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I whirled around at the sound of Ethan’s voice.
He stood at the bottom of the stairs, one hand resting on the knoll post, while his gaze flickered between us.
I glanced guiltily up to Carson like I got caught in a lie, which wasn’t entirely inaccurate. I had planned on texting Ethan back, but I got so distracted after the race, I forgot.
“Oh, um, hey,” I said, giving him an awkward wave.
Ethan crossed his arms over his chest, and before I could explain, Carson said, “Inside joke.”
Ethan’s eyes flashed, then returned to mine. “Mom said you went to Carson’s meet.”
My insides shrank at the angry look in his eye. “Yeah, I did,” I said, playing with the sleeve of my jacket, hating that I felt so weird about it.
“His party Saturday, shopping Monday, dinner, his swim meet, and now lunch at the diner? Sounds like more than just the Angel Program at work.”
Carson straightened, his tone hard as he said, “What’s your point?” Then he turned to me and grabbed my hand. “Come on, Mia, you don’t have to explain yourself to him.”
I swallowed, torn between the two boys when Ethan shrugged. “No point. I’m just making an observation.”
Carson met my eye, waiting for me to say something. But what? Did he want me to go with him? Ethan was my best friend. I couldn’t just blow him off completely.
When Ethan cocked his head, he asked, “Are we still going to Sweet Surf to catch their sale on boards, Mia?”
Oh crap. I forgot.
Taking my hesitation as a rejection, he scoffed. “Remember when we vowed to drive to the beach once a week this summer to learn? Or were you going to do that with Carson too.”
“She’d probably have more fun,” Carson said under his breath. Ethan mustn’t have heard him, though because he kept his eyes laser-focused on me.
“Of course, I didn’t forget. I’m going,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest, feeling a little defensive and annoyed he was so gruff.
“Andthat’s my cue,” Carson drawled. “I’m out.” He saluted Ethan, which earned him a death-glare before he turned back to me. Leaning in close, he placed one hand on my waist, and I sucked in a breath, as his fingertips burned through the thin cotton of my shirt. Then in a move so slow, so smooth and calculated, he bent down and brushed his lips over my cheek, a whisper-soft kiss that made me shiver and shot butterflies through my belly, yearning for the real thing.
“I’ll see you tomorrow?” he asked. “We’ll put the baskets together?”
I nodded my agreement, because I couldn’t speak, not with Ethan’s penetrating gaze burning a hole through the side of my face. Not without the feel of Carson’s lips still on my skin. And then he turned and bounded up the stairs, past Ethan, who watched him go, his eyes narrowed on his back, knife-sharp before he turned to me.
I swallowed, finding enough strength to offer him a genuine smile through the pounding of my heart. “Ready to go?”
As we pulled out of the driveway three minutes later, I found myself wishing I were still inside—with Carson. Only my gaze flickered to the upstairs window, to where I saw his shadow, highlighted by the glow of the light from within, and I turned to Ethan and smiled, acting like everything was okay. Like he was still my world, my best friend, even though I’d rather be with his brother.
Chapter 25
MIA
Theremainderofmyweek consisted of days spent with Ethan and evenings spent organizing supplies with Carson. Time split between two Brooks boys. I spent far more time at their house than my own. Whether or not my parents noticed, I had no idea. I hadn’t spent enough time there to find out.
Ethan lay back in his bed, tossing a football up in the air, while I sat at his desk chair, filling out a college application. “Which school is that for again?” he asked.
“Purdue.”
Ethan grunted. “You haven’t even heard back from Duke yet.”
“I know. But I can’t just wait around and do nothing. I might as well start getting other applications ready in case I don’t get early acceptance.”
A knock on the door interrupted us. I turned, and my eyes locked with Carson’s as he leaned inside the doorway, his damp hair framing his face from his late-day swim. A ball of heat curled in my belly and a slow smiled curved my lips.
“Hey, you ready to get packing the last of the stuff? Mom and Dad went to dinner, but they ordered pizza for us. You game?”
