her back up and she buried her face into the side of his neck. She couldn’t imagine ever getting used to being the center of attention like this. Gavin thrived off of it.

“Will we be going, then?” he asked.

“Leaving already?” Felicity asked as she rejoined them, a can of Harp in her hand.

“Yes,” Sophie said, pulling away from Gavin. She looked at Conor before turning back to her friend. “Go to Toronto, Felicity. Go and have the absolute best time.”

Felicity smiled, buoyed by this support. “I will.”

Sophie caught Conor’s eye as Gavin pulled her away. He gave her a hint of a smile, letting her know that he was aware of the game she was playing.

From the house party,they walked to the Strand, the large swath of beach with a view of the iconic red and white striped Poolberg Stacks power station, rising in the distance. It was low tide and the water had retreated to reveal hard-packed sand that seemed to go on and on.

“This is a good spot, darlin’,” Gavin said, pulling his backpack off and gesturing to a wooden bench along the path above the beach.

Sophie inhaled the scent of the sea. She’d always been drawn to the ocean’s salty air, rhythmic waves, and vast possibilities. It was an unusually clear night with a nearly full moon, making their visit that much better.

She turned to Gavin with a smile. “I love the beach.”

“I know you do. Sure, it’s not the California kind but it’s still something.”

“It’s perfect. We’ll stay for a little bit before I sneak back into my room?”

He nodded and reached into his backpack, pulling out a heavy wool blanket, a thermos, and a sleeve of McVitie’s, the chocolate cookies she had come to enjoy with tea.

They huddled together under the blanket, sharing capfuls of hot tea and nibbles of cookies. It was cozy, and Sophie was completely content. She sighed and leaned into Gavin.

“I want to be like this always,” she said.

“Then stay. Don’t go back, darlin’.”

She kept her eyes on the bright ray of moonlight reflecting on the water. “I wish I could.”

“What if … what if I talked to your parents? Maybe I could convince them to let you stay.”

Laughing, she said, “I don’t think that would work. You’re going to London, anyway.”

“Yes, but you’d come with us.”

Now she looked at him. “Gavin, tell me we won’t lose touch.”

“What?”

“Felicity said she might never even see Conor again once she’s moved to Canada. And she basically said she and I would probably lose touch because of our lives going in different directions. Tell me we won’t be like that.”

---