Page 9 of Summer Ever After
“Shit,” he muttered and hopped off me.
A car had come into the parking lot. “Can they see us?” I was ten feet from my almost dry clothes – topless with my panties around my knees. Arching my back, I pulled them back into place – noticing that the waistband had ripped a little bit more.
Max grabbed my shirt and leggings and handed them to me before picking up his own set of clothes. I shimmied into my leggings and tank top. Max pulled on his jeans and the two of us walked to where we’d left our shoes. Wordlessly, we made our way to the motorcycle, an unspoken decision between the two of us that it was time to leave the point.
“Here’s the test.” Max held his breath as he used the kickstart. We both breathed out as the bike’s engine purred to life.
I couldn’t help but clap my hands together like a little kid.
Max grinned and wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me in close. “Can I see you next weekend?”
Right. Max didn’t live in Windswan, he lived in the city. He likely wouldn’t even spend any time at his cottage once the cool breezes of September swept across the valley.
We lingered next to the growling machine while it warmed up. “I’d like that.”
He pulled out his phone. “What’s your number?”
My cheeks burned. “I don’t have a phone.”
His eyebrows knitted with disbelief. “Really?”
“I mean, it fell in the lake and I need to get a new one.”
He nodded. “I lost three last summer. What’s your number though?”
I kicked at the gravel next to the bike. Lying didn’t come naturally to me. “I don’t know it.”
This time his brow furrowed with a different kind of disbelief. “How am I going to find you?”
“Give me your number. When I get my phone, I’ll text you.”
He patted his pants. “I don’t think that I have a pen or paper.”
“I’ve got a good memory.” I tapped my temple. “I can remember it.” As soon as the words left my mouth I realized that I’d contradicted myself. How could I not know my number, but remember a completely new one?
If he picked up on the inconsistency, he didn’t let it show and rattled off the number, starting with the area code for the city. When I repeated it after him, his dimples dented a little deeper into his cheeks. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”
The group of girls that had arrived at the beach had set up chairs next to a blue cooler. Taylor Swift echoed from the wireless speaker that sat on top of it. As I put on the helmet,Cruel Summerfaded a little into the padding. I held onto Max tighter than was necessary and my heart pounded like a hummingbird’s when he put his hand on my leg.
I couldn’t imagine a more perfect guy than Max. He liked me even though my shoes had holes in them, but the truth of my reality was way worse than ratty sneakers. We were from two separate worlds, and I wasn’t going to pretend that I could be a part of his. It truly was a cruel summer, and I needed to stop what we had started before it had the chance to hurt me.
I rested the forehead of my helmet on the space between his shoulder blades, shifting as he maneuvered the motorcycle toward Sunflower Lane. Shutting this down now would be better for both of us. I blinked away my tears and squeezed him a little tighter.
“Where’s your turn?” he shouted over his shoulder.
Instead of directing him down the rutted road with no name, I pointed to the one on the other side. “That way.”
The small subdivision was made of wartime bungalows and I picked one with geraniums in the window baskets and a red front door. “That’s my place.”
We came to a stop and I hopped off the bike and put the helmet in the saddlebag. Max lifted the visor to his helmet. “Let me walk you to your door.”
I stopped him before he could shut off the bike. “That’s not necessary.”
“What’s my number?” he gave me a crooked grin and raised his eyebrows.
I repeated the number, one that I knew I would never forget, and then gave him a peck on the lips. I walked backward for a couple of steps, waved, and then put a little skip in my step as I walked up to the house, holding my breath, praying that whoever owned it wasn’t going to open the door and give me and my lie away.
Thankfully, the door remained closed. I held my breath, rested my hand on the brass knob, and turned to give Max another wave.
