Page 103 of Here & There

“Hey,” Shelby says. “You okay?”

Of course she asks me this. It’s classic Shelby.

“Yes,” I say, falling into step beside her. “Are you okay, Ponytail?”

She laughs. “Yes.”

Nate’s a hundred feet away now, down by the water, his back to us, so I risk leaning in and pecking her on the temple.

“Hey!” she laughs. “Nate’s going to see!”

“He’s busy.”

She looks up at me, then hooks her fingertips around mine, just for a moment. It’s the softest brush of my skin against hers, but it sends an almost painful spike of energy through me.

I look down at the sand as we walk. “I lied, though.”

“About what?”

I glance over at her. “Me being okay. This is torture.”

“Aren’t you having fun?”

“It’s the best day of my life,” I say. “But all I want to do is to get you alone.”

Shelby’s quiet, and I worry I’ve scared her. Maybe she wants to take it slow. Maybe she doesn’t want to take it anywhere and this is just a fever dream.

But when she speaks, her voice is kind of strained. “Is that right?”

Heat floods my lower half. “That’s right.”

“What exactly do you want to do?” There’s a mischievous glint in her eyes. Way down the beach, Nate throws the stick far into the ocean, and Tink dives into the frothy water after it.

I dare to press my hand against the small of her back, to run my thumb across her spine. “I’m worried I’m going to scandalize you.”

“What? I’m not that innocent.”

“Isn’t that a Britney Spears song?”

She shoves me aside, and I wrap my arm around her shoulder, just for a moment, like we’re playing around. But when it comes to how badly I want her, I’m dead serious. “Shelby, you don’t want to know all the things I want to do to you.”

She looks up.

I know I have to let her go. Nate’s going to see. Stu’s probably lurking somewhere, and he’s going to see too. But I don’t want to let go. So I reach up and wrap her hair around my hand.

I tug, tipping her head back so her lips are only a breath away from mine. “Well, for starters, I’d like to use this ponytail for a handle.”

I let her go then, shoving my hands into my back pockets.

“Mac,” she says, the word a little strangled.

“Yeah?” I rasp.

A beat passes, where I’m sure I’m going to need to fling myself into the sea.

Then she says, “I’m going to hold you to that.”

Chapter 25

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