Page 48 of Highball Rush
“No, it’s fine,” I choked out, then cleared my throat to try to cover. “I’m done.”
We stood there for a long moment, staring at each other. A slip of his hand and that towel would drop right to the floor. As if powered by a force I couldn’t control, my eyes slid down his body again. Was he hard underneath that towel?
I felt my cheeks warm, and I was not a blusher. He cleared his throat and moved aside. Tucking my hair behind my ear, I darted past him. I needed to get him out of my line of vision before I did something embarrassing. Like licked the water off his neck.
The bedroom door shut behind me and I sank down onto the couch. What was I doing? Gibson and I had been good friends, but I’d never been so crazy around him. When we were younger, even my little teenage crush hadn’t been that big of a deal. I’d liked him, but it hadn’t bothered me that we couldn’t be more. I hadn’t thought about it all that much. Just enjoyed spending time with him.
And that time sure had been special.
15
CALLIE
Thirteen years ago
Moonshine Diner was packed, the smell of sunscreen thick in the air. It seemed like half the population of Bootleg Springs High School had decided to come in from the midday heat, piling into booths for the lunch special—a pepperoni roll and a Pepsi.
I sat with Tanya Varney and Lacey Dickerson, sipping what was left of my Pepsi. It was mostly ice, now. They leaned close to each other, whispering and giggling about the boys in the booth behind us. They lived here year-round, so they knew each other well. But like all the kids in Bootleg, they were always nice to me when I was here summers. Included me like I was one of them. It was one of the reasons I liked it here.
“What about you, Callie?” Tanya asked. “Do you have a boyfriend back at school?”
“No, there aren’t any boys I like enough.” That was partially true. There were plenty of boys at my high school in Virginia who were cute, but none that I liked that way. But it wouldn’t have mattered if I had. My parents would never allow me to date. However, I didn’t like talking about my parents unless I had to, so I left that part out.
“Really?” she asked. “Not a single one?”
I shrugged. “Not really.”
“I bet you could date Amos Sheridan if you wanted to,” Lacey said, lowering her voice. He was sitting right behind us. “He’s so cute and I bet he likes you.”
My eyes flicked to the boys in the other booth. Amos was cute. A lot of the boys in Bootleg Springs were cute. It made hanging out at the lake with all the local kids more fun. The other girls mooned over them, and the boys loved to show off.
Fun or not, I was more of an observer than a participant. I had to be.
“I don’t know, Lacey,” I said. “I bet he likes you more than me.”
“Oh my god, Bowie Bodine just walked in,” Tanya whispered. “He’s so gorgeous.”
Bowie sauntered in, wearing a battered baseball cap and a t-shirt that showed his athletic frame. Like all the Bodine boys, he was nice to look at. He paused at a small table near the window and said something to his brother, Jameson.
Jameson was my age, but I didn’t know him very well. He was quiet and mostly spent time with Leah Mae Larkin. They weren’t dating as far as I knew. They acted more like friends—friends who’d known each other since they were little. She spent summers here now, kind of like I did, except it was because her parents had divorced and she’d gone to live with her mom in Florida. I liked Leah Mae, but we didn’t hang out much. She was always off somewhere with Jameson.
“Bowie’s eighteen,” Lacey hissed. “That means he’s like a grown-up.”
“What does that have to do with anything?” Tanya asked. “He’s only two years older.”
“Are y’all talking about my brother again?” Scarlett Bodine squished into the booth with Lacey and Tanya, and her best friend Cassidy Tucker slid in next to me. Scarlett and Cassidy were a couple of years younger, but they were nice girls. I’d always liked Scarlett’s sass.
“No,” Tanya said, but Lacey gave her the side-eye. “Okay, yeah. But I can’t help it. He’s so cute.”
Scarlett rolled her eyes. “I guess. He’s a pain in the ass, though. All my brothers are.”
“Shh, he’s coming,” Tanya said.
Bowie paused by our table. He grabbed Cassidy’s ponytail and gave it a little tug. “Hey, trouble.” Then he playfully punched Scarlett’s shoulder.
Scarlett rubbed her arm while Cassidy grinned up at him.
“Don’t punch me, you big fart face.” Scarlett socked him in the arm.
