“I am not afraid of heights. The ladder had a loose rung, and it broke.”
Beck guffaws. “Yeah, the rung probably broke from the vibrations of his knees, they were shaking so bad.” Everyone except me laughs as Beck stands and wobbles his knees.
“Sit, little brother. That is not at all true.”
“Yeah, it is,” he says.
“You want to take this outside?”
Beck laughs. “You’ve been working so hard, brother, I can probably take you down with one hand.”
“Oh, that reminds me, the permits for the U-Pick have finally come in. We can open as early as next week when the first crop is ready.”
“Dude, again,” Beck says. “All work and no play. You need to get out and have some fun.”
“What do you guys do for fun around here?” Alyson asks. “I’ve been so busy, I’ve barely looked up.”
Mom claps her hands. “Then it’s settled. Jay will take you to the Shore Club for their weekly Saturday night dance.”
“I don’t dance,” I grumble, but when Alyson’s eyes light with hope, my resolve caves. She has been working nonstop, and doesn’t everyone deserve a little fun every now and then? Surely to God, one night out with my friends isn’t going to change her mind and keep her here.
And I really shouldn’t be wishing it would.
I am so fucked.
“Go,” Mom says and waves us off. “The boys and I will do the dishes.”
Alyson pushes up from the table. “Thanks, Barbara, and when my house is livable again, I’m cooking for all you guys. I’m hoping to be back in tomorrow,” she says and my stomach clenches. Goddammit, I’ve gotten used to falling into bed with her every night and, more importantly, waking up with her every morning, and nothing good can come from that. Nothing good at all.
I stand and shake my head. How did I get roped into this dance again? I follow Alyson outside and turn to her. “You really want to go?”
“Your brother is right. You’ve been working too hard, burning the candle at both ends.” She gives me a little smirk, and I grin.
“You’re one to talk.”
“Yeah, but you’ve been helping me put out those fires every night, so I’m not complaining.”
I smack her ass. “Come on.”
We hurry inside my cabin, and thirty minutes later, I squeeze into a small parking spot at the club.
“This place is packed.”
I glance at her, and her eyes are wide with excitement. “You went out a lot back home?”
She nods. “Yeah, pretty much every weekend. I guess I was known to have a good time, never one to take anything seriously.” Her smile is twisted, a sadness beneath it when she says, “Always the life of the party, always one to have fun with.” She shakes her head, as if to clear it. “I guess I need to take myself seriously before anyone else does.”
My heart squeezes. She’s clearly been hurt, and for some reason, I want to hunt the guy down and beat the shit out of him. “From what I’ve seen, you take yourself very seriously, Alyson.”
She laughs, but it holds no humor. “Come on, Jay. What you’ve seen is me at my worst, so many times I’m too embarrassed to even count.”
I touch her hair, and when she turns to me, her mood changes. She inhales deeply, her gaze going to my mouth. “You’re trying, and that’s what counts.”
“Jay.”
“Yeah.”
“You can kiss me now.”
I chuckle, lean into her, and press my lips to hers. She tastes like honey and goodness and everything sweet. I should have kept my distance. I shouldn’t have bet against her. How the hell did I ever get into this situation with her? I am such a dumbass.
Her tongue slides into my mouth, and all the reasons I shouldn’t be doing this dissolve like honey in hot tea.
“Mmm,” she says but quickly pulls back when a car horn blares. I run the back of my finger over my lips, her taste still lingering there. “You don’t think anyone saw us, do you?”
“No.”
She frowns. “Do you think your mom and brothers know what we’ve been doing?”
“I don’t know. Sometimes I think so and other times, like this, them pushing us together, I don’t know.”
“You think that’s what this is all about?”
“Yeah.” Then I remember Mom saying Alyson wasn’t right for me. “I don’t know. I just don’t want them getting the wrong idea only to end up getting hurt again.”