Summer's Kiss (The Boys of Ocean Beach 1)

ough the year, see if this works for all of us and make other decisions. Like transferring south. Or moving north. Or maybe something entirely different.

“We can make it work,” he says. I believe him, but I’m nervous.

The fighting below gets louder and we both laugh when we hear Maggie start in. Pete stands, pulling me up with him. “That may be our signal to return to the group.”

I follow him down the steps and we can see the fireplace roaring and lanterns all around the patio. Mom, Richard, Sugar, and the others are partnered off around a big table with a game on top.

“Oh, did I tell you?” I ask, once we reach the bottom. “Mom’s leaving the Airstream at the campground.”

“Really?”

“I think she wants to have somewhere nearby also. I don’t know how he did it, but Richard won her back. I suspect she’ll move down here full time before next summer.”

“Hawkins charm,” he says, waving me off, but then I see him furrow his forehead. “Wait, so if Richard and your mom get married, what does that make you and Justin?”

I think about it for a second. “Lucky?”

He leans in and kisses me soft on the lips. “I like the sound of that,” he says, steering me toward the others.

We reclaim our seats around the table. Justin is standing, battling with Bobby over imaginary injustices in the game. Whit has one arm over the back of the chair and winks at me when he catches my eye. Nick’s flash blinds us all as he takes a million photos. I’m glad he’s documenting it all. No doubt I’ll look at them when we’re apart. Anita rolls her eyes, aware of what we’ve been up to. I ignore her and instead look at my mom. Her eyes sparkle from the fire and she’s happy. We both are.

“Dude, I’m not cheating!” Bobby shouts at his brother, but he winks at me before he throws his cards on the table.

I snuggle into Pete’s side, ignoring the theatrics, just happy to be part of this family and thankful my mother brought us to this edge of the world, one I never knew existed. For a second, I wish she had come back sooner to heal, but I know in my heart that now is the right time, the best time for us to make the most of summer.