I grinned up at him, trying not to think too much about the loss of contact. “Oh, really? Impossible?” I teased. “Bet you’ll be begging to be friends with me now.”
And then something truly breathtaking happened.
Wesley’s lips widened into a full smile, his eyes crinkling in the corners. What I would’ve done to capture his smile in a photo. “Sure, baby, I’ll beg if you want me to.”
I let out an airy laugh, speechless. I was glad it was dark out, because maybe that meant he couldn’t see the heat creeping up my cheeks.
He turned to face the railing, and I did the same, looking out at the water. The lake looked different than it did during the day but just as peaceful. I viewed Wesley in a different light now, too. He’d shown me pieces of himself today I hadn’t expected, pieces that helped me understand him.
My palms were wrapped around the railing. He inched his hand closer and hooked his pinky around mine, his dark eyes focused ahead.
As the first fireworks lit up the night sky and crackled above us, I couldn’t tell if the booming I felt was from the bursts of light or if it was my heart pounding in my chest.
I liked Wesley Richards, and that was a problem.
24
WESLEY
“Earth to Wesley.”Eliza waved her hand in front of my face. “Dude, you look exhausted. Did you not get enough sleep or something?”
Or something.
A beautiful brunette with bright-green eyes had been occupying my mind ever since we watched fireworks together a few nights ago. But, truthfully, she’d been in my thoughts long before then.
I sighed, shaking my head. “I’m fine. It’s been a long day.”
She raised her brows. “It’s eleven in the morning. The day just started.”
“I got up early today, so it’s been a long day for me,” I gritted. I ran a hand through my hair, tugging on the strands. “What’s with the interrogation?”
“Ah, I see.” Eliza nodded with understanding, a sly smile on her face. “You weren’t able to get good sleep, so you got up early to start your day.”
“Exactly. I?—”
“And that’s because you haven’t been able to stop thinking about Jules.”
Louise, who was a few feet away from us, snorted.
I narrowed my eyes at Eliza. “That’s not what—” I waved my hand to dismiss whatever she was conjuring up in her mind. “Never mind. Let’s get back to onboarding.” Eliza was basically a third little sister to me, so it wasn’t unusual for her to be giving me a hard time. I just didn’t like how she was right.
I had spent too much time these last few days overthinking my evening with Jules and if us opening up to each other changed anything. I saw her differently now. I knew more about her. But she was still only here for the summer, and I didn’t want to fall for someone who was only here temporarily. Golden Falls was my home—I had no plans on leaving and no plans on giving up my dreams with Lake Ridge.
But, for the first time in a long time, I wondered what it would be like if things were different. If I initiated texts with Juliette or even stopped by the cabin to see her. If I gave in to that temptation.
I even told her the full story about what happened with Gretchen and my doubts about being enough or how jarring it was that the person I was seeing was lying to me and keeping secrets. The way I was seen as an escape. It wasn’t until Juliette came into town that I realized how much my time with Gretchen had impacted me and closed me off from the world.
I didn’t want to be like that. I didn’t need to be everyone’s best friend, but I also didn’t want to be the guy who was constantly in a bad mood, constantly doubting people’s intentions.
I thought I had been in love with Gretchen, but time made me realize I wasn’t. Because you can’t be in love with someone you don’t know. Love was about seeing and appreciating all sides of a person—even during the tough times—and choosing them first. Every damn time. That wasn’t what we had. Not even close.Gretchen had never been a real part of my life, because she didn’t want to be.
It was such a contrast to the way Juliette lived. She was fully embracing Golden Falls and wanted to be a part of it in every way she could, whether that was getting to know the locals, doing her freelance design work, spending time on the boat, or being friends with my sister. She was this town’s missing piece.
Which was exactly why I’d been keeping my distance from her this week. I wasn’t avoiding her. Seriously, I wasn’t. She was likely busy, anyway. Lily said there were a few business owners who wanted to work with Jules, as well as another couple of residents who wanted her help decorating their rental properties.
Yes, I’d gone to my sister to ask for an update on how Juliette was doing. And to see if she’d asked about me. I’d done it discreetly—or so I hoped. Otherwise, Lily wouldn’t let me live it down.
I tipped my chin toward the drink station, focusing back on the training Eliza and I had been doing. “If someone ordered a 7 and 7, what would that be?”
