Daring the Bad Boy (Endless Summer)(45)

Huh. Who knew Brian was such a romantic, or that he and Hannah had such a serious relationship? They were in love. They were going to the same college together. It sort of blew my mind, but then again, if you cared about someone—really loved someone, you’d do whatever it took to be together.

I didn’t know if I’d ever be capable of loving someone. I had my own issues I really hadn’t dealt with and still wasn’t sure if I wanted to. Like the death of my mother and the loss of the dad I once had. He wasn’t the same person any longer, but neither was I. We hadn’t been getting along for years. He’d threatened me more than once that he would kick me out of the house if I didn’t get my act together. And I’d countered by threatening to run away. It was a threat we made a lot and we knew we didn’t mean it, which meant they were both empty threats. So stupid.

So pointless.

We were a mess, my dad and I. Maybe he’d been right all along, and coming here for the summer really was a good thing. We needed to spend some time apart. I could even admit I sort of missed him.

I should call him later, from the office phone, see if he was missing me, too. Uncle Bob would let me. I should invite Dad to come see me for the weekend, though I don’t know if he could, what with his work schedule. At the very least, it would be good to hear his voice.

“It’s ghost story night,” Brian told me as he slipped back on his work gloves and we both grabbed our wheelbarrows, redirecting ourselves so we were headed back to the bonfire pit. “And we have a special guest.”

“What are you talking about?” I followed along beside him, doing my best to avoid the ruts in the trail.

“It’s pretty cool, actually. Nancy from arts and crafts will dress up like some creepy old lady. Like, she becomes totally unrecognizable with the makeup she puts on, plus the costume and the wig. Anyway, she sits in a special rocking chair we only bust out once a year and tells these super-creepy stories that freaks everyone’s shit out. The younger kids aren’t allowed to participate, since Nancy really lays on the scary drama, and they’d be out of their damn minds, but everyone else loves it.” Brian smiled. “It’ll be a perfect opportunity for you to get close to your girl and offer her some comfort in her time of frightened need.”

I started to laugh at Brian’s choice words. “You’ve got this all figured out, don’t you?”

“Dude, I spent all of last summer trying to figure out ways to get Hannah alone. Even if we weren’t totally one-on-one, I was plotting how I could hold her hand, touch her somehow without anyone noticing. I’ve got it down to a fine-tuned skill, let me tell you.”

What he said hung in my mind long after we went our separate ways. I was headed toward the lake, thinking of the many different scenarios that could happen tonight between Annie and me. I could wrap my arm around her shoulders, tuck her close to my side. Or maybe hold her hand to calm her down. I could hug her. I could let her press her face against my chest. Hell, I could kiss her, too, if that was what she really wanted.

I’d do just about anything she wanted me to. I was sick of worrying about what would happen if we got caught. I was too caught up in Annie to worry about anything else.

I was so wrapped up in my thoughts I didn’t notice the girl who was coming at me full speed from the opposite side of the trail. She practically ran straight into me without stopping, and I reached out to grab her, holding her in place.

“Jake! Just the man I’m looking for.” She bounced away from me, her smile wide, her long, wavy, dark blond hair swinging past her shoulders. She was cute, with bright blue eyes and a great smile, but she wasn’t as pretty as Annie. I recognized her immediately, though I didn’t know her name. She was one of the girls from Annie’s cabin, so what would she want from me?

“What’s up, ahh…?” My mind drew a complete blank.

“Presley,” she filled in for me.

“Yeah, Presley. Why are you looking for me?”

“Well, I wanted to ask you a question.” She looked up at me, her expression pure innocence. I knew I couldn’t trust her. “I was hoping you’d sit with me at the bonfire tonight. The ghost stories are supposed to be extra spooky,” she added as a temptation.

Huh. This girl was playing dirty. She had to know Annie and I had a little something going on, even if we hadn’t properly confirmed it. Yet she had no problem basically asking me out.

“Uh, I’m sorry, but no can do,” I said as gently as I could. “I have to work tonight.”

Her face fell a little, though that smile of hers never really faltered. “Oh, I can help you!”

“Fozzie Bear doesn’t like it when the campers mess with fire. It’s against camp policy. Only counselors can help set and maintain the fire.”

“Aw, well maybe some other time, then?” she asked.

“Maybe,” I said, though I didn’t mean it. I had no plans to ever spend any one-on-one time with her.

I was hoping to save that all for Annie.

“Okay, see you around.” She leaped forward and before I could stop her, before I could even utter a word of protest, she pressed a kiss to my cheek and then bounded away. I stood watching her go, too in shock that she pulled something like that, but how mad could I be? It was just a stupid kiss on the cheek.

It meant absolutely nothing.