Page 32 of Tastes Like Summer

“Danielle—seriously!” Liza whisper-yells. “You do not need to ans⁠—”

But Danielle cuts her off. “Like him. Michael. Do you like Michael?”

My jaw drops, my eyes flashing between the two of them. To be honest, my instinct is to reply an immediate and resounding NO. But something stops me. Instead, I go with a cowardly “I mean, he’s a nice guy?”

Danielle rolls her eyes. “C’mon, girl. You know that’s not what I mean. There’s something between you two. And everyone can see it, no matter what either of you say.” She smiles, eyes shining under the light of the fire. My cheeks heat at that piece of information, the thought of other people discussing a possible connection between Michael and me making me self-conscious.

I sigh. “I don’t know. I haven’t thought of him that way before.” Which isn’t exactly true, but it also isn’t really a lie. I’ve obviously noticed how attractive he is—today especially. I mean, how could I not when he spent all day shirtless, skin practically glistening from the ocean water? I’m not blind. And those dimples, visible even beneath the stubble… “Never even considered having that type of relationship with him.”

“Really?” Danielle asks, surprised. “Well, how about now that someone has flat-out asked you? What do you think of him? Do you think he’s attractive? Do you think you could ever like him?”

“Danielle,” Liza warns.

I shake my head, heart racing in my chest. “I—I don’t know.” Truthfully, life has been so crazy ever since I separated from Rodrigo, that I haven’t even had the time to stop and think about the possibility of entering into another relationship ever again. Not really. And now that the topic has been brought to the forefront of my mind, I’m a little dizzy and overwhelmed. Letting another guy into my life sounds as dangerous as jumping off the tallest bungee jump in the world—you hope that it’ll catch you, but there’s always the chance that the rope will snap.

There’s no denying the rush felt during the fall is something else, though…

“You’re making her feel uncomfortable,” Liza tells her, standing up for me. Except not a second later, she looks at me with hesitation and asks: “Well… But do you think you could ever like him?”

When I realize there’s no way I’m getting out of this, I decide to answer. At the very least just to get them off my back. “I mean, he is… objectively attractive,” I tell them, repeating the same assessment of him I gave my sister. I look over my shoulder, watch him smile as he jokes around with Vinny’s son by the grill. “And he’s a good dad. And a nice guy, like I said. Nicer than I expected.” I hear how my voice has grown soft, feel the way my chest has tightened. But I snap back to reality when I hear Danielle laugh softly. Shrugging once, I turn back to them. “He’s okay.”

Liza presses her lips together, trying not to smile. “Just okay, huh?”

“I thought you were on my side, here,” I mutter.

Danielle and Liza chuckle, though not unkindly. More so like they’re seeing something bloom before their eyes. And I don’t know whether I like it or not.

“Well, regardless of how you feel⁠—”

“Or don’t feel,” Liza cuts Danielle off.

“—I think he likes you. I mean, he did all this for you.” She nods meaningfully at the luxurious set-up.

“Oh, I’m sure you must be mistaken. He’s a chef and caterer. He probably does this kind of stuff with his eyes shut, like it’s second nature.”

“Mmm. I don’t think so. This afternoon is far from the beach barbecues he’s thrown in the past. I’ve never seen him so stressed out about getting things right, about making what was supposed to be a simple Fourth of July thing look like it belonged in a magazine or movie. I mean, Michael is an amazing guy, but this… this is something new.” Danielle smiles at me.

I bite my lower lip and look down at my hands, considering her words. My stomach tightens as I think back to the relationship we had at the beginning of summer and where we are now. What I thought was a camaraderie of sorts has shifted and evolved, and begin to wonder whether they’re right.

“I’m sure you’re misreading the situation,” I tell them, heart racing as I try to process my own feelings in the matter. “He’s nice and we’re definitely getting along, but⁠—”

“Hey guys,” Michael’s voice comes from behind, causing me to jump at least a foot in my seat. “Whoops, didn’t mean to scare you.” He takes a seat beside me, a blanket in his arms. Smiling widely, the apples of his sun-kissed cheeks dimpling in that adorable way of his.

My stomach drops, and I turn back nervously at Danielle and Liza, who look like they’re seconds away from bursting into laughter. Thankfully, Michael is too distracted to notice.

“Here, I got you a blanket. It’s starting to get cold out.”

My lips part as he unfolds a navy, cotton cable knit blanket and drapes it gingerly on my shoulders. I have never sat more still in my entire life.

“Um, thank you,” I mumble, suddenly unable to look him in the face. My skin is on fire—it must be—but I still wrap the blanket tighter around my shoulders, instinctually inhaling the scent of it in a deep, long breath—citrus, maybe grapefruit?

Shoot. Danielle and Liza can’t be right, can they? I cannot have a thing for this man. For a million and one reasons, I cannot even be one bit interested in any other type of relationship with Michael aside from him being the father of my daughters’ friend.

“Oh, no, thank you, Michael. Liza and I didn’t want any blankets. We’re good,” Danielle says sarcastically.

He laughs and shakes his head. “Nah, you guys are basically family. You can get your own blankets. Diana is the guest here.”

Liza scoffs and looks at Danielle. “You know, I think I get the message here. We’re not really wanted,” she says, teasing. Still, Liza gets to her feet and readjusts her drowsy daughter in her arms. “C’mon, Danielle. Let’s get out of here. He doesn’t deserve our presence.”