Chapter 24
Chapter Twenty-Four
SEVEN YEARS AGO
Waverly
Why did I even come this year? The beach house felt abandoned and empty when I got here, and Angie and the rest of the family were nowhere to be found. I dumped my bags in my room and poked around. Adam’s bedroom was a disaster, Angie’s room had two bags on the bed. But seeing Lukas’s empty room crushed me. Maybe something came up, and he met a girl and decided to stay in Seattle.
The bartender smiles at me. “ID?”
Why’s he asking? I’ve been coming here for years and he never checked before. I’m pretty sure he wants to serve me legally this time.
“Vodka cranberry?”
I nod and people watch for a few minutes. There’s a bunch of girls, already super drunk and screaming ‘Woooo’ every time a new song comes on the radio. A few bros in polo shirts playing pool. A table near the bathroom hosts the old timers. They’ve been coming to the same bar for fifty years. And the table by the jukebox has been taken over by a group of bikers currently laughing loudly about something.
“Hi.” The voice interrupting my observations comes from a guy, conventionally attractive, unassuming, as he leans on the bar right into my personal bubble.
“Hi.” I say back, but instantly a thousand red flags kick in. Maybe it’s the way he rubs his chin as his eyes settle on my cleavage, but I don’t like him.
“You’re Waverly Mcleod, right?” He flashes his teeth like he’s a wolf and I’m a bunny.
Get out.
I narrow my gaze and cross my arms. “No.”
Yuck, go away.
“Don’t lie. Adam already told me your name.”
The bartender comes back and slides my drink toward me. Creepy guy puts his hand over the top of the glass to hand it to me. He whispers, “The things I will do to you.”
I can’t tell if I heard him correctly over another round of ‘Wooo’ coming from the corner, but his tone is menacing, and every alarm in my head screams. “Um, I need to go.”
I’m not sure if I said the words aloud, but he grabs my arm and pulls in closer, his breath so minty it burns my eyes. As I stare at the audacity he has to touch me, I notice a mushroom birthmark. It’s the only thing interesting about him.
“Love, I saved you a seat.” An arm wraps around my waist, at the same time the new voice infuses a deep sense of safety and comfort in my mind. Lukas stands there, towering over me, glaring at the creepy guy. I pull my arm away from the mushroom guy’s clutches and step closer to my Seattle protector.
There’s a silent battle happening between the two men, until the creepy guy throws his hands up in the air and steps back. Lukas motions to the bar. “Waverly, don’t forget your drink.”
I grab the glass out of his hand and Lukas steps between us, adding an extra layer of protection as he walks me over to bikers.
“You okay, love?” Lukas growls.
I nod, looking at his scruffy chin and clenched jaw. “I’m better now that you’re here.”
As we get to the table, the bikers stop talking. I realize my yellow sundress with little pink flowers all over it doesn’t match the black leather and shirtless men’s aesthetic.
Lukas clears his throat. “I tattooed a few of these guys, they’re buying me a beer.” That’s when I noticed the saran wrapped arms and thighs.
There’s a man with a gray beard and a scar over his eye. All his tattoos on his arms are in various states of fade. I gasp at the hammerhead shark.
“It’s beautiful.” I glance at Lukas, whose cheeks turn red, then back at the biker, who nudges a chair toward me “Do you mind?” I ask, leaning closer to his arm. “The linework and shading are absolutely incredible.” I meet the biker’s hazel gaze. “Is there a story behind why you picked it?”
The biker shifts and his nose starts to pinken. “Name’s Teddy, and I will tell you all about it, but first, hand me your drink.”
I hand him the glass and he pours it on the ground, splashing Vodka and cranberry on his calf and shoes. "Can’t be too careful. He might‘ve slipped something in it.” Behind me, Lukas says thank you and nods. “The Hammerhead was my partner’s spirit animal.”
Teddy proceeds to regale us with stories about his time on the road with his partner. He’s about to tell me all about why he has a goat in a tutu tattoo, when the mood at the table shifts instantly.
“Waverly, what the hell are you doing over here?” Adam’s polo shirt collar popped up in all the wrong ways.
“Just talking with my friends.” I wave to the leather clad men, and they all raise their glasses to me.
Adam pinches the bridge of his nose. “Come sit with us. You don’t need to hang out with human garbage.” The men square their shoulders and Adam adds, “No offense.”
“It’s hard not to be offended by that,” Lukas grumbles.
“Come on, Waverly. Keith isn’t finished talking to you.” Adam motions over to the creepy guy.
“No, thank you.”
“He’s really well connected and goes to Stanford with me.”
I shrug. “You can go to an Ivy League school and still be a shitty person. Or you can be human garbage and be kind, considerate, and tell incredible stories.” The bikers cheer. I wiggle my fingers. “Good night.” As another thought hits me, I grab his arm before he turns away. “And if Keith ever tries to talk to me again, I’ll have my family kill you in your sleep.” I wink. “Have a nice night.”
Adam swallows and walks across the room. My biker friends give me fist bumps and high fives across our beer soaked table before diving back into more stories that keep me entertained for the evening. I’m so engrossed in their tales, I never ever notice when Adam and his polo friends leave the bar.
Around one in the morning, Lukas laces his fingers with mine. “Let’s go for a walk, love.”
The boardwalk has thinned out, and aside from some loud wooing and yelling, most people are lost in their own little lives.
“I didn’t think you were coming this summer,” I say, squeezing his hand.
Lukas leads me toward the shore. “Why would you think that?”
“Because you hate flying.” My feet sink into the sand as the salty air blows my hair back and the crashing waves drown out all other sounds.
He steps in front of me, pushing the stray strands of hair out of my face. His hand rests on my cheek. “I like you more than I hate flying.”
He presses his lips to mine and I melt in his embrace. I’ve been waiting, hoping for this confession for years. He calls and texts a few times a week. We’ve always stayed close, but tonight everything is different.
I have three drafts of an email, but I keep chickening out. What if he thinks it’s stupid? What if this is a fun summer fling that morphed into habit instead of something real? When his lips part from mine, the words fall out. “There’s a master’s research program at the University of Washington. I need to take a few more classes, but I can apply in December.”
“Is this something you want, love?”
“It’s an amazing opportunity.”
He’s silent for a moment, and I can’t read his expression. His brows are furrowed, but they’re always like that. His chest rises and falls. “If you were in Seattle, I wouldn't have a reason to come to the East Coast anymore.”
My heart swells, my whole body is on fire. This time, I kiss him, pressing my body against his. The wind blows my skirt to the side, but his hand on my hips keeps the dress from doing anything indecent.
He presses his head to mine. “It’ll save me a couple grand a year, too.”
I tilt my head like a dog trying to understand why she’s not getting any food. “Huh?”
“I’ve been paying for my own flight out here since I was seventeen.”
I do the math. “But that’s the summer after we started…”
His lips curl up. “What a strange coincidence.”
This is real. It’s been real the whole time. The words my brain screams every time I read any of his text messages or hear his voice on the phone stop short of my lips.
“Why aren’t you staying at the house?” I like curling up in bed with him, finding ways to sneak off, just the two of us.
His lips curl from a smirk into a full wolf grin. “I’ve spent the last 350 days thinking about all the things I would do to you when I saw you. And damn if it’s not taking all my restraint not to fuck you on this beach.”
I sneer. “Oh, that sounds terrible, I don’t want sand down there.”
He laughs. “I’m well aware, love. But tonight I’m gonna hear you scream my name at the top of your lungs when I make you come, and you can’t if we’re at the house.”
My body tingles with anticipation, and I smile. “I like that plan.”
“I figured you would.”