in my embrace. I caught her with a swing and a kiss, one I wanted to deepen, but kept brief and PG-13 since her friends were here.
“Happy Fourth!” she said, her smile the widest I’d seen it since I’d known her.
“Happy Fourth,” I repeated on a chuckle. “Someone’s excited.”
“We’re going out on a friggin’ boat,” she said, gesturing to the thirty-nine-foot luxury sailboat behind me. “And there will be fireworks.”
“And hot dogs!” Gemma chimed in, holding up her hand until I slapped it. “’Sup, Makoa. Nice to see you.”
“You, too. Although I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone get so excited about eating hot dogs before.”
“Don’t even get her started,” Zach warned from her side, smiling down at her when she leaned up to kiss his cheek. He unwrapped his arm from around her then, extending his hand for mine. “I’m Zach, Gemma’s fiancé.”
“Mak,” I said, giving his hand a firm shake.
“Aww! Zach and Mak,” Gemma said, threading her arm through Belle’s. “I smell a bromance brewing.”
Zach and I exchanged looks, and he shook his head, releasing my hand. “I wish I had the right words to warn you what it’s like being with these two outside of the office, but I don’t think I could even if I tried.”
“We’re adorable and you love us,” Belle sang, pinching Zach’s cheek.
“That’s one way to put it,” Zach mumbled under his breath, which earned him a chuckle from me. His eyes scanned the boat next, and he let out a long whistle, sliding his hands into the pockets of his navy board shorts. “Thanks for doing this, man. I haven’t been on a boat in years. This thing is massive.”
“Just wait until you see the wet bar downstairs. Come on,” I said, gesturing to the boat. “Let’s get onboard and check it out.”
Zach took Gemma’s hand, helping her onboard before I did the same with Belle. We spent the first half hour getting the full tour from the captain and being introduced to the crew who would be onboard with us for the day. When the girls had mimosas in hand and Zach and I were fixed up with Bloody Marys, we took a seat in the cockpit and off we went.
It was fascinating, being in a place where summer was so highly coveted. Growing up on the island, we really only had two seasons — summer and winter — and the only difference between the two was that the daily high went down about seven degrees in the winter. Overall, though, we had pleasant weather year-round, and it was the same when I lived in California.
But in Chicago? Summer was everything.
I smiled as I watched Belle and Gemma drink and laugh, each of them taking turns telling us stories from their youth. Zach would chime in from time to time to tell his own story about what he’d learned about them in the past couple of years. All the while, we were waited on by the boat staff, never without a drink in our hand, and the closer we got to noon, the stronger the smell of barbecue came from the grill hooked onto the side of the boat.
Belle assured me that after one winter spent in Illinois, I’d understand why days like this were so cherished.
As it was, I was cherishing it even without knowing what it would be like to face the brutal temperatures and snowfall.
Mostly because she was here, and she was happy, and that was all that mattered to me.
After lunch, Zach and I got on the topic of football. I played it cool, mostly talking about the teams I loved and how I used to play in high school. That’s when I discovered that he also used to play back in the day. He didn’t elaborate on why he stopped playing, but somewhere along the way, our conversation about that Friday night lights feeling, and how we felt after our first concussions, turned into which romantic comedy was the best of all time.
I wish I was joking.
“Bro, there’s no contesting this,” Zach said adamantly, abandoning his beer on the table so he could lean forward to emphasize his point. “Silver Linings Playbook is the best romantic comedy of all time. Period. End of story.”
“It’s a fantastic film, I agree,” I said. “And maybe Bradley Cooper’s best role. But,” I added, holding up a finger. “I’m sorry, man. Nothing beats 10 Things I Hate About You.”
Zach threw his hands up. “You’re kidding, right? Please tell me you