“Why did she send you here?”

I lean back on my hands, letting the sun warm my whole body. “I’d started rebelling a little. I made a friend online in the homeschool network and snuck out to meet her. My mom panicked. I suspect she thought Lee Vines was the most isolated place she could send me—what kind of trouble could I get into here?”

As soon as I say it, I realize how ironic the statement is and bark out a laugh. The boys--who had been fighting their own laughter—cave, breaking into giggles of their own. I admit, “She would not be happy about this situation, at all.”

“What situation?” Jake asks. Dexter has opened the pie and with a pocket knife starts cutting pieces. He doles them out, an oozing piece of cherry to each of us. Charlie has a handful of plastic forks and gives me one.

I can’t help myself and take a bite; flavorful fruit and sugar burst in my mouth. “My mom has one big rule. No boys. Ever. And she expected that to hold while I was here.”

George shoves in a huge scoop of pie and then asks, “Why boys?”

I look down at my plate. “They were the ones that were mean to me.”

There’s a moment of silence but then Dexter says, “So she taught you to be afraid instead of standing up for yourself.” His voice is raw. The muscle ticks in the back of his jaw. Oh boy.

“She thought it was best.”

“Well, no offense, but your mom is a fucking idiot.”

“Dex!” Jake shouts. “Not cool.”

“It’s true. She totally fucked with your head about something that’s just not true. Sure, some guys are assholes, but what if it’d been a bunch of long-haired mean girls? Were they off limits, too?”

“Honestly? Yes. She cut me off from everyone.”

“But she didn’t teach you to fear them, did she? Not like us.” His gray eyes become crystal clear. “That’s why you freaked out so bad that day when Dugan attacked you. It was like all your fears coming true.”

The others watch this exchange and my skin feels prickly and hot. Too much has been revealed about me today and it’s more than I can take.

I push my pie aside and start to move off the rock. Dexter is suddenly before me, blocking my way. I blink at him. “What?”

“George was right earlier. We’re here to be your firsts, just in a way we didn’t understand before. We’re the first guys you’ve been around. The first ones to sh

ow you that we’re not all monsters.” His eyes drop. “I’m sorry your first encounter with me was on the street that day. It only reinforced what you knew. And then my behavior after…”

“It’s okay.”

“No,” he says gruffly. “It’s not.”

His cheeks are flushed, either from the moment or from the sun. The other guys wait patiently for us to have it out, but I don’t want to fight with them. I want to learn from them.

“Maybe we can start over,” I suggest. “Maybe, while we’re out here being honest and everything, you can give me another one of my firsts.”

Dexter stands still, conflict flickering in his eyes. “What do you mean?”

I stare at the water, sunlight glittering off the surface.

“I want a first kiss.”

“From me?” His tone is incredulous.

I glance around at the boys, who are watching intently. “From all of you.”

“Wait, what?” George says easing down from the rock. His feet splash in the water.

“It’s like we talked about in the car. We’re helping each other. I’ve missed out on so much.” I tug at the strap of my bikini. “I had to borrow this from Katie. I wasn’t even prepared to come on a swim. But you guys have opened up a new world to me. TV shows, sunrises, zazzleberry pie, video games. You’ve shown me how much I’ve missed and how much I need to catch up.”

“So you want a first kiss?” Jake asks. “From all of us.”

Tags: Angel Lawson The Wayward Sons Romance
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