Maddy didn’t arrive alone. Colin walked in right behind her. I checked my watch twice to make sure I wasn’t imaging things. Colin was out of work on a weeknight at seven o’clock? Wonders never cease.

“What are you doing here?” I eyed Colin skeptically. “Was there a hurricane evacuation I was unaware of?”

“I could be asking you the same question. What are you doing here, Carly?”

“I came over looking for Maddy.”

“Uh huh.” He glanced at Macon and back at me. I got the distinct impression Maddy had mentioned the phone number exchange to him.

“And now I’ve found Maddy.” I tried to ease the slight tension. Did he really care if I hung out with Maddy’s roommates? I mean Maddy lived with these guys after all.

“I brought dessert.” Maddy held up a tray covered in tin foil.

“You baked again?” Macon asked doubtfully.

“Yes. This time I made chocolate peanut butter cookie bars.”

“It’s better than oatmeal raisin.” Macon took the tray from her and started toward the kitchen.

Maddy rested a hand on her hip. “Hey, those cookies were good.”

Colin put an arm around her. “Yes they were, babe. He knows that.” It was still weird seeing my brother in the boyfriend role.

I decided to ease the slight awkwardness that seemed to have followed Maddy and Colin in. “Is there anything I can do? Want me to set the table or something?”

“I’ll help with that too.” Maddy walked into the kitchen and handed me a pile of bowls. I got to work setting them out at their rectangular table while she folded napkins and set out the silverware. I had a brief flashback to college and setting the table for the “dinner parties” we liked to throw. We thought we were so cool and adult. I wondered how long I’d keep in touch with my college friends. My parents barely talked to theirs anymore. Then again, they barely talked to me.

“Macon, can you open the Bordeaux I have in the wine fridge?” Brody called over his shoulder.

“Wine fridge?” I looked around in surprise. “You guys have one?”

“Of course we do.” Macon bent down to open the door to what was sure enough a wine fridge hidden in the corner of the small kitchen. “We’re high class here.”

I laughed. “Yeah, I can see that.”

We all sat down around the table while Brody brought out his masterpiece. He served us all as he explained that he’d made a poulet basquaise. It was pretty much a French chicken, pepper, and tomato stew. I dug right in. It was delicious.

I took another bite. “Wow, you can really cook.”

“Glad you think so.” Brody leaned back in his chair. From his appearance I’d have never imagined he’d be the culinary type, but clearly looks can be deceiving.

I offered to clear the table, but Brody and Macon vetoed it. “Go relax, you’re a guest here.”

I shrugged and picked up my glass of wine. “If you say so.” I took a long sip of the red wine. Smooth and a little tangy, it seemed to perfectly compliment the stew.

I settled down in the same spot on the couch where I’d sat before. I eyed the remote but decided against turning the TV back on. Brody had just made us a gourmet meal. It seemed rude to follow that up with TV. Also, I’m pretty hopeless when it comes to figuring out remotes. I would end up turning off the TV twice just to figure out how to turn on the cable box.

Instead I closed my eyes and thought about the mess my life had become. I sighed.

“Do you want to go for a walk?” I opened my eyes to see Macon standing right in front of me. “I ate way too much and need to get some physical movement.”

I laughed. “You’re the second guy to ask me that this week.”

He cocked a smile. “And what did you tell the other guy?”

“No. I didn’t even know him.”

“But you know me… does that mean it’s a yes?” He turned his head to the side slightly.

“Sure. Why not?” I glanced around but didn’t see Colin. I’m sure he’d have an opinion on it, but it really didn’t matter. Still, I needed to at least tell him I was leaving.

I found him in Maddy’s room helping her pack up some more of her clothes. “Are you sure you don’t want to just pack up the last of it tonight? You stay at my place every night, aren’t you tired of having to come back and forth?”

I felt rude just standing there eavesdropping, so I interrupted. “I’m going out for a walk. I’ll either see you here or back at the house.”

Colin glanced up. “By yourself?”

“I’m going with Macon.”

He gave me his big brother scowl. “Be careful with him. He’s not the kind of guy you’re used to.”

“Because you’re an expert on the guys I hang out with?” Colin hadn’t met any of my college boyfriends. Admittedly, there were only two.

Maddy laughed. I think she enjoyed listening to our sibling banter. She had a brother too, but she never really talked about him.

Colin gave me one more long look. “Just be smart.”

Macon joined me in the doorframe. “What do you think I’m going to do to her? Seduce her out of her panties on the beach?”

I could feel the blood rush to my face. The thought of Macon and losing my underwear was too much to handle standing in my brother’s presence.

“Just shut up, Macon.” Maddy shook her head. She and Macon sounded like brother and sister themselves sometimes.

“We’ll be fine. Have a good night you two,” Macon put a hand on my shoulder and turned me toward the door. I gladly let him lead me through the condo. After a quick goodbye and thank you to Brody we headed down the steps.

“Fun dinner, huh?” Macon’s shoulder brushed against mine as we turned toward the beach. Their condo was on the ocean side of the island, and it was only steps from the sand. The nice thing about the Outer Banks is that the island is so narrow it’s hard to get too far away from the water.

“Surprisingly, yes.” I slipped off my sandals, enjoying the feel of the cool sand on my toes.

“Surprisingly?” Macon watched me the way you’d look at something you didn’t understand. Either he thought I was confusing, or he really cared about my answer. I hoped it was the latter.

I gazed out at the water, giving myself a moment before answering. “Yeah. I’m used to dinners going badly.”

“Oh really?” He kicked off his flip flops. “Care to expand on that comment?”

I kept my eyes fixed on the water. Telling Macon about what happened wasn’t exactly high on my list. Then again, it would probably sound better if I told the story then if I waited for the inevitable visit from Kim. Her hatred for me knew no limit; she’d probably try to run off any friends I had.

“Ok. Maybe that wasn’t fair of me. I’m asking you to divulge a private story without sharing one myself.”

I turned back toward him. The setting sun gave his brown hair almost a glowing effect. “You’re going to share a story with me?”

“Sure.” He smiled. “You ready for it?”

“Yeah.” I was definitely ready to learn more about Macon. I couldn’t believe he was willing to share something personal with me.

He took both of my hands in his. “I wasn’t always this cool.”

“Uh, what?” I let out a small laugh.

“I know it’s hard to believe, but I wasn’t. Ask Maddy. I was kind of nerdy at one point in my life. And to be honest, I’m probably not even cool now. I’m weirder than you’d think.”

“Good to know.” I didn’t make a move to pull my hands away. He had a strange sense of humor, but then again, so did I.

“I’m telling you this so you’ll realize that you don’t need to be intimidated about sharing anything with me. I can assure you that no matter what your story is, I’ve done something worse or even more embarrassing.”

“I don’t know why you’re telling me what I already know.”

He laughed. “Ok. Now that that’s out of the way, are you ready to talk?”

“It depends. How much time do you have?”

He released my hands, as though suddenly realizing he was holding them. I missed the contact immediately but tried to hide it.

He unhooked his watch and shoved it into the pocket of his shorts. “Our time is limitless, my dear. We have all night.”

I looked out at the water again. Why was he so curious? He barely knew me.

“So? Am I going to have to pull it out of you?”

“Pull it out of me? I’d like to see you try that.”

“Oh yeah?” He got a twinkle in his eye that made me a little nervous.

I ignored the nerves. “Yeah.”

“You’re going to wish you hadn’t said that.” He put his hands around my waist and picked me up. My stomach dropped. What was he doing? Before I could think about it for long, I was met by the cool ocean water as he tossed me into the waves.

“Macon!” I shrieked once I recovered from the shock.

He laughed. “Now are you ready to talk?”

“You’re insane!” I treaded water before trying to stand.

“Maybe, but can’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“I’ll talk if you join me.” Two could play at his game. If I was going to be soaking wet and swimming in my clothes, then so was he.

“Fine.” He pulled off his t-shirt and slipped out of his jeans. I tried not to enjoy the view too much, but it was impossible. His chiseled chest was just too hard to avoid staring at. I finally shook myself when I noticed we were no longer alone. Macon’s actions attracted the attention of some tourists.

He smiled at the women. “Sorry ladies, shows over.” With that he jumped in.

“That’s not fair you know.” I gave up on standing. The wind made it too cold to have any of my body out of the water. I wasn’t looking forward to getting out.

“What isn’t fair?”

“That you are just in your underwear. You won’t have to walk around in wet clothes.”

“You’re more than welcome to take yours off,” he said in a low seductive voice that had my chest tightening.

“Yeah, I’d prefer not to get arrested for indecent exposure.”

“Excuses, excuses. Now where’s that story you promised me?”

“I didn’t promise you.”

“Sure you did.” He dove under, resurfacing closer to me. “You told me if I got in you’d tell me.”

“Fine. Why not?”

“All right, I hope this is as good as the buildup.”

“It’s not.” I looked up at the darkening sky. “The short version is my brother-in law came on to me. I told my sister and she took his side.”

“What?” Macon swam over to me. “Your sister’s husband tried to get with you and she didn’t kick him to the curb?”

“He convinced her that I was the one trying to seduce him.”

“And I’m guessing this all happened at a dinner?”

“It did. By dessert she was calling me a whore. She’d convinced herself that it wasn’t just an attempt and that I’d actually slept with him.” Just saying the words made me so angry I wanted to scream. I could feel tears welling, and I hoped I could play them off as ocean water.

“That really sucks.” Macon’s voice came from right next to my ear. He pulled me into a hug, while keeping us mostly in the water. “I’m hoping that since you’re staying with your brother, he believes you.”

“Yeah. Colin knows I’d never do something like that, he also knows my sister’s husband can be a royal jerk.”

“But your parents sided with her?”

“Of course. She’s the perfect one after all.”

“Listen, I can’t say I’ve been in your situation, but I do know what it’s like to disappoint people.” He didn’t let go of me and I was glad. The feeling of his warm body next to mine dulled the ache I felt thinking about how little my family thought of me.

“And how do you deal with it?”

“I say fuck them. The only one you need to impress is yourself.”

“Do you really believe that, or are you just saying it?” The sun fully disappeared, leaving us in only the faintest of daylight.

“Most of the time I do.”

I smiled. “Thanks. Most people aren’t that honest.”

“You can count on me being level with you.”

“Macon?” I wrapped my arms around myself.

“Yeah?” he adjusted his hold on me, and his hand moved up under my soaking wet shirt.

“How am I getting out of this water? It’s freezing.”

“Wait here.” He let go and ran off toward the beach. He looked up and down the shore. “Ok, take off your shirt.”

“What?” I gasped.

“Just do it.” He held out his t-shirt. “You were right about it being freezing, so could you maybe move faster?” I unbuttoned my shirt and took it off. I crossed my arms over my chest as soon as I was standing. Macon looked away, but he held the shirt out to me. I grabbed it and slipped it on as fast as humanly possible. “I’m sure we can find something of Maddy’s for you to change into.”

“I really hope my brother isn’t still at your place.”

Macon laughed dryly. “Me too.”

Darkness set in as we made the short walk home. The night was silent except for some faint laughter coming from a house along the beach.

We both got lucky. The only one home was Brody when we walked in.

Brody took in our wet forms. Considering Macon was in his boxers, and I was wearing his t-shirt it probably didn’t look good. “Uh, do I even want to know?”

Macon grinned. “We just went for a little swim.”

I didn’t stand around. I went right to Maddy’s room and searched her now mostly empty drawers for something to wear. I settled on a pair of running shorts and a tank top. My bra was soaked through, and I needed something that could work without one. Satisfied I looked halfway presentable, I walked out into the main room.

Macon now fully dressed sat on the couch. “A little warmer?”

“Much.” I held out his damp t-shirt. “Where do you want this?”

“Could you put it on the washer?” He gestured down the hall I’d just come from. I discovered the accordion doors that hid the washer and dryer, and I carefully placed the shirt on top of the washer. I found an empty grocery store bag to stow my wet clothes in until I got home.

I walked back out, picking up my purse where I left it on the side table.

“What’s the rush?” Macon asked.

“It’s late. I’m going home.”

“Do you like scary movies?” He turned on the TV.

“Yeah. Definitely.”

“There’s a Friday the Thirteenth marathon on, you up for it?”

“Sure, maybe I’ll stay for a little while.” I took a seat next to him.

He put an arm behind me on the couch. “Usually I’ve been dating a girl awhile before I let her borrow my clothes. I guess it’s okay that I made an exception with you since tonight wasn’t an actual date.”

“Do you generally date girls long enough for that to happen?” I needed to know if my player radar was right.

“I haven’t had a girlfriend, per se, in a while if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Gotcha.” That’s all I needed to know. If a guy didn’t do girlfriends, I didn’t do him. I was not the hook up kind of girl.

“Is there a particular guy whose clothes you borrow a lot?” He looked at me with that serious expression again.

“Is that your way of asking if I have a boyfriend?”

“Yes.” He didn’t break the eye contact.

“Don’t you think that would have been important to ask before you decided to go swimming with me half naked?”

Brody laughed from somewhere behind us. “That implies Macon would have thought something out in advance.”

“But to answer your question, no I don’t have one. I haven’t had one in a while.”

“Okay. Perfect. We can both be single together. Now that Maddy’s with your brother I’ve been in the market for a wing girl. I think I found mine.”

My stomach sunk. Wing girl? He wanted me to be his wing girl? So much for him having interest in me. I forced a smile. “Sounds great.”

“But before we worry about that, we need to find you a job. Oh, and I thought of a fantastic idea while you were getting changed.”

“Did you?” Brody asked before I could respond.

“Colin and Maddy want to move in together, right?” Macon sounded way too excited about the comment.

“Yes.”

“And you don’t want to stay at your brother’s house all summer.”

“Not a chance.” I had no idea where the conversation was heading.

“Why don’t you take Maddy’s room? She’s paid up through the end of June, so that should give you some time to get on your feet. Besides, I’m practically charging her nothing, and I’ll extend the same discount to you.”

“What?” Brody and I asked in unison.

My first reaction was hell no, but why? Live practically rent free right on the beach? Make my brother insanely happy because I’d be pushing things in the right direction with his girlfriend? Both of those things sounded awesome. The only problem was could I handle living with two guys, especially if one of them made me warm just by standing in the same room? I ignored the last thought. “Sure, as long as Brody and Maddy are okay with it.” I turned to look at Brody.

“Oh, yeah. That’s totally fine.” Brody seemed genuine with his answer, but it was hard to tell.

“I’m sure Maddy will be okay with it too.” Macon put his feet up on the ottoman in front of us. “Now how about that Freddy marathon?”