Page 38 of Dear Adam
With a frustrated sigh, I nod. “Can we stop by my house for some pants first?”
It’s a gorgeous summer evening with a gentle breeze flowing off the water when we pull up to a seafood restaurant, after we’ve swung by my parents’ so I could grab a new pair of jeans. I open the back of Aly’s Bronco to find Pretzel and Hank tangled in a snuggle.
“Come on Hank,” I say, and pat the tailgate. When he doesn’t budge, Pretzel lets out a little growl and Hank reluctantly gets up. “You do know you’re about eighty pounds bigger than she is, right?” I whisper in his ear.
“Pretzel can’t help that she's a strong-willed woman,” Aly coos, clipping on Pretzel’s leash. “I would say she’s independent, but have you noticed how inseparable they’ve been lately?”
I nod and follow her to the hostess stand. We’re seated on the deck outside, and both dogs settle easily at our feet. In the harbor beyond, boats zip by, and the city is already bustling with tourists preparing for the holiday.
“Is this your first Fourth of July in Charleston since high school?” she asks after our orders have been taken.
“Yeah, it is,” I answer, wondering if she’s also thinking of the last time.
It was the summer before graduation. Aly had recently gotten her braces taken off and if I thought I couldn’t stop staring at her before, it was nothing compared to after. Something between us had changed in the few months prior. Gone were the innocent thoughts of how cute my best friend’s sister was. Instead, I had found myself daydreaming about her, wondering where she was, who she was with, and what it would feel like to kiss her.
Adam and I had made plans to surf on Folly all day for the Fourth of July, and he was annoyed when we showed up to find Emma and Aly already out in the water at our favorite spot. Secretly, I was anything but annoyed. Aly had just caught a wave into shore when she looked up, and gave me a small smile. She was wearing a yellow bikini that left me a little breathless and did things to my chest that I hadn’t experienced before.
“Don’t worry, we’re leaving,” she had said with a wink. “I think we caught all the good ones. Don’t you know the surf is best here first thing in the morning?”
A second later, Emma had dragged her board onto the sand and gave Adam a hard time about something I couldn’t quite hear. My mouth was too dry to respond to Aly, so I stupidly nodded.
That night, Adam and I had climbed onto his roof only to have Aly and Emma join us. “What are you doing?” Adam had asked, irritation lacing his voice.
“If you’re dying tonight because Mom and Dad find you up here, I am, too. I don’t want to live here alone.” She had spread out a blanket on the other side of me and laid down, propping her knees up. All I could think about was how we were only inches apart, and all it would take was one small shift for our hands to touch.
“I’m going to grab a soda. Anyone want one?” Adam asked, getting up to climb back through the window.
“I’ll take one,” Aly had said. “Grape please.”
“Me too,” Emma added. “Actually, I’ll come with you so I can help you carry it all. I think we need snacks too.”
Above me, fireworks exploded into the night sky, but all I could think about was tasting grape soda off Aly’s lips. Suddenly alone and emboldened by that fact, I rolled over to face her and propped my head up in my hand.
“Grape, huh?”
“It’s the best,” she said, wrapping her arms around her bare knees.
“Are you cold?” I asked. The air was warm but the goosebumps across her skin were noticeable.
“I got a little bit too much sun today,” she said.
“Here,” I said, sitting up and wrapping one arm around her shoulders.
“Thanks,” she replied. A chill rippled through her body, so I squeezed her closer.
“You looked great out there today, by the way,” I said. “You surf better than anyone I know.”
Aly dipped her head. “Thank you, but you’re pretty great yourself.”
“Not as good as you.” I turned toward her, and my gaze traveled to her mouth, where she nervously bit her lower lip. “You’re something else, Aly.”
Her eyes sparkled in a way I had never seen before. Heat spread across my cheeks like a wildfire when she leaned in, resting a hand on my knee. The warmth of her hand, even through my jeans, was electrifying.
Our mouths were inches apart, and all it would take was one little tilt of my head and we’d be—
“We’re back!” Adam’s voice boomed as he climbed back out onto the roof, Emma right behind him.
Aly shot back from me and eyed her brother nervously. I did, too. If he had noticed anything between me and Aly just now, he’d chosen to ignore it.
