Bryce hands me a beer with a grin and a hard slap on the back. “Having fun yet, birthday boy?”

I scowl. “No. Am I supposed to be?”

“Why wouldn’t you?” Bryce motions to the party raging around us. Most of the crowd is clustered around the bright bonfire and food and drink coolers. In classic Bryce Hill efficiency, he’s assigned a group of guys to the grill and keg, and another group to setting up tents and chairs a few yards away. I don’t know if these guys even know him, but when a giant hunk of rock orders you to do something, you do it. Well.

Normally, you have to apply for a permit for a party like this on the beach, which takes forever, but of course, Bryce knew someone who knew someone, and he got the green light in record time.

“Because there are way too many people here,” I answer.

“Exactly. You’ve got friends—”

“I don’t know half of these people.”

“Beer—”

“You know I prefer gin.”

“Scantily clad women?”

“Oh, right. My idea of a ‘good time’ is being surrounded by annoying drunk women.”

Bryce frowns. “I can’t tell if you’re joking.”

I roll my eyes. “Where did you find all these people, anyway?”

“They’re friends.”

I scan the horde of people and pick out three people I know. I wouldn’t call any of them “friends.” Of course, Bryce knows more people in my hometown than I do. “They may be your friends, Hill, but I don’t know ’em.”

He shrugs. “Okay. Then try to get to know them.” He watches me glance past him toward the top of the path, like I have been every ten minutes for the last hour. “What was that?”

I snap my attention back to him. “What?”

“That. You’re looking up the path like you’re…” Bryce raises his eyebrows. “Wait—you’re looking for Summer!”

“What? No I’m not.”

His lips press together, a move I know well when Bryce is trying to hold back his “I told you so” face.

“How many beers have you had, Bryce?”

“Don’t turn this around on me. You’re into this chick.”

I taking a long pull of beer instead of answering.

“Admit it,” Bryce demands, punching me on the arm.

I scowl and rub my bicep. “Don’t start something you can’t finish, Hill.”

Bryce smirks at me. “Who says I can’t?”

I pretend to take another sip of beer, but then feint to the left. Bryce falls for it, and I land a right hook on his left arm.

“Christ, Rendell! That was low.”

“You deserved it.”

“Deserved what?”

Bryce and I spin around to see Summer and Maddison standing behind us. They’re looking at us like we have two heads. Well, Summer is. Maddison is back to mutely staring at Bryce.

“Did we interrupt something?” Summer continues.

“Nope.” Bryce pushes me out of the way and steps toward the girls. “Just two men, talking.”

A small smile tugs up the corners of her lips. “Right. Talking.”

“Glad you came…” Bryce turns to Maddison. “You too, Maddie.”

Maddison turns bright pink. “Th-thanks for inviting us.”

“I was surprised my buddy here didn’t invite you already.” I bite back a groan as Bryce claps me on the arm that he punched. “Not every day a man turns thirty.”

Summer’s growing smile vanishes. “It’s your birthday?”

“Oh. Uh, yeah.”

“And you also didn’t think to mention that yesterday?”

I shrug. “Didn’t really come up.”

“You’re kidding. I asked you what you were doing this—”

Maddison lays a hand on her friend’s arm and tugs it down. “It probably just slipped Koa’s mind.”

Summer snorts, telling me exactly what she thought of that lame explanation. Maddison rolls her eyes and turns to Bryce. “It’s so pretty here, I’d love a look around.”

Bryce jumps on the suggestion. “I’d be happy to show you around. Been coming here for years.”

“Bryce,” I mutter, grabbing his arm. I’m about to beg him not to leave me alone with Summer when he whirls around.

“Be nice,” he hisses. He gives me a warning look, and then turns back to Maddison. “Ready?”

She nods and turns to Summer. “I’ll be right back.”

“But—!” Summer cuts off as some sort of silent conversation takes place between them. Maddison must win, because a few moments later, Summer rocks back on her heels and sighs. “Fine.”

We watch our friends move away with panicked expressions, knowing we’re helpless without their buffer. I meet Summer’s gaze as the world’s most awkward silence descends between us.

“So…” Summer says after what feels like an eternity. “I’m glad the weather held out for your birthday party.”

I ignore the veiled barb. “It’s a nice night.” Another impossibly long pause. “Maddie having a good time in Portland?”

“Yeah. We walked around a bunch, then went to lunch.”

“Where?”

“Portland Lobster Company? Their lobster rolls are amazing.”

“Good place. Got lobster rolls today, ourselves.”

“Really? Where?”

“Silly’s.”

Summer nods. “Cool.”

I nod. “Yup.”

I shove my hands in my pockets and stare at the sand between us. This is probably the longest we’ve ever gone without fighting…and I’m bored to tears.

“Do you like milkshakes?”

Summer gives me a puzzled look. “Love them.”

“Try Duckfat, then. It’s a Belgian restaurant,” I add, seeing her reaction. “Their waffles and milkshakes are pretty good.”

“Oh, well—” She furrows her brow. “Thanks for the suggestion.”

Another impossibility long pause. I glance over at her, take a deep breath, and end this. “I’m sorry, Summer.”

Her body tenses. “What?”

“I’m sorry for yesterday. For ordering your around like that and then…uh…”

“Leaving?” she says.

My shoulders inch up to my ears. “Yeah. For that.”

Her lips purse slightly as she studies me, then her body relaxes with a long breath. “It’s okay. I’m sorry for always fighting with you.”

“Oh, well…ditto, I guess.” I shove my hands in my pockets as her eyes drift over my shoulder to the crowd beyond. “How’re Captain and Grandma Jane?” I ask, shifting to a safer subject. She doesn’t answer. “Summer?”

“They’re good,” she says, her eyes distant as she stares behind me. She nods over my shoulder with a frown. “I’m surprised by Maddie.”

“Why?”

“How she went off with Bryce like that.” She looks at me. “Maddie hasn’t been this confident around a guy since I’ve known her.”

“Most women find Bryce an easy guy to talk to.”

“It’s more than that, though.” She studies me for a moment, then shrugs. “I guess I can tell you. Maddie told me today that she’s putting herself back on the market after a terrible breakup she had a couple years ago.”

“That sucks.”

“It does. The guy really did a number on her. They were dating throughout college and then he broke up with her at graduation.”

“Rough.”

“I’d say. Made her choose between him and grad school, apparently.”

I frown. “Why?”

“He was in the Air Force, about to be deployed or something. Kinda sprang it on her from what I can gather.”

I nod slowly. “That’s the military.”

“Oh, right. I forgot you were in.”

“That’s where I met Bryce, actually. We were deployed together. I got out later, but Bryce made a career out of it. Ex-Navy SEAL.”

“That explains it. The man looks like…”

“Thor?” I laugh when Summer’s eyes go wide. “Believe me, a lot of people mistake him for Hemsworth.”

“And now he’s a bodyguard for some star?”

“Autumn Hart. Ever heard of—” I stop as Summer’s jaw drops open. “I’ll take that as a yes?”

“You don’t?”

I shrug.

“She’s only, like, the biggest star in country music right now.”

“Oh.” I run a hand through my hair. “Not my scene.” Summer rolls her eyes, no doubt remembering what happened the last time I said that. “But it’s not going well. Apparently she’s giving him issues.”

“Bad boss?”

“More like he’s in too deep. They’ve been friends since grad school, but now I think Bryce wants more—though don’t tell him that. I’m not sure he realizes it yet.”

“Oh. I see.”

I frown. “What’s the matter?”

“Maddie doesn’t stand a chance, does she?”

“Is she interested?”

Summer laughs. “That’s putting it lightly.”

I scan the party and spot Bryce immediately. He’s always a foot taller than anyone around him. His head’s thrown back and he waves his arms around as Maddie breaks down in giggles. I can’t tell what they’re talking about, though I can hazard a guess. Bryce loves recounting our embarrassing Navy stories—embarrassing for me, not Bryce. But I can definitely can tell from here that Maddie’s enthralled.

“Probably not,” I admit, turning back to Summer. “Nothing against her, it’s just that Bryce is in over his head with this country chick.”

“Right,” Summer murmurs, her eyes dropping to the rocky sand between us.

I tense up as she grows quiet, a wave of guilt washing over me like it’s somehow my fault that Summer’s sad. Suddenly, all I want to do is ease her pain. “But you never know. Bryce could figure out that this girl’s not worth his time.”

Summer tries to shrug it off. “No, it’s okay. It’s good, in fact. At least Maddie’s trying.”

Another awkward silence falls between us, filled by the hoots and laughter of drunk strangers getting drunker. I secretly study Summer’s face, enjoying the delicate curve of her full lips and the graceful line of her high cheekbones in the bright moonlight. She’s beautiful when she’s not biting my head off. “Wanna go on a walk? The beach is gorgeous this time of year, even at night.”

Summer smiles. “Sure. I’d like that.”

We start walking, heading away from the noisy crowd of people I hardly know. Soon it’s just us and the soft lapping of the waves. I glance over at Summer, her face aglow in the moonlight. “So, how are—”

“By the way—” she starts at the same time. We look at each other and laugh.

“Go ahead,” I say.

“You sure? I was only going to say that we told Gran that Bryce was in town, she made three blueberry pies. They’re waiting for him to take back to Nashville.”

“Of course she did. That lady’s amazing.”

“I know.”

“No.” I stop and wait for her to meet my eyes before going on. “I mean it. You probably don’t know how lucky you are to have them.”

“I know they’re great.”

“They’re more than great. They’re like family to me.”

She pushes a strand of hair off her cheek as she tilts her head, sending the sweet smell of honey and cream wafting toward me. “What about your dad? Didn’t you say he lives in Portland?”

I fight the urge to turn on my heel and head back down the beach, putting an end to this discussion. I don’t talk about my dad. I don’t talk about myself. I don’t really like to talk, period. But as the silence draws out, I remember the situation I got myself into this morning. Did I really want to continue pushing Summer away?

I force the air out of my lungs as I start down memory lane. A lane I usually try to avoid. “My dad’s a touchy subject.”

“We don’t have to talk about it.”

“No, it’s okay,” I say, glancing over at her. “He does live in town. But my dad, well, he’s not like your grandparents.”

“What do you mean?”

We pause as we reach the end of the peninsula. It’s beautiful out here, especially at night when all the tourists are gone. It’s just us and the dark water and the pale white moon.

“He’s colder, not as…” I stare into her rich golden eyes for a long moment before looking back out across the water. “Present.”

Summer nods and turns around, slowly leading the way back to the bonfire. The silence is no longer awkward between us. It’s just there, like a comfortable veil between us. “You know,” she say after a few minutes, “sometimes the grass isn’t greener on the other side.”

“What?”

“You’re upset that your dad isn’t ‘present.’ Well, the opposite can be said for my parents.”

“How so?”

“My mom. She takes it upon herself to run my life.” She glances over at me. “My love life.”

My low whistle gets caught up by the breeze and swept down the rocky beach. “Ah. That’s tough.”

“You have no idea. I doubt your dad sets you up on blind dates every other Saturday. And I doubt your dad tells you that ‘twenty-four is getting to be too old’ and that you’d better ‘settle down and marry’ before ‘all the good ones are gone’.”

“Christ, Summer, that’s crazy. How many has it been?”

“I’m sorry?”

“Dates. How many guys has she tried to tempt you with?”

Summer breaks out in laughter.

“What’s so funny?”

“The word ‘tempt’ couldn’t be further from the truth.” She pushes her light blonde hair out of her eyes. “They’re usually from Wall Street or some pretentious lawyer. Basically everything I’m not looking for in a man.”

“That so?” I say slowly, thinking over this interesting information.

“Actually, that’s a lie. I’m not looking for a man, period.”

I arch an eyebrow.

“Yup,” she says with a quick nod. “I don’t really get what the big deal is with love.”

“Sounds like you’ve never been in it.”

“Bingo, and I’m in no hurry.”

I stop, shocked at having finally met someone who shares my sentiments about this relationship nonsense.

“What?” she asks, stopping too.

We’re at the edge of the party now. The light from the bonfire illuminates half her face, throwing the rest in shadow. She looks beautiful and formidable all at once, which describes this woman perfectly. “That’s the first time anyone’s ever said that to me. Any girl, at least.”

“Oh,” she mumbles, “well, I…”

“I don’t mean that in a bad way. I totally agree.”

“You do?”

“Yup. I just want to focus on my job and doing it well. A girl would just distract me.”

Summer nods excitedly. “That’s why I came up here! To get away from the slew of men my mother had lined up for me.”

I grimace. “I don’t blame you.”

“Love,” she says with a shrug. “Who needs it?”

“Exactly.” I hold up my hand between us. “Well, here’s to a summer without love.”

She smiles at my half-assed pun and slaps her palm in mine. “To a summer without love.”

I stare into her eyes as I think about what we just high-fived to. Avoiding love will be easy, right? Because a summer with love, a summer with an annoying, headstrong, distracting girl in my life, would be worse.

My pulse quickens as a tiny seed of doubt plants itself in my mind. I gaze at the beautiful woman standing in front of me and remind myself that she drives me crazy. In a bad way. I think. At least I’m pretty sure.

I abandon the thought, not liking where that rabbit hole’s taking me.

“Koa, Summer!” I snap my head around as Bryce’s voice rings out across the sand. He and Maddie start toward us. “Come on, it’s time to swim!”

“I thought that’s at midnight?” Summer says next to me.

“It’s supposed to be.”

Dread fills me as my friend tugs his shirt over his head and drops it on the ground. Every woman in a twenty-foot radius stops and stares at Bryce. But not Summer, she frowning down at her phone. “But it’s only ten thirty.” She glances up and sees my eyes on her. “What?”

“Nothing,” I say with a small smile.

She gives me a funny look, still ignoring the half-naked god a few yards away.

“Okay, weirdo.”

“You two ready?” Bryce asks, coming to a stop in front of us. “Time to get wet.”

I wince at his choice of words. “Summer just pointed out that it’s not midnight. That’s not tradition, buddy.”

“Screw tradition. Some traditions are meant to be broken.”

“What’s the tradition for?” Maddison pipes up, coming out from behind him. She wears the same dazed look that every woman has in Bryce’s presence. Except Summer, apparently.

“Koa’s birthday isn’t until tomorrow,” Bryce explains, “so we go in right when he turns thirty.”

“I love it! Count me in. What about you, Summer?”

“Sure,” she says with a shrug. “Why not.”

Bryce nods approvingly. “Now what about the birthday boy?”

I glance over at Maddison as she pulls off her sundress, revealing a dark blue bikini underneath. She’s cute, hot even, but it’s Summer that I’m thinking about. What’s Summer in a bikini going to do to me?

“Nah.”

“Come on.”

“I’ll wait,” I say, ignoring the look Bryce is giving me.

“Suit yourself.” He grabs the girls’ hands and pulls them toward the surf. “Looks like it’s just us, ladies…”

Summer glances over her shoulder as she’s tugged away, giving a little shrug and a wave. I can tell she’s wondering what she’s gotten herself into. I smirk and wave back. What Bryce wants, Bryce gets, and what Bryce wants right now is getting Summer and me in the water together.

Not going to happen, pal. At least not while Summer’s in a tiny bikini.

“Hey…” I turn as a hand lands on my arm. “Happy birthday, Koa.”

I look down into a pair of bright green eyes—eyes I know a little too well. “Kimberly. I didn’t know you’d be here.”

“Of course I’d be here,” she says, tossing her rich, espresso-brown hair over her shoulder. “I’d never miss your birthday, Koa.”

“Well, thanks for coming,” I say, turning away from her. I’ve had enough dealings with Kimberly to know that if you give her an inch, she’ll take a mile.

“She tilts her head to the side and purses her lips into a sexy little pout. “You’re not happy to see me?”

“What gave you that idea?”

“You’re being cold,” she coos. I flinch as she traces the curve of my bicep with her fingertip. “We go way back, or have you forgotten New Year’s?”

Oh, I remember. In some stupid lapse of judgment, I let Kimberly be my date to this New Year’s Eve party. I remember kissing her after the ball dropped…and I also remember finding her locking lips with Mike McKarney ten minutes later.

“I remember. Everything,” I add.

Her pout falters. “Then you know I’ve been trying to reach you. To apologize.”

“And I would’ve thought you’d get the hint after no response.”

Her pout twists into a scowl. “It was one little mistake.”

Everything with Kimberly is a mistake. “Let’s agree to disagree on that point.”

“Fine,” she snaps. “You know what? I don’t even know why I bother.”

“Excuse me?”

“You’re impossible, Koa.”

“I’m impossible?” I stare at her. “You’re joking.”

“I’ve given you plenty of chances,” she says, stabbing my chest with her finger, “but you’re always so standoffish. So rude. Well, I’m done with you.”

“Great,” I say with unconcealed relief.

She narrows her eyes. “You think you’re better than all of us, don’t you?”

“Excuse me?”

“You do. Well, enjoy being lonely, because you’re never going to find someone who can put up with you and your cold heart!” Kimberly spins on her heel and marches away, saving me the task of replying to her little outburst. She joins a group of chatty women and launches into a story, no doubt about me and my “cold heart.”

I stare after her in stunned silence before finally shrugging it off. I don’t need another girl driving me nuts this summer.

Summer.

I turn back toward the water’s edge and see that half of the party has peeled off their clothes and run into the surf. The other half is running down to join them. I scan the shoreline, looking for Bryce’s tall form. I see him a minute later, picking up Maddie and throwing her into an oncoming wave. That feeling of surprise and disbelief trickles through me again. He’s never been this relaxed in the twelve years that I’ve known him, though in his line of work, it’s no surprise he’s lost sight of the good in the world.

But as Maddie flies through the air, letting out a shriek before going under the dark surf, I hope that maybe this is the beginning for Bryce. A beginning that could lead him back to the good side of life. The less horrific side.

Bryce turns and begins wading forward toward another girl—a girl in a bright pink bikini. Every muscle in my body tenses as I realize it’s Summer. He snatches her up into his arms and out of the water, letting me rake my eyes over her soft skin, full breasts, and beautiful curves. She’s utterly tantalizing, beyond tempting, more beautiful than my wildest fantasy. She’s gorgeous. Heart-stoppingly gorgeous.

Summer gasps with laughter as Bryce crushes her to his chest, shoving her palms against his pecs to try to free herself. But it’s no use, and soon Summer’s flying through the air and into the surf after Maddie.

I let out my breath as she’s swallowed up by the waves. Those curves are hidden underneath what I see every day? From now on, every time I see Summer Rae, all I’ll picture is yards of creamy skin and seductive curves in a few inches of soaking wet, bright pink fabric.

Damn. This summer just got a whole hell of a lot longer.