Page 118 of Rebel Summer

“Not at all,” Dax said, his dark eyes running over me in a way that made me jealous of whoever gets to wake up next to him for the rest of their life. I self-consciously tucked my wild and matted hair behind my ear.

“After I dropped you two off,” Beau said, looking at Dax, “I moved the car back to your secret storage room, like you told me. I hate you, by the way, in case I forget to tell you today.”

“I love you too, buddy,” Dax said, coming to stand by the entrance of the cell, his hand leaning on the door. “How’d she run for you?”

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Beau pulled out his phone and held it out in front of him, pointing toward us. “But I am getting a fun little souvenir for myself. Say cheese.”

He pocketed the phone before coming to stand before us. I slid out of the bed, straightening my shirt and short overalls. I had been surprised at how well I’d slept after breaking the law. Even in my sleep-drunk state, the kiss scene from the car played in my head and dreams all night.

Jail sleep might be the best sleep. Who would have known?

“So, here’s the thing,” Beau began. “Judge Baylor’s beautiful wife, Nancy, was up taking the dog out last night and happened to see what looked like a car driving past her window. So, naturally, she woke up the judge. Guess who he called right away?

Dax pointed at Beau.

Beau nodded. “That’s right. Me. He called me at 2:30 in the morning to check it out. But guess what? I was already awake, taking calls.” He looked at Dax. “Pretty bold move to drive a car when you work next door to a retirement home with people who never sleep at night—and a girlfriend still on probation.”

See? This is the problem. Even now, as my stomach clenched and the bubble I’d been living in began to deflate, hearing Beau call me Dax’s girlfriend brought me right back to sunshine and butterflies.

“Was that your golf cart watching us last night on the square?” Dax asked, a smile hovering on his lips.

“Yup.”

“What does that mean for us?” I asked, trying to remind myself that I was in trouble.

“The judge wants to talk to you both in ten minutes.”

A thud landed in my stomach at that. It looked like I hadn’t completely gone off the rails. The thought of Judge Baylor looking at me in disappointment might be the thing that brings me back down to reality.

I looked down at my wrinkled clothes and touched my face, no doubt looking like a raccoon with mascara under my eyes. “In ten minutes?”

Beau sighed and strode to a cabinet located near his desk and rummaged around before he stood in front of us again and handed us each a flimsy, travel-sized toothbrush wrapped in plastic and a small tube of toothpaste to share.

“You guys have five minutes to brush your teeth, but that’s it. Your sink doesn’t work, so you’ll have to use the bathroom down the hall. Then we need to head to his office.”

He unlocked our cells, stepped aside, and motioned us toward a hallway.

Dax grabbed Beau’s arm, forcing his friend to look at him. “Listen, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about the car. I didn’t want you to have to hold onto that knowledge as a cop. Besides, I didn’t actually plan on driving it on the island. I just needed somewhere to work on it.”

“Wait.” Beau turned to me. “Was driving it really your idea?”

The look on my face must have said it all, because Beau only smiled and shook his head. “Maybe Dax wasn’t reaching too high after all.” He motioned down the hallway. “Bathroom is the first door on the left. You now have four minutes.”

The hallway had its own pulse as we walked together toward the unisex bathroom. Or maybe it was my mind that was thumping. The carefree night of driving a car with Dax would stay with me for a long time, no matter what happened. The feeling of being numb to all reason except wanting to be a little crazy. Having a little adventure. It all gave me life. A buzz of excitement. But…crazy had consequences. And now, I was headed to see the judge.

Again.

Dax opened the bathroom door for me, watching me as I brushed past him, my arm sweeping against his.

The door closed automatically, the click of the lock making me jump. He handed me the toothpaste. My trembling fingers dropped it immediately on the counter. Until that moment, I hadn’t been aware I was shaking. As I reached for it, Dax grabbed my hand and held it steady in his. We were so close. I could feel the heat from his chest vibrating out of his black t-shirt.

I could have stayed like that all day, but Beau’s loud thumping on the bathroom door, giving us a three-minute warning, did the trick. I pulled my hand from his grasp and began brushing my teeth.

He did the same.

I wasn’t going to look in the mirror. I didn’t need his disheveled brown hair and mischievous smile confusing me further before I discovered my fate. Our fate. But my body refused to care what I thought, and my eyes darted upward. It was a wild pitch, but he caught them perfectly, holding me hostage. He scrunched his nose at me until it became too much of a chore to hold back my smile.

We spit our water out and wiped our mouths with a paper towel.

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