He grins and leans in a little closer. My heart skips. “Clearly she named you after her favorite time of year—the one time she felt happiest.”
I frown. “You think so?”
“I know so.”
I’d never thought about it much—I just figured she liked the name or something—but like with everything else, there’s intent and meaning. The naming of her only child would be no different.
It’s a revelation and I find myself gazing at his face, his lips and eyes. We’re in this moment alone, away from the sing-song voice of the storyteller and the stuffy rules of the librarian. We’re quiet. So very quiet.
Can he hear my heart beating? No? Just me?
“I heard you’ve been asking about our pact.” He’s close enough I can smell the mint on his breath.
“You guys gossip like school girls, you know that?” Heat runs up my neck at being caught.
He smiles slowly. “We’re tight. And it’s okay. If you’re going to get involved with the four of us, you should know what you’re getting into.”
My stomach tightens at the insinuation. And I have a heightened awareness he’s the only one I haven’t kissed. It would be so easy to do it now.
He licks his bottom lip and he knows it, too.
“Thank you, Margorie,” I hear over the stacks of books. Nick straightens and poof, the moment vanishes. “You’ve been incredibly helpful.”
With my heart still hammering I walk down the aisle, all too aware of the boy behind me.
It’s a long car ride home and I realize that Nick and I barely spoke a word on the way back from Conway until we dropped him at the edge of the road that leads to Richard’s house.
“It looks like it may rain,” Mom says, glancing out the window toward the island. The sky is dark and ominous. I guess there goes my date to the beach. On cue, my phone buzzes as we turn into our gravel drive.
“That thing never stops,” she says.
“It’s just the girls,” I lie. “Updating me on their trip. They leave in a couple of days.”
Truthfully, I haven’t heard from the girls since the random call from Catherine the other day. Even Mason has fallen off the radar. All of the texts today came from Justin. The sneaky bastard’s working his way into my heart, with silly photos and stupid messages. It’s easier to lie than admit this to my mother after her drunken confession about the Hawkins men. I slip the phone into my purse on the floor, knowing already he’s reminding me about tonight. His eagerness is endearing.
“The girls, huh?” she asked with a raised eyebrow. Justin waits outside the camper, lounging on the patio chairs and messing with his phone.
I give her a sheepish grin and get out of the car. Justin’s already out of his chair and I smile at the expectant look on hisface. He’s happy to see me. A low rumble of thunder interrupts me saying hello.
“Good afternoon, Justin,” my mother says from behind me.
“Ma’am,” he says, showing his southern roots. “Make any progress on the book today?”
“Not as much as I’d like,” she says. “But I’ve got some notes to transcribe.”
Mom disappears into the trailer, leaving the two of us alone. His hand finds mine the moment she’s gone. I notice he’s showered and changed already. The damp ends of his faux-hawk blow in the wind. “Thought you had to work late,” I say.
“I know the boss and checked out early. Is that okay?”
“Yep,” I say. “I’m guessing though that date on the beach isn’t going to happen.”
“There are other things we can do.”
“Like what?” I suspect I know the answer to that.
“My place?” he suggests.
The pit of my stomach warms and I really want to say yes. “That sounds nice…”
