Summer's Fun (The Boys of Ocean Beach 2)

“Not specifically. She and Lilah are suspicious, though. I caught Lilah trying to snoop through my phone the other day.”

“Thank god I don’t have any sisters.”

“Maybe it’d give you a little more empathy.”

He shakes his head.

“Hey Whit, hey Nick,” a girl calls from the boardwalk. We both glance over. It’s Isabel and Jessica. Jessica’s a sweet girl—she’s in Lilah’s class and comes over some. Isabel’s had a major thing for Whit since she was a freshman and we were seniors. They’re juniors now, but still jailbait.

I wave and Whit just nods. Isabel sends him a furtive glance that he completely ignores.

“You coming down to Maggie’s this afternoon?” I ask, before finishing off my water.

“Yeah, I’ll be there after this last class. You?”

“I’ve got to hit the gym, so we’ll see.”

The two girls wander over, each drinking a rainbow-colored slushie with a red straw. Jessica looks at me, eyes raking over my chest. “I heard Lilah got a job down at the Crazy Crab.”

“Yeah, she started last week.” I glance at Whit. “The whole house reeks of fried fish. Mom makes her change clothes before she can come inside. It’s awful.”

“Poor thing.” Jessica takes a sip of her drink. Already her lips are turning red. “Oh, we met this friend of yours—well, Justin’s new girlfriend—Summer?”

Whit’s chin jerks up but he still says nothing. Isabel’s heavily made-up eyes watch him closely. I keep the conversation rolling. “The book store is next to your mom’s shop, right?”

“Yeah she came in today to get a new bikini to impress him. Girl’s got a smoking bod, right, Iz?”

Isabel rolls her eyes. “She seems nice enough.”

Whit stands abruptly. “I gotta get back to the beach.” He offers me his fist and I bump it. Then he leaves me alone with the two girls. Thanks, man.

The girls watch him go before shifting their gaze back on me. I also stand, ready to make my escape. Jessica has more to say.

“Look, I’m not a gossip or anything, but Summer did say something today that seemed a little weird.”

“What’s that?” I pull my shirt over my head, planning my escape.

“That she and Justin have some kind of ‘understanding’ about their relationship. Like, I think she has a crush on Whit. I didn’t want to say anything while he was here, because how awkward would that be?”

“Awk-ward,” Isabel adds.

Jessica continues. “I mean, I know Justin’s always kind of been a player, but his best friend? That seems a little low.”

Isabel chimes in, “And slutty.”

I hold up my hands. “Stop.”

She steps back. “What?”

“A word of warning. Don’t mess around with Summer. And definitely do not mess around with Justin and Whit. What’s going on between them is their business.”

“So there is something going on?” Jessica asks, her eyes wide.

“No. That’s not what I said.” It’s totally what I said. Fuck. “I’m just telling you, Summer isn’t one of these basic townie girls sleeping around with everyone. She’s in college. She’s smart. She’s got roots here.” I look them both in the eye. “She had a hard time last year and things are finally settling down for her. Just be nice.”

“We can be nice,” Isabel says, with a face that’s decidedly not nice.

Jessica elbows her. “Okay, we’ll be nice. Honestly, I was just trying to do the guys a solid if they didn’t know what was going on.”