Page 70 of Hot Summer

Ada tipped her sunglasses down and glanced at Cas over the rim. “Who else do you think they’re going to pick?”

“Hopefully us,” Cas said, laughing. “I think we could use a few hours out of the villa together.”

“Oh, that’d be nice.” Ada slid her glasses back up and threw her arm behind her head, stretching her body out in the sun. “What do you think they’d have us do?”

“Read each other’s tarot cards or something,” Cas said, and Ada barked a laugh into the sky.

“Followed by a make-your-own-pasta workshop and a six-hour-long conversation in an indie coffee shop,” Ada said.

They were only kidding, but it actually sounded like Cas’s perfect day. Especially the make-your-own-pasta workshop.

“If that isn’t the date we get, we’ll have to do that when we get back to London, then,” Cas said.

“Deal.”

If today followed the trajectory of Hot Summer series past, there would be about five date slots total. In spite of her jokes, Cas didn’t think she’d be lucky enough to get one, especially with this thing between her and Ada so new, so she was genuinely surprised when her phone beeped later that afternoon as she was lying by the pool with the girls.

“ ‘Cas, it’s time for your date! Choose who you’d like to ask out... you leave in ten minutes! #PeachyKeen #Pick’EmWell.’ ” Cas looked over to Ada, now sitting up on the deck chair next to hers, the barest hint of a smile on her face. “Ada? How about a date?”

Ada leaned across the space between their deck chairs and pressed a quick kiss to Cas’s lips. “See you in ten minutes.”

Cas practically tore her wardrobe apart grabbing options before she was ushered into the bathroom to get ready.

She could hear Sienna and Gemma in the dressing room, talking Ada through her options, helping her pick out her makeup and do her hair, but every time Cas’s attention drifted over there, Tia snapped her fingers in Cas’s face.

“Focus! Stop trying to ruin the surprise!”

Cas tried on a long white pencil skirt with a crisp white crop top, a pair of denim shorts and a flowy floral blouse, but nothing seemed quite right. She didn’t know what they were going to have to do—from the hashtags alone, it was probably something to do with fruit, which was a little on the nose, but it didn’t tell her too much in the way of how she should dress.

If she were back home, she’d wear her usual jeans, a crop top, and her leather jacket, but the idea of wearing a leather jacket in this heat...

“What about this?” Delilah grabbed a set of linen separates and held them up. They were rusty orange, a deep, rich shade that would pop nicely against her tan and her brown hair. Because the fabric was light, it wouldn’t be too warm, but she’d be shielded from the sun in case they were spending the afternoon somewhere without any access to shade.

“How do you think I should wear it?” Cas took the top and held it up against her chest. “Unbuttoned, obviously,” she said, her fingers already working the buttons, “but what underneath?”

“Black bralette,” Tia said. She rummaged around in the pile and, after a few seconds, held out three separate bralettes in Cas’s direction. “I think the lace will be too much of a contrast, but you can wear this plain one. And then we’ll make your hair really slick and straight...”

Tia was flitting around the bathroom as she talked, grabbing hair oil and a hairbrush and the hair straightener.

She’d originally planned to pair the outfit with her leather sandals but decided at the last minute to throw on a pair of crisp white trainers in case she needed to do a lot of walking. Once she was satisfied with her reflection, Tia ran to check that they were safe to leave before hurrying Cas down the stairs to the entry.

“Ada’s almost done, so just wait here,” Tia said. She pulled Cas into a quick hug before turning and running off toward the bedroom, followed shortly by Sienna who blew Cas a kiss as she ran down the stairs and disappeared.

It was surprisingly nerve-wracking as Cas waited in the entry. It was ridiculous—she’d already spent so much time with Ada this summer, it wasn’t like they were strangers—but the nerves were swimming in her belly all the same.

She wanted this date to be perfect. Needed this date to be perfect.

Cas looked up as she heard the sound of Ada’s footsteps in the hall and her heart stopped in her chest.

Ada looked gorgeous. Absolutely astoundingly gorgeous.

Her long red hair was done in soft, romantic waves that fell over her shoulders, and her makeup was light and dewy, a perfect sun-kissed look for the dress she was wearing. It was a simple tie-shoulder midi dress with a slit that extended to the outside of Ada’s left thigh. The dress was powder blue with a white and olive floral pattern, and the fabric flowed gently as she walked down the stairs. There was a subtle glow to her skin as she moved, the barest sheen of champagne gold in the sunlight streaking through the front windows.

It was just a dress, just a date, but seeing Ada walk down the stairs, a bright smile on her face, was more than Cas could handle.

Cas took her hand as Ada came to a stop at the bottom of the stairs. “You,” she said, leaning down and pressing the lightest kiss to Ada’s lips to avoid ruining her lipstick, “are so beautiful.”

“You are, too,” Ada said, stepping back and examining Cas’s outfit. “Hey,” she said, her smile growing, “our shoes match.”

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