One Tiny Lie – Jennifer Youngblood Page 0,18

of his shirt. He was the epitome of a Ralph Lauren or Abercrombie and Fitch commercial—casual elegance at its finest. Luna looked at Margot and realized with a jolt that she, too, was checking Hudson out. Margot’s face turned red as she met Luna’s eyes and offered a slight smile of apology. To which, Luna only scowled. She then shifted in her seat, turning her face to the cool wind as the boat cut through the choppy water with a series of jumps that jerked her stomach.

“Are you doing okay?” Hudson yelled.

Luna realized he was talking to her. “I’m doing great,” she answered with a smile.

“You took your medicine, right?” he asked.

“Sure did,” she answered loudly, so that her voice would carry over the wind. Actually, she’d only pretended to take it. While Luna had only been on a boat a couple of times in her life, she’d not gotten sick. She could see how all the jarring would wreak havoc on a person who struggled with seasickness. The boat seemed to settle into a steady rhythm of moving up and down as it slid over the waves. Hudson had used the motor to push them away from the dock, but once they got into open water, he raised the sails. The burst of power that Luna felt when the wind caught the sails was exhilarating. She loved the wind in her hair and how it kissed her cheeks. Sailing was invigorating.

“Mind if I take the wheel?” Dustin asked.

“Not right now,” Hudson answered easily, but Luna caught a faint note of tension in his voice. Rightly so. Dustin could pester the hind legs off a mule. Ever since they’d left the dock, he’d been trying to dictate to Hudson how to operate the sailboat. The guy was intolerable, always trying to one-up everyone, bragging about how much better his boat was than The Windswept. Luna suspected that Margot had invited Dustin to come along because she knew that the overgrown frat boy had a crush on Luna … or Ava, rather. Maybe Margot wanted to throw in a distraction so she could make a move on Hudson. Luna steeled her jaw. Over my dead body!

“Come on, man,” Dustin egged. “You’ve gotta let me have a go at it.” His voice had a whiny, nasally pitch to it. “I’m used to my larger, faster vessel. This one will be a piece of cake to navigate.” He talked with his hands as he spoke. Luna noticed how soft and smooth they were, suggesting that Dustin had never done a day’s worth of manual labor in his life.

“I don’t have to do anything,” Hudson said with a warning edge.

Luna bit back a smile, pleased to note that she and Hudson were on the same page—both super annoyed with Dustin.

Dustin’s face fell. His sullen expression reminded Luna of a toad.

“But I will let you have a go after lunch,” Hudson promised.

Dustin muttered something under his breath.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t catch that,” Hudson said. His muscles were pulled taut, indicating that he was about two shakes away from stepping across the boat and pummeling Dustin. Luna felt a twinge of guilt for hoping that Hudson would do just that, so he’d shut Dustin up.

“I said that’s cool, man,” Dustin said easily, but there was an underlying nervousness to his voice.

Margot sat up. “Lunch?” Her eyes rounded. “Oh, no. I didn’t bring us anything.” She looked at Dustin. “I’m sorry.”

Dustin just scowled.

“It’s okay,” Hudson said with a beleaguered sigh. “We don’t mind sharing.”

Luna gave Margot a withering look.

“What?” Margot blustered. “I’m sorry.” She rolled her eyes. “Sheesh. I didn’t think it would be a big deal if we came. Normally, you practically beg me to come along on your outings, so you won’t have to be alone with Hudson.”

Luna saw red. She looked at Hudson, whose face had gone whiter than the paint on the outside of the boat. The hurt in his eyes cut her to the bone. “That’s not true,” she fired back, glowering at Margot. She chose her words carefully, enunciating every single one so there would be no mistaking her intent. “In the past, that may have been the case.”

“May have been?” Margot scoffed with amusement.

Luna soldiered on, fixing her gaze on Hudson. The wind whipped her hair into her face, stinging her skin. She caught it at her nape and held it as she spoke. “Before, I did a lot of things I’m not proud of.” She paused, hoping the gravity