Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 94012 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 313(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94012 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 313(@300wpm)
We arrived at the spot where his friends always hung out, and he waved me closer. Until now I’d only gazed over at this group.
“Come on,” he said. “I’ll introduce you.”
Three guys, Bree, and another girl were talking and laughing.
“Guys, this is Noelle. She’s the daughter of my parents’ friends—the ones we share the house with now.”
Archie’s something-or-other held out her hand as her long hair blew in the breeze. “Hey. I’m Bree. Nice to meet you.”
“You, too.”
Bree was the opposite of me looks-wise: tall, skinny, and blond to my short, brunette, and curvy.
A guy smiled and waved. “I’m James.”
I nodded. “Hey.” Dark-haired James was cute, although only a little taller than me.
Archie then introduced me to Linus and Sean, along with Sean’s girlfriend, Sarina.
It turned out Archie’s friends were pretty cool. They were all around his age—a bit older than me—and everyone was home from college. I stayed quiet and mostly listened as they told stories from summers past on the island.
Bree was still hanging all over Archie, but he seemed unfazed as he chatted with the others. Out of everyone, James seemed the most interested in getting to know me. He stood next to me and kept asking me questions about myself.
“So how did you and Archie’s family become friends?”
“Our dads work for the same law firm. Mr. Remington was my father’s mentor for many years, and then they decided to invest in a property together. So we’re all staying for the summer.”
“Gotcha.” He dug his feet in the sand. “Archie’s a good dude. I’ve known him for years.”
“You’re from here?”
“Yes. Born and bred. It was a great place to grow up.”
“I would imagine. It’s so idyllic. But it’s probably a little strange when everyone converges on you in the summer, huh? When you have to share it with us city dwellers?”
He looked out toward the water a moment. “Strange but awesome. Always the best time of year, if you ask me.” He shrugged. “I appreciate being home even more now that I’m away at school. You can’t beat coming back to this.”
I learned a lot about James during the next half hour or so. He was pre-med, loved nineties alternative rock, and had an older sister who was already in med school. And unlike Archie’s dad, James seemed impressed with my journalistic aspirations and the opportunities that could result from that major.
Our conversation was flowing nicely, but it was getting late. I felt like I needed a breather. Tonight had been a lot, particularly what happened with Xavier. So I excused myself from talking with James and went over to Archie.
“Hey, I think I’m gonna head back to the house,” I told him.
He let go of Bree and placed the cup he was holding down in the sand. “I’ll walk you.” His breath smelled like beer.
“You don’t have to.”
“You shouldn’t walk home alone this late.”
Archie was nothing if not protective, so I chose not to argue with him.
After I said my goodbyes, the short walk from the beach to our house started off quiet. Then I decided to ask him something. “How did you know my middle name?”
His eyes filled with mirth.
“What?” I asked.
He stopped walking and placed his hands on his hips. “Let me demonstrate.” He flipped his hair before putting on his best female voice. “Representing the great state of New York, I’m Noelle Simone Benedict.”
Uh... A rush of adrenaline hit with the embarrassment. “Where did you see that?”
“I Googled you once when my mother told me you were in a beauty pageant. I had to see it for myself. They had the replay online.”
“It wasn’t a beauty pageant,” I clarified. “It was for a scholarship.”
“You were wearing a gown. Looked like a beauty pageant to me.”
“Well, yeah, that was part of it, but this particular pageant is geared toward academics and declamation, not beauty.”
“By the way, I’m not making fun of you. I hope you know that. I think it’s fucking awesome.”
“I only entered for the scholarship money.”
“You got robbed. That Rhode Island chick who won had nothing on you.”
“She took nothing from me because I didn’t even place in the top ten.” I laughed.
“Still, it took a lot of balls to put yourself out there like that. I couldn’t have done that shit. I have mad respect for you.”
My chest swelled with pride, though the pageant wasn’t something I was usually boastful about.
“Thanks again for rescuing me from Xavier,” I said when we approached the house.
“I’m still pissed and want to fuck him up. I never thought he’d be that big of a douche. If I’d known he would pull something like that, I would’ve pushed harder for you to stay away from him.”
“Had he done something in the past to tip you off?”
“I just know how he treats girls in general—fucking them and then bragging about it. His parents are super rich. He’s very entitled. I know that sounds funny coming from me, by the way.” He chuckled. “It takes one to know one.”