Page 49 of Tempt Me

Charlotte glances at me in the rearview mirror and I give her a determinedly light smile. It’s not like this is new information to me.

We park in the lot that’s quickly filling up with families tugging wagons overflowing with toys for their toddlers and rowdy teens trying to find the best places to set up their camps. Noah and Cody wave to us from a spot near the water as we park. This stretch of beach is about twenty minutes from Magnolia Bay, a sprawl of sand along the Long Island Sound. Mike and Emily are tossing a frisbee back and forth as Cody cracks open a beer from the cooler he brought.

No sign of Caden yet. I feel an odd mixture of relief and disappointment. We grab our own cooler along with the bags of towels and three chairs and pick our way through the sunbathers toward the rest of our friends.

“Hey guys,” Charlotte says, plunking the cooler down and grabbing a beer for herself before handing one to me. “Gorgeous day, huh?”

The sun shines brightly overhead in a cerulean sky, and the gentle whoosh of the waves against the shore is comforting. I take a sip of beer as Noah opens a bag of chips.

“Hi,” Emily says, hurrying over. Emily is a couple of years younger than us, a sweet girl with a round face and sunny disposition. Her older brother Mike is the polar opposite—blond but surly, with a crooked nose and a near permanent scowl. “Is this everyone?”

“Just waiting on Caden,” Noah says, popping a chip in his mouth.

“Oh, is he coming? That’s great!” Emily says.

“What’s he doing back in town anyway?” Mike asks as Cody hands him a beer.

“Why don’t you ask him yourself,” Noah says tartly.

“Whatever,” Mike says, chugging a third of his beer in one go.

“I think it’s nice,” Emily says. “He’s been gone for so long. I bet his family is happy to have him home.”

“Wonder why he left in the first place,” Mike grumbles. I don’t really want to be a part of this conversation, so I busy myself with grabbing a handful of chips. My stomach feels a little queasy. “Seems like a guilty conscience, doesn’t it?”

“Mike,” Noah says, clapping him on the shoulder. “I say this with all due respect—shut the hell up.”

“What?” Mike says. “Everyone else was thinking it. It was in the papers.”

“Caden wasn’t home that morning, anyway,” Emily says. “He had an alibi. That was in the papers too.”

“Yeah, some “unnamed woman”,” Mike says, using air quotes. He snorts and I feel all the blood rush to my face. “Think he was banging some chick from the party?”

“Mike, it’s truly incredible that you’re still single,” Charlotte says acidly. “You have such a way with words. Now stop being an utter fucking dipshit and pass me the hummus.”

There’s a sudden roar and sputter and we all turn to see a sleek red 70s Camaro pulling up next to Charlotte’s car.

Caden gets out of the driver’s seat, the muscles in his shoulders straining against his linen button down. He wears a simple pair of navy trunks and tosses a towel over his shoulder as he comes to join us.

My pulse flutters at the base of my throat, my mouth suddenly dry.

“Wow,” Emily mutters under her breath. “He got hot. I mean, he was always good-looking but…”

Noah strides over to Caden and greets him. I see him pointing at the Camaro and then laughing in response to Caden’s reply, shaking his head. They come over and everyone makes their hellos. Mike seems less antagonistic as he nervously eyes Caden’s massive biceps.

“Hi,” Caden says to me.

“Hey,” I reply. My pulse has kicked up a notch and I shove the rest of the chips in my face, washing them down with a mouthful of beer.

Conversation buzzes around me but I don’t pay much attention to it. Even when I’m not looking at him, I’m so aware of Caden’s presence. Like it has its own pulse. Like it’s this living, breathing thing between us. I spread my towel out on the sand, slipping out of my top and unzipping my shorts. I keep my eyes trained on the ocean as I lay on my stomach, watching the constant movement of the waves against the shore from behind my heart-shaped sunglasses.

I hear Emily asking Caden what he’s been doing this whole time. Caden tells her a bit about working in Argentina, but it’s a bare bones version from what he told me. He pivots the conversation toward Cody, asking him how his dad is. Sheriff Briggs was under a lot of pressure after Marion was murdered. There were rumors he was going to retire early.

I wonder how Caden’s investigation is coming along. If he’s found anything new.

My head continues to throb as the day goes on. The sun beats down on the sand and everyone gets in the water except me, Charlotte, and Caden. Caden has left on a walk along the shore. Charlotte is propped on her elbows next to me reading a book.

“How are you doing?” she asks as I turn over onto my back.

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