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“Damn straight.”
“What did I miss?” Isla asked as she sat down in the empty chair on the other side of her grandma.
“Only a delicious s’more, and no I’m not sharing.” Mrs. Garrick had only taken one bite, but she held onto that s’more like it was a lifeline. She might not have been able to eat it, but that didn’t matter. The reward to a s’more had always been getting to eat it but thinking back to that first time and all the times after, it was more than just the eating. It was so much more. It was about the cool night breeze off the bay, the warmth of the fire after a day in the sun, and the friends beside her.
Harper took a second to take it all in as she knew Mrs. Garrick was doing. Happiness filled her heart as she saw the chocolate outlining Tom’s mouth and the permanent smile on his face after a day of slip and slide, water balloon fights, and all the chocolate and marshmallows he could eat. She looked at Mrs. Garrick and Isla then across the fire to Olivia who was curled in Shane’s lap.
This. This was what it was all about. The little moments that in the end would be the big moments. At seven, she never thought that moment would be a memory she’d hold with her for her entire life, but it was. She never realized how something so simple could not only mean so much but helped shaped her as a person. She remembered vowing to have s’mores every summer that year, and she had. She might not have remembered why, but that desire to have a s’more had been strong the minute the weather turned warm.
Her lip quirked at the corner as it dawned on her that Milo made sure every Memorial Day party he had, from the very first one, there were s’mores. He’d been contributing and helping her honor the vow she made at seven without even knowing. Or did he know? She’d always assumed the s’mores were just another part of the summer tradition, but what if it was more than that? What if Milo did it for her?
Her heart clenched at the thought, but she quickly forced the thought away. Even if he did have s’mores at his party with her in mind, it was because she was his best friend. There was nothing more to it. So why did a part of her wish that there was?
She sensed him before she saw him or heard him. Her eyes snapped up and landed directly on him. He’d put a hoodie on since the last time she’d seen him.
“We all enjoying the s’mores?” he asked.
“Yes!” Tom cheered, and the smile that filled Milo’s face tugged at Harper’s heartstrings.
“Is there any left for me?” Milo joked.
Harper held up her stick. “You can use mine.”
Milo moved toward her; his eyes locked on hers as he took the stick in his hand. His finger brushed hers, and she felt it to her very core. “Thanks.”
Isla grabbed the bag of marshmallows and handed them to Milo. He took two out—typical—and put both on the stick. He bent down in front of the fire, the flames highlighting the strong lines of his jaw. Since all the chairs were taken, he sat back on his heels not even bothering to get up.
Harper squeezed to the left side of her chair. “There’s room for you here.” They’d shared chairs together many times, nothing was different, except for the fact that they had sex…twice. But who was counting?
He hesitated for a second but finally sat beside her. He kept to his side, which was an impossible task considering the size of the chair. Every now and again his thigh pressed against hers. She could feel his warmth radiating off him and wrapping around her like a familiar blanket.
She wanted to snuggle into his side—something she wouldn’t have thought twice about before, but things were different now, whether they wanted to admit it or not. She wanted the best of both worlds, but it was hard to maintain their usual sense of normalcy now that she knew how he could make her body feel with a simple look.
Her body practically went up in flames earlier in the kitchen right before he took her against the refrigerator. And when he touched her… Her inner thighs tingled at the memory. It was pure torture sitting next to him, unable to kiss him or touch him the way she wanted to.
She focused her attention on the flames, and out of the corner of her eye caught Tom grabbing for two more marshmallows. He immediately noticed her eyes on him, and he froze. A smile spread across his face, and he covered his mouth with his hand, but that didn’t muffle the giggles that rose to the surface.
“I think you’ve had enough,” she said. “You’re not going to be able to sleep with all that sugar.”
“Oh, just let him have one more.” Milo’s breath glided over her ear like a tender caress.
“Yeah, let me have one more,” Tom said.
Harper glanced over her shoulder at Milo whose face was much closer than she realized. Their eyes locked, and her breath caught in her throat. Milo tilted his head and pouted his lip. “Just one.”
She rolled her eyes and gave him a shove to the chest before turning back to Tom. “One more.” Tom cheered his victory and quickly slid a marshmallow on his stick.
Dusk turned to night, and there were only a few stragglers left. Isla had left to bring her grandmother home and Milo had promised her something about the beach. She’d have to ask him later. He had abandoned their shared chair to walk people to their cars and wave them off. Though, she knew he was really checking to make sure they were sober and okay to drive.
A cold breeze flittered through the air, and Harper pulled on her sweatshirt. Olivia and Shane were heading out and she walked them to their car.
“Have you put any more thought into those flyers?” Liv asked.
Harper sighed. “Do you ever take a day off from pestering?”
“No,” Shane said without skipping a beat which earned him a playful elbow to the stomach.
“You know how I get when I think something is a good idea, and this is a good idea. You deserve to get your name out there, to get more customers. Don’t sell yourself short.”
