Page 95 of Rebel Bride
Except insofar as it impeded my ability to get a job in the business I loved. I needed to make peace with him so I could tell the Rebels, “nothing to see here!”
Sean came in with two margaritas, one of which he passed to me. “Here you go. So, I just realized that you’re Dash Carter’s runaway bride. A bona fide celebrity in our midst.”
Jason pointed at his brother and smiled. “Dude, you don’t even know who Dash Carter is.”
“No, but Franky does. She’s on her way over.”
Jason’s easy demeanor changed in an instant. “Just happened to be in the neighborhood, was she?”
“She’s doing some research over at the lighthouse, tracking some special breed of snail.”
Franky was Rosie’s stepsister and a snail specialist, which sounded both creepy and fascinating. I had met her a couple of times at various Rebels gatherings, and I always enjoyed her take on situations. I had no doubt she’d have something to say about mine.
Rosie called out, “Come fix your tacos in the kitchen, people.”
As I was closest to the door, I made it to the kitchen first.
Hatch was here.
Hatch
* * *
I had been warned by Rosie before Summer arrived.
“You had better be nice to her, Hatch. She’s had a bad time of it.” She passed me an onion and a knife. Generally a badass, Rosie had always been a wimp when it came to cutting onions.
“Why wouldn’t I be nice to her?”
“Oh, I don’t know, you tell me.” She leveled her dark-eyed gaze at me. “You’ve always acted weird around her.”
“Some people don’t mesh. But I can be nice to poor little Summer.” I needed to come off as disinterested, mostly for Summer’s sake. The last thing she needed was another target on her back.
Rosie tilted her head, assessing me.
“What?”
“You seem different. This last year, you’ve been so down on yourself, not happy with your play. Now you seem … lighter.”
I attended to my onion chopping. “It was good to get away to Saugatuck.”
“Right, the mystery woman. What was that about?”
“I had coffee with someone. Not a big deal.”
When I turned her way, I found her looking at me like I was a puzzle. She was the person I could usually trust with my secrets, my fears, my insecurities. But this was the one thing I couldn’t share with her. She wouldn’t approve, and I didn’t want to disappoint her.
Besides, I was soon on the receiving end of Summer’s disapproval once she realized I was a dinner guest.
I had agreed to give her space, but neither could I ignore dinner invitations or pretend we didn’t now move in the same circles. (To be fair, I knew these people first.) She avoided looking at me, and given the nosiness of my family and friends, I thought it best to do likewise.
The universe heard about that plan and said, “fuck you, guys.”
We found ourselves sitting opposite each other at the table, but any awkwardness was lubricated by a pitcher of margaritas. Jason told a couple of funny stories about his hockey teammates on the Boston Cougars while Lauren supplemented his tales with a few of her own, with no names because, “confidentiality.” We spent far too much time trying to guess the secret identities, while Addy spent most of her time making eyes at Lars, who goggled right back. I was initially down on this relationship given the age gap, the employer/nanny thing, and the fact it had the potential to screw with the team’s fortunes, but I could see now how good they were together. I was envious really, because my little sister had her shit sorted out and I did not.
I wanted to be where she was at. I wanted Summer.
This afternoon in the locker room had been so damn sexy, but more than that, I had felt so close to her. Watching her suck me off and fucking her against that shower tile was the definition of hot. But so was listening to her troubles and confiding in her about my career woes back in Saugatuck.
