Summer Ever After: A Sweet Romantic Comedy

Chapter 30

“Walker!”Dill O’Donnell waves at me as I cross the street. “I saw you on TV last weekend. It looked like you had a pretty good tournament.”

“Yeah, I finished ninth.”

“Can’t complain about that.” He slaps me on the back as we walk toward the town square.

“No, you can’t.”

Mick, Pete, myself…we were all happy to finish the tournament in the top ten. That’s where I started on Saturday, and the fact that I didn’t completely lose my cool and blow my lead by Sunday afternoon was a huge win for me. I’m making strides, which helps build my confidence for the British Open in two weeks.

“You headed to find Jane at the pancake breakfast?” I’m pretty sure Dill suspects Jane and I are a couple after rescuing us when we were stranded on her boat.

But he couldn’t be more wrong.

“No, I’m meeting my sister Tala and her family.”

“I hope they saved you a place in line.” He points up ahead at the crowd of people waiting to get their pancakes. “The Fourth of July bash always has a good turnout.”

“Yeah, I remember.”

“I’m headed to save our spot for the parade.” Dill keeps walking ahead. “Enjoy the festivities.”

“You too.” I shove my hands in my pockets and spin around, looking for Tala and Heath.

“Walker!” Tala sees me first. “Up here. We saved you a spot.”

“Uncle Walker!” Serenity jumps into my arms the second I join them in line.

“Hey, pretty girl.” I tug on the huge flag bow on her ponytail. “I like your Fourth of July outfit.”

“Thanks. It’s new.” She wiggles out of my arms, pointing at her baby brother in his infant seat. “Lucas and Jack have matching shirts.”

Jack puffs his chest out, pulling his flag shirt out for me to see.

“Dude, you look awesome.”

Tala smiles at me. “When did you get back on the island?”

“I got here last night. I stopped in Jupiter after Detroit, just for a day.”

“We’re glad to have you here.” Tala bumps me with her hip. “I can’t remember the last time you were home for a Sunset Harbor Fourth of July bash.”

“Senior year of high school. And even then, I doubt I woke up for the pancakes or the parade.”

“They’re just cold pancakes with cold syrup,” Heath mutters. “Nothing to get excited about.”

“Don’t mind him. He’s a warm-syrup snob.”

“Everyone should be,” he defends his stance. “Pancakes taste better with warm syrup. It shouldn’t be that hard to figure out.”

“Where’s Capri?” I glance around.

“She should be here any minute with Tristan.”

Annoyance flickers through my eyes. “Are they, like, a thing now?”

“I don’t think they’re telling people yet.” Tala frowns at my sober expression. “Does it bother you that something’s happening between them?”

“A little.”

“Why?”

Why does my sister’s happiness bother me?

I could give the easy answer and say it’s because I’ve never liked Tristan Palmer. But even that’s not a good reason, since disliking him was always about teenage Tristan telling me to be nicer to Capri and me wanting him to butt out.

He was right, but none of that matters now. I think the real reason I’m bothered about their relationship is because Capri won’t endorse me for Jane. It’s annoying.

I adjust my hat over my hair. “It doesn’t matter what I think. Capri can date who she wants.”

I wish that statement were true for me.

“Alright, kids, look alive.” Tala tugs on Serenity and Jack to pay attention. “We’re almost to the front of the line.”

My stomach dances with anticipation at the thought of seeing Jane.

I’ve missed her.

I’ve had half the week to think about our phone call last Friday night. I know she said not to complicate an already complicated situation, but what if I can’t leave well enough alone?

There’s always this fine line with Jane, this compromise between what my ego wants me to do, what life experience tells me to do, and what my nerves let me do.

My ego wants to say the heck with Capri and the fact that I’m leaving next week and press a frantic kiss to her mouth. But life experience tells me I’m not the kind of guy who can give Jane everything she wants, and I don’t want to let her down or break her heart when I leave. And then there are my nerves: what can I actually work up the courage to do or say when she’s standing in front of me? It changes every second, based on whether or not she pulls me in or pushes me away.

But there’s no point in overthinking my feelings. I just want to spend time with Jane. She’s dopamine for my brain. Why would I try to stay away from that?

Rapid heartbeats fire one after the other the second I get a glimpse of her. She rarely wears her hair up, so today’s messy bun has me wishing I could drop my lips to the base of her throat and kiss a trail up her neck.

Since our kiss last week, I’ve been having all sorts of fantasies about holding Jane in my arms and pressing my mouth to hers. Day and night, mid-tournament, or downtime…the thoughts don’t stop. Why would a family-friendly pancake breakfast be any different? This can’t be a healthy way to live.

She tugs her oversized blue Oh My Stars T-shirt away from her chest like she’s trying to get some air. The corner is tied into a knot, showing a peek of her torso that’s both incredibly cute and sexy—I’m the one who’s going to be fanning myself all day.

“Heath, get some food for my grandma.” Tala hands him two paper plates. “She’s sitting over in the shade.”

“Well, if it isn’t my favorite family!” Jane beams as she plops some pancakes onto Jack’s and Serenity’s plates. Her gaze moves to me. Despite just wanting to be friends, her eyes light up, and her lips lift into a smile that kills me. “And my favorite pro golfer,” she says as she slides a few pancakes onto my plate.

I smile back. I wouldn’t even be able to stop myself if I wanted to. “Look at you, running the show.”

“Oh, no.” She gestures behind her to the grill. “Marlyss is the real chef.”

The line next to me moves, and it’s clear I need to move with it, but that takes me farther away from Jane—a place I don’t want to be.

I hand my plate to Heath, making him juggle the third addition to his pile. “It looks like you guys could use more hands back there.” I crawl under the table, popping up on the other side, next to her. “I’m a great helper.”

“Alright, then.” Her smile grows. “You can be over egg distribution.”

“Alright.” I grin, knowing there’s absolutely no way I can just be friends with this woman.

I think my ego is going to win out here.

I’ve always said the Fourth of July is the most underrated holiday for falling in love.

There’s food.

Games.

Dancing.

Sparklers.

And the most romantic part of all: fireworks.

I”m blaming my Fourth of July theory for the flirty way I’m gazing up at Walker right now. He’s wearing his sponsor hat—which we’ve already established makes him look crazy-hot—navy golf shorts, and a fitted white T-shirt. Really, his outfit is basic, but there’s nothing basic about how my stomach dips every time I glance at him.

“So you’re in town?” I half expected not to see him again until the community pool golf fundraiser next week.

“I’m in town.” He scoops a side of eggs onto the girl’s plate in front of him while also eyeing me with a smirk. “I’m still testing your theory about hanging out with my family more.”

“That’s good. You should keep hanging out with them.” I hit the stack of pancakes with my spatula, an easy way to get rid of some of the sexual tension I feel from Walker’s shoulder brushing against mine. “Congratulations on the golf tournament, by the way. I heard you finished ninth.”

I didn’t hear.

I watched it live while I worked on the schedule for the golf fundraiser. I knew it would be kryptonite for my heart, but I did it anyway. And can I just tell you how fond I am of his fist pump when he makes a crucial putt? It’s next-level attractive. There may have been some rewinding involved.

“Thanks, I was proud of finishing ninth.”

“Walker Collins, proud of something other than first place?”

“I know it’s a big step for me, right?”

“It’s a good step.” My gaze meets his. “You should be proud.”

“What about you? How did your date with Noah go?”

I shift my attention to the little boy holding out his empty plate to me. “It was great! A ton of fun!”

“Good for you guys.”

“Actually”—my shoulders drop in defeat—“I was miserable the entire time.”

His mouth slowly grows into a suppressed smile. “I was miserable too.”

“You were miserable while I was on my date?” I laugh. “Why?”

“Have you seen Noah Belacourt? I mean, it’s pretty cool that I’m a pro golfer, but even I can’t keep up with Noah.”

My forehead creases in confusion, just making Walker laugh.

“I was jealous, Jane. Like, crazy-jealous when I should’ve been thinking about my golf tournament. But hey, I was able to channel my jealousy into my golf game, and I guess it paid off—especially since you didn’t fall head over heels for Noah Belacourt.”

I bite back my smile, feeling more giddiness than I should. “You and I are just friends. You shouldn’t be jealous of Noah.”

He leans in, lowering his voice into my ear. “I agreed to be friends just to make you happy, but that’s not what I want.”

A flame of heat covers my neck where his hot whispers still linger. I turn my head, putting our faces inches apart. “Friends is our only option, remember?”

His crooked smile throws my whole world off-axis. “Then let’s make a new option.”

Oh, there goes my hope, roaring to life. The small thought that maybe Walker has been the guy for me all along. And maybe, after all these years, he finally feels the same way. And maybe he’ll want to move to Sunset Harbor for me. And maybe Capri will give her blessing. In a matter of two seconds, I have our entire happy ending figured out.

That’s what hope does.

It finds a way.

“A new option?” I say, trying to keep my breathing even. It’s hard with Walker beside me, effortlessly controlling my heartbeats. “Like what?”

The flirty playfulness that sets Walker apart from every other man pours out of his eyes in waves. He leans in, lips brushing against the shell of my ear with the most dangerous whisper of all time. “I have a few ideas of what we could do.”

Shivers roll down my back.

And the fantasies crossing through my mind right now are downright indecent for a family-friendly pancake breakfast.

But I’m all ears.

Sign me up for whatever Walker has hiding behind door number three.

I owe that much to my thirteen-year-old self and my lifelong crush.

“Jane?” Mayor Barnes says over my walkie-talkie. “We need you over here. People are starting to line up for the parade.”

Walker takes a step back, showcasing a dazzling smile. “Don’t worry. I’ll handle things here.”

“You’re going to take credit for all my hard work, aren’t you?”

“Absolutely.”

I hand the spatula over and spin to leave.

“Hey,” he calls over his shoulder. “We’re not done talking. I fully expect to finish this conversation later.”

“Okay.” I smile and then dash away, not believing this is real life.

I feel like I’ve been white-knuckling my feelings for Walker the last month, trying to hang on for dear life so I don’t hurt Capri or myself. I don’t know if I’m just worn out or crazy, but I can’t hold on any longer.

I feel myself giving in.