Second Chance Summer (Chance #1)(8)
Author: Emma Hart

“I thought we could go to the lake. You know it’s on our property, and no one will see us there,” he answers. “If you want to, I mean.”

“That sounds good.” I look over at him and smile a little. His own lips twitch in response, and I tuck a wayward lock of hair behind my ear. His eyes flick toward my movement, and he fiddles with the radio for a second before gripping the steering wheel tighter.

I flick my glasses back down over my eyes and hide behind the darkness of them. His knuckles are almost white, and his hands are as weathered and rough-looking as they always have been. I drop my eyes to my lap before I think things I have no place thinking.

I’ve only been to the lake behind Reese’s house a few times, mostly for parties in senior year, a few alone times. If Hana is as bad as Luce said, it’s best no one sees us together. After all, everyone knows what happened between us last summer and nothing stays a secret in this town for long. If someone saw us alone, rumors would fly.

So the lake is the perfect place to catch up. It’s secluded by trees, and no one goes there unless he or his family okay it.

We pull up at the side of his house on a beaten track, and I get out before he can help me. I pull my shoes off and let the grass tickle my toes as I walk toward the large, clear lake.

I sit at the base of a tree and stretch my legs out, letting the red hot sun hit them. The only thing Alabama has on New York is the summer and the ability to get a decent natural tan.

“Comfy?” Reese smirks.

I look up into his warm, hazel eyes, and wriggle a little. “Now I am.”

“Great.” He laughs, sitting next to me. He hooks his arms around his knees, his biceps tensing. I tear my eyes from his body and focus on the sun glinting off the lake.

“So tell me about Hana,” I begin.

“You don’t really wanna hear about her.”

He’s right. I don’t, but I’m too nosy not to ask anything.

“No, I do. Does she really have her friends watching you?”

“Probably.” He laughs again. The rich sound wraps around me, and I relax, leaning my head back on the trunk behind me. “She’s in Europe right now with Daddy. She comes back a week or so before school starts back up, and call me an ass, but it’s kind of nice not to have her voice bleating at me every ten damn seconds.”

“Ass.” I smirk.

He winks.

“So why are you with her? Sorry, not with her. You don’t seem to like her much. I mean; that’s what I’ve been told,” I add.

“By Luce,” he guesses. “Damn! That girl is in Vegas at least nine months a year and still knows all my shit.” He shakes his head, chuckling. “I don’t like her that much. She’s just kinda… There.”

“But why is she?” I push, kinda amused. “Why would you be with someone you don’t want to be with? I don’t get it.”

Reese’s head rests back against the tree next to mine, and he turns his face toward me, leaving our noses inches apart. “Because,” he says softly. “The person I want disappeared on me, and then when she finally came back, she did it again.”

I breathe in. “Reese…”

He turns his head. “Tell me about New York.”

I don’t want to tell you about New York. I don’t want to tell you about anything that doesn’t involve your lips on mine, your hands on my skin, and your body against mine.

“It’s… New York.” I shrug. “It’s different to here – a lot. It’s nice not to be known wherever I go. I’m just one of the crowd, just another person. Sometimes that’s all I need.”

“To be unknown?”

“To live without everyone knowing each time I buy a new bra? Yeah, pretty much.” I smile, and Reese returns it.

“So you like it then? College.”

“Yeah… Its hard work, but it’ll all be worth it in the end. Nothing in life comes easily, after all. If it’s worth it, it’ll happen.”

“Wise words,” he teases.

“Something to live by,” I correct. “What about you? What’ve you been doing the last year?”

“Not much.” He shrugs. “Working, mostly. That and whatever plan Adam’s been cooking up.”

I smirk at the mention of Adam’s name and take my glasses off. “I saw him getting cozy with Stacy last night. What’s that all about?”

“Sex, as it always is.” Reese looks at me. “Y’know, I think he’s got a bit of a thing for Luce,” he adds.

I grin, chewing the arm of my glasses. “That could be interesting. She’s had a thing for him since we were thirteen.”

“No way?”

“Way.” I nod my head once and get up, his closeness starting to stifle me. I walk over to the lake and sit on the wooden dock. My bare feet slip into the water warmed by the sun, and I lean back, closing my eyes. The sun is hot on my skin, and I smile, kicking my legs slightly as I realize just how much I’ve missed this weather. When I open my eyes, Reese is standing opposite me, topless.

His tribal tattoo curves over his shoulder and down onto his bicep stopping an inch or two above his elbow. His body is lean but defined, all smooth, tanned skin with an obvious ‘v’ that drops well below his pants.

My eyes crawl back up his torso to his face. His lips twitch, his eyes showing his amusement. Slowly, he walks around the lake toward me.

I swallow, my stomach flipping. There’s a playful gleam in his eye that both excites and worries me. My eyes follow him until I have to turn my head to see him. I spin my body around as he closes in on me, not fully trusting him.

“What’s the matter, Kia?” he asks. “Don’t you trust me?”

“I would be a fool if I said yes,” I reply slowly.

“I’m only comin’ to sit next to you, baby. Don’t worry.” He flashes me a grin, dropping down next to me. His foot brushes mine underwater, and he leans back, putting a hand behind me.

“I’ve heard that before.”

I keep watching him. Watching the flick of his eyelashes as he blinks, the amused twitch of his lips, the tick in his cheek as he fights his smile. His eyes are dead set on mine, and time stretches between us. So many things unsaid; so many things to say, and so many that will never be said.

“This water is cool,” he’d said as he innocently sat down next to me.

“I’m sure it is,” I replied dryly, looking at the lake.