Boone took another swig of beer and would have drained the entire bottle in one last gulp, but Cam walked up to him and slapped him on the shoulder. “You in for tag football?”
“What?”
Cam followed Boone’s gaze and then looked back at him. “Or do you want to join the women for a gab fest.” At the dark look Boone tossed his way, Cam chuckled. “What’s with you and Poppy anyway?”
“What do you mean? She say something?”
“No, but I’ve been picking up on some pretty heavy vibes between you two, and I gotta say, I’m not surprised.”
“That so?” He had no idea what the hell Cam was going on about, because at the moment, Poppy had bent over to point at something in the sand, and the sight of her perfectly round ass was causing some concern between his legs, which made him scowl. He was in the middle of a Fourth of July party and sporting the beginnings of a woody? Really? At thirty-one, he was that pathetic?
“I didn’t know your mom knew Link Major.”
“She doesn’t, as far as I know,” he mumbled, trying like hell to banish the erection while thanking the Lord and all the angels up there that he’d worn loose-fitting swim trunks.
“Huh.” Cam pointed toward the boathouse. “They look pretty intense.”
Wyatt yanked his focus from Poppy. “What was that?”
Cam pointed toward the boathouse, and Boone spied his mother and Link. The Brit stood close to his mother, hands shoved into his pockets as he gazed down at her. She was shaking her head slowly back and forth. They were close, but not too close, and yet something about the two of them made Boone feel uncomfortable. Like they were having an intimate conversation.
Emily appeared at his side just then. He heard her making pleasantries with Cam. He tore his gaze from his mother to find Poppy looking his way. Her eyes moved from him to Emily and then back to his. Large sunglasses covered half her face, so he couldn’t gauge her expression, but her shoulders looked a little tense, and the set of her jaw was tight. She stared at him a few moments longer and then turned her back to him once more. Winter had arrived early in Crystal Lake. He was dismissed.
Wyatt whistled. “See what I mean? Heavy vibes.”
Yeah, Boone thought grumpily. But not the good ones.
Chapter Seven
It was an hour after Boone arrived with Emily, and Poppy was still upset, or annoyed or something else entirely. It was irrational to be like this, she knew, and yet the sight of Emily next to Boone twisted her up in a way she found hard to deal with.
What the hell was happening to her?
“You okay?” Blue asked gently, moving next to Poppy. They were on the upper deck, and Blue leaned her elbows on the railing and waited. Poppy was grateful that her overlarge glasses still hid half her face, because Blue was, if anything, intuitive.
“I’m fine,” she replied lightly, turning from the sight of Boone and Emily.
“They’re only friends. You know that, right?”
Damn her and her intuition. Poppy shrugged. “Not that I care, but Boone Avery isn’t just ‘friends’ with the ladies. He’s never been that guy.”
Blue was silent for a few moments. “But the Boone you know is a boy from, what, ten? Fifteen years ago? Maybe he’s changed.”
“Since when did you become his champion?” She glanced at her friend, more curious than anything.
“Look, I’m not from around here, and I don’t know a lot about all you townies and your history and stuff. But if Cam says he’s a good guy, then I believe Cam knows he’s a good guy. Last night, he…”
“He what?” She looked up sharply.
“I kind of gave him a hard time, told him to back off and give you some space. And he did, but truthfully, it seemed like he wanted to fix things. Like he was sorry for being such a dick all those years ago.” Blue offered a small smile. “It was a long time ago, and you were both kids. I know that doesn’t take away from the hurt. I’m not trying to diminish what he did to you. Trust me, I know how much the past can haunt the future.”
“If he cared so much about wanting to make things right, then why did he leave with Emily?” Embarrassed, she looked away. God, she sounded like a spoiled child, but Poppy couldn’t seem to help herself.
“I think because he’s a good guy and wanted to make sure she got home safely.” Blue pushed off from the railing. “Look, you’ve been dancing around him since he got back to town, first avoiding him like the plague, and now you’re freezing him out. I’m all about supporting my girls, and I’ve got your back. You know that. But I think you might have him all wrong. Shouldn’t you at least find out? Give him a chance to make things right? What are you afraid of?”
“I’m afraid of him,” she admitted softly, focus back on Boone as he laughed at something one of the guys said. His son clung to his legs and looked up at the man as if he was the entire world. Boone ruffled the top of Benji’s head and pulled him closer. “I’m afraid of wanting more. I’m afraid that he was the one for me. That I’ll never again feel the way I did that summer.” She sighed as a jolt of loneliness shot through her. “And I want to,” she whispered. So badly, it hurts.
“Then you’ve got two options the way I see it.” Blue gave her a hug. “I don’t think you’ll ever have a chance at feeling that way with another man if you don’t banish the ghosts of that summer.” She stepped back and winked. “Or you reignite them and see what happens with a boy who’s now a man.”
Poppy thought about that as her friend disappeared inside the house, and then made her way down to the dock and boathouse. She was smart and took the long way around to avoid the crowd of men on the back lawn, but she needed some quiet. She walked around to the other side so she was completely hidden from everyone and plunked her butt on the edge, dangling her feet in the water. It was shaded here, and the water cool to the touch.
She leaned back on her elbows and closed her eyes, listening to the sounds of the party, to the voices and laughter, and the water slowly lapping up against the dock. Crystal Lake and summer were two things that would always be tied together and full of memories. She let them wash over her, let them settle in her mind until she had no choice but to remember. She used to meet Boone out at the old Booker place on the water—the family had been traveling, and no one was there—so it became their secret place to go and be alone. And it was on a night just like this one that she’d fallen in love.
“Come on,” Boone said, a lazy grin sliding across his handsome face. He beckoned and held out his hand. Poppy glanced back into the dark that surrounded the boathouse, unsure, a little afraid and more than a little excited. In fact, her body was thrumming with energy and the need to be with this boy, who wasn’t really a boy anymore. He was on the cusp of something bigger, and the whispers of college and a scholarship and playing pro ball were on a lot of lips in town. The thought was one she pushed away as quickly as it came. She didn’t want to think about a future that didn’t include him. Not now. Not when she’d tasted his lips and felt his touch. Her young body and mind responded to him with all the fire of a thousand suns, and she’d never felt this alive.