Chapter One
Clover
Present Day
“I’m so freaking excited to have you to myself for a whole week.” I grab Maddie and squeeze her as hard as I can. An unintelligible sound slips from her lips, and I release my hold. “Sorry, I got carried away.”
Maddie twists side to side, stretching. “It’s okay. You might’ve rearranged my insides a little, but I don’t seem to be worse for the wear.”
“I can’t believe this gorgeous house. Who did you say owns it, again?”
“A former student of my dad’s that’s kept in touch with him. They still get together every few months to catch up. I guess he hired my uncle Rex and my uncle Adam to do renovations on his place after my dad recommended their company.”
“I can see your dad being such a cool professor to have.”
“You can?” Maddie asks.
“Yeah. He should teach at B.U.”
“Hell no, he shouldn’t. How would you like your parents to be professors there?” Maddie fires back.
“Eww, good point. So, back to the rich, former student. Is he single? Attractive?”
“He’s married to his business. Successful, wealthy men usually are. My uncle Adam told me this guy spent loads of money on the renovation, but I’m not supposed to tell anyone.” She laughs, adding, “But you don’t count.”
“Thanks, I think.”
“Back to the homeowner—he’s so pleased with the way the renovation went that he mentioned to my dad how he would be away for most of August. He offered up his house if my dad wanted to use it. Of course he turned him down because my dad is seriously predictable. It would kill him to take some time off or switch up his routine.”
“Your dad really needs a girlfriend.”
Maddie snorts. “Like that’ll happen.”
“It’s not like he couldn’t have one. He’s an attractive guy.”
“Gross. You have the hots for my dad.”
I shove her arm. “Shut up. I do not. I can be objective about him because I’m not related.”
“It’s all good. I’m just giving you a hard time. Pretty much every single female teacher I had flirted with him when he’d come to school for special events.”
“Back to this place—if your dad said no, how is it that we’re here?”
“When dad turned him down, he specifically said Marshall or I could use it. Of course, I told my dad we wanted it and not to tell Marshall.” She titters.
“You said the homeowner is gone for most of the month?” I ask, and Maddie nods. “Then why aren’t we staying longer?”
“Technically, we could. But I don’t want to be away from Shaw for that long.” She mentions her boyfriend.
“Couldn’t he visit you here?” It seems like a pretty simple solution to me.
“Yeah, he could. Let’s see how we like being here first. Don’t forget, we start school in a few weeks too,” she replies.
“Ugh, don’t remind me about school. I’m not ready to think about going back yet. I’m happy in my summer mode.”
“I think you mean denial,” she retorts.
“Whatever. Denial works fine.” I stretch my arms out wide and look around. “How could we not like this place? It’s beautiful.” I walk to the back wall containing two sliding glass doors that lead out onto the back deck. Pushing open each side, I inhale the invigorating briny scent of the sea.
“I know how great this house is. I was referring to being away from home. We might get sick of going to the beach,” Maddie replies.
“Sure. And your brother, Marshall, will join the seminary and become a priest.” We both burst into laughter. Her brother couldn’t be farther from priesthood if he tried.
“I don’t want to be the girl who doesn’t like to be away from her boyfriend, but I think I might already be her,” Maddie explains sheepishly. “We’re together so much, this will be an adjustment for me.”
“Maybe it’ll be a good break for you. You’ll both appreciate each other even more when our girls’ vacation is over. Besides, codependency is not a good look on you,” I say.
“You’re probably right,” she agrees.
“What’s this probably nonsense? Of course I am. Now, let’s get our bathing suits on and hit the beach.”
Racing on two floats we found in the shed, we both try to paddle faster than the other. We move farther out, gliding over the cresting waves, both of us jokingly taunting one another, until our arms tire out.
Lying on my stomach with my chin on my folded arms, I relax, letting the ocean rock me like a baby in a cradle.
“Did you see the guy in the house next door?” Maddie questions.
“No. What about him?”
“I’ll just say he’s very attractive.” Maddie smirks at me from her float.
“I’ll have to pay better attention, I guess.”
“For sure. Maybe you should go over and introduce yourself,” she suggests.
“Hmm, I could do that, but what if he’s married? Or his girlfriend answers the door?”
“You can ask for a cup of sugar or a couple of eggs.”
I roll my eyes. “Yeah, that’s not too obvious.”
“It’s so obvious, it’ll seem legit,” Maddie assures me.
“We’ll see when the time comes. Maybe I’ll get lucky and he’ll be outside. Then I can just say ‘hey’ in passing.”
“You haven’t gone on a date for a while,” Maddie bluntly states.
“Ouch. Thanks for pointing out how lame my love life is. You’re supposed to be my best friend.”
“I am your best friend, which is why I’m pointing it out. Are you still hung up on Connor?” Maddie asks.
“No way.” My reply is vehement. “We’ve been over for a year plus. I barely remember specifics of our time together.”
Maddie grimaces. “Jeez, that’s harsh.”
“Maybe, but it’s the truth. Connor was sweet and unremarkable in almost every way.” Just like every other guy I’ve gone out with for the past four years.
“He was kind of adorable, though,” Maddie defends him. With his golden curls and large blue eyes, he always looked angelic to me. Unfortunately, I’m still hung up on Marshall—the same asshole who’s had my attention since he toyed with my affections one drunken night. And I’m sure he doesn’t even remember what happened. Kind of pathetic on my part, but falling for the bad boy is like a rite of passage every teenage girl goes through. The problem is, I’m no longer a teenager.
“I didn’t say Connor wasn’t adorable. He’ll be the perfect boyfriend for someone else, just not me,” I answer Maddie.
After what happened with Marshall that long-ago night, as brief as our interaction was, I decided to only date nice guys.
Guys who would treat me well and who would be faithful.
Guys who were the polar opposite of Marshall in every way.
And in that regard, I’ve achieved success. I’ve never been treated poorly or been cheated on, and I’ve even had great sex. I’ve also had a couple of healthy relationships that lasted a decent amount of time.