Page 68 of Every Beautiful Mile

“Penelope?”

I look away, feeling such an intense heat rise up my neck I expect to see smoke puff out of my pores.

“Mom?” Marin stands next to me. “Do you know each other?”

“No!” I shout at the same time Ethan casually says, “Yes.”

Marin and Finn look at me, each other, then Ethan.

“I mean, yes,” I rasp out.

Ethan smirks.

“I mean kind of.” I backtrack. “I met him at the restaurant I went to last night. Remember?”

I shake my head slightly and pin Marin with a warning look. She squints at me, her way of silently telling me I know you’re lying, before dropping it.

We make introductions, and I purposefully stand as far away from Ethan as possible in every situation. Austin, Derek’s older brother, looks exactly like Derek, just slightly taller with buzzed short hair and no tie-dye.

Ethan, on the other hand, looks like he belongs on the cover of an outdoor magazine. A gray t-shirt that clings across his chest like it was custom-made for him reveals arms possibly made with a chisel, not in the bulky way that comes from hours in the gym, but in the way that comes from living life and chopping firewood.

I can barely see straight between his broad chest, backward hat, and blue swim trunks slung low on his hips.

Hips that Zoey probably wrapped her....

I jam my eyes shut and send the thought down the river.

Derek instructs us all to follow him into the water. The kids take the lead and dive headfirst while I hang back and wade in slowly. The water is one degree warmer than ice, and goosebumps cover my skin. The flimsy material that clings to my chest does nothing to hide how the chill affects me.

Ethan wades through the water, and his eyes flick to my chest and back up.

“Nice suit.”

My face heats, and I make a mental note to ground Marin for life for making me wear this ridiculous thing.

In the least dramatic way possible, I want to drown myself in the river.

“What are you doing?” I demand as I fumble onto my board.

“Umm. Supporting my son at his new job?”

He raises his eyebrows, and the green flecks in his eyes catch the sun.

“You know what? Never mind,” I snap.

“Are you mad at me?” he asks, dropping the paddle onto his board before effortlessly hopping on.

“Shouldn’t you still be with Zoey?” Jealousy is not my best look.

“Are you kidding me, Nel?” He scoffs. “I forgot I had that planned. What did you want me to do, send her away?”

Yes.

“No. Forget it. You didn’t do anything wrong, I’m just… tired.”

Kneeling on my board, I start paddling away from him, knowing damn well there’s nowhere to go.

“If you remember, Nel, you’re the one who just showed up,” he says as he effortlessly catches up to me. “After telling me people don’t find themselves in the White Mountains of Maine, you found yourself here. What did you want me to do? Clear my calendar until that happened?”

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