Page 44 of Fool Me (Timberline Peak #1)

CHAPTER

THIRTY-TWO

HARLOWE

One of my favorite things about summer is feeling the sun on my face. I love to tip my head back and soak in the warmth. Nothing can match it. Winters here in Timberline Peak can be brutal, but the summers are special.

If you ask me, that’s why they put on such a spectacular display for us, like today.

It’s a postcard perfect Wyoming day when Altas pulls down the dirt road to the dead end where we’re unloading to float down the river today.

Denver’s truck and trailer are parked a few miles down where we’ll get out whenever we get there.

It could be an hour, it could be three—that’s the beauty of floating. There’s no rush, just sunshine and the people we care about most.

Atlas puts the car in park, smirking at me. “Wait there.”

He’s so pleased with himself it pulls a laugh from me when he pulls the door open. “You’re about to make this a thing, aren’t you?”

“It’s already a thing, and it’s going to keep being a thing.” His hands grip my waist and he lifts me out of the seat. “Those small town manners run deep.”

“But usually it’s just the two of us, not a whole audience.” I roll my eyes, but in reality, I love it. “I thought we weren’t putting on a show anymore.”

He slides me down his body and, with his hands still on my hips, ducks his head and says, “That was for me—an excuse to get my hands on you and treat you the way you deserve. I can’t help if they’re all watching.”

“No excuses necessary. I’m yours now and you can touch me anytime you want.”

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Clover.

” He kisses my nose, making sure I’m steady on my feet before releasing me.

But the truth is, I’m still wobbly. Altas throws me off balance with the unnerving way he switches from sweet to flirty.

Being around him makes me feral—I’m always one second from pulling him away from some alone time, and I love it.

I shut the passenger door and let Echo out the back, turning to find myself surrounded by my friends.

Tessa’s mouth hangs open, Sloane just grins at me, but Aspen is the first to speak.

“You fell for your fake boyfriend in California,” she declares, her smile nearly as wide as the one I can feel stretching my face.

“Please, please, please tell me it’s true,” Briar adds.

“He’s such a showoff,” I say, sounding more pleased than annoyed. “He totally made it a thing.”

“It’s cute,” Sloane says earnestly. “You deserve to be treated like the center of someone’s universe. We all do.”

Everyone nods along with her. If anyone else notices the pain in her eyes, they don’t say anything, but my heart cracks for Sloane.

“I sure as hell am not finding anyone who will open a door for me, let alone lift me out of their truck,” Aspen grumbles.

“Hot doctor isn’t a gentleman?” Briar asks.

Aspen shrugs. “Not outside the bedroom.”

“Well, at least he has that going for him,” Tessa says.

“It’s literally the only thing going for him. But it’s fine, I don’t want to date someone I work with, anyway.”

“Yeah, that almost never works out,” Sloane adds.

“Speaking from experience?” I ask, risking her shutting down, because eventually she’s going to trust us enough to tell us something about her past.

“Something like that.” It’s all she offers, but it’s enough that I can see the surprise I feel mirrored three times.

“Don’t push it,” Sloane adds like she can feel our excitement over the nugget of information. “Today we’re relaxing and having fun, not unpacking my baggage.”

Tessa leans a head on her shoulder. “As long as you let us carry the load at some point.”

“Maybe someday.”

The four of us walk over to where the guys are dragging tubes and paddleboards to the edge of the river. I grab an armful of life jackets and Tessa and Aspen grab the coolers, while Sloane and Briar each take a dry bag and rope.

We’re almost ready when another car pulls up and Drake steps out, looking like he’d rather be almost anywhere else.

“I thought you were going to bail on us,” Denver says.

Aspen’s head snaps up like she wasn’t expecting her brother either and then she’s racing over to give him a hug. He presses a kiss to the top of her head, whispering something before nodding to the group and sending Aspen back over.

“Almost did,” Drake says, so softly I almost miss it. What I don’t miss is the way Tessa’s posture changes, going stiff at the sound of his voice.

“You good?” I ask bumping her hip.

“I just didn’t expect him to be here is all.”

“Doesn’t seem like anyone did,” Atlas adds.

“He’s your teammate, right? You guys must see each other all the time during the season.” Drake rarely comes around unless it’s just him and Denver or Aspen. In the years I’ve lived in Timberline Peak, he’s never shown up for a group activity with everyone.

She shrugs. “He’s around, I suppose, but he avoids me like I’m the plague when our competitions overlap.” Her voice is filled with barely-disguised pain.

“That’s kind of rude. You guys have known each other your whole lives.”

“He’s just . . . Drake.” She says it like it’s an explanation. “I’m used to it. I’ll be fine.”

I slide my board into the water and Atlas holds it for me while I call Echo over, but my eyes stay on my friend. Once Echo’s safely on the front of the board, I slip my shorts off, stowing them in the dry bag at the back of the board.

Atlas groans and I find him watching me from the bank. “Thanks for the board, Denver, but I think I’m just going to stick on this one with Harlow,” Atlas says, his eyes raking over me slowly.

Denver chuckles, but I scoop up a handful of water, splashing him. “Absolutely not. There’s not enough room for the three of us.”

“I think that’s part of the appeal,” Denver says, helping his wife into her tube.

“Fine,” Atlas grumbles dramatically as he carries his board down the bank and joins us. Denver ties an extra tube to his and adds the cooler.

Tessa grabs her own board, joining us, letting her legs dangle into the water. Aspen follows, doing the same.

We’re just waiting for Drake to unload his board and join us. Next to me, Tessa huffs dramatically. Her annoyance with her teammate is plain as day as she pulls the cover-up she’s wearing over her head and hands it to me.

“Can you put that in your dry bag since we’re waiting?”

“Of course.” I take it from her.

Tessa adjusts the straps on her swimsuit as Aspen whistles next to her. “Shit, Tess. Those bottoms.”

“My sponsor gave them to me. I wasn’t sure about them, but I work too hard not to show it off.” She shifts to her knees on the board making her toned glutes pop even more in barely-there black bottoms.

“Are you going to make us wait all day?” Denver yells back toward the road.

“Hold your fucking horses, D.K.!” Drake shouts in return before he reappears from the back of his truck.

Tessa’s paddle slips into the water with a splash. Aspen scrambles after it, but Tessa can’t seem to pull her eyes from the tattooed statue with the paddle board hanging loosely at his side.

Until he turns on his heel, shoves the board back into the bed of his truck, and climbs into the driver’s seat—barefoot and shirtless—before peeling out without a word.

“What the fuck?” Atlas mutters.

I kick him under the water. It was rude, but Tessa and Aspen both look to be near tears at the unexpected departure. Tessa’s the first to school her expression, reaching across the water and squeezing Aspen’s hand.

Briar glares are her husband. “I told you.”

Denver stands in the water, his jaw tight as the dust settles and Drake’s tail lights disappear. “Fuck. I’m sorry,” he says to Aspen, his eyes shifting to Tessa for a moment. “He can be such an asshole sometimes. I just thought he should get out of that damn cabin.”

“It’s fine. I’ll drive up and talk to him tomorrow,” Aspen says, giving her brother more grace than I would.

The others start to paddle away, and Atlas leans over, pulling my board closer and whispering, “Are we just going to pretend that didn’t happen?”

“We are because I want Aspen and Tessa to enjoy their day.”

“But that was messed up, right?”

“It was,” I agree. “But this feels like a whole lot of history that you and I aren’t privy to. So, maybe we try not to judge too harshly.”

He raises an eyebrow and I wonder if he’s thinking about my history with his brother.

“I’m evolving,” I tell him with a shrug.

I put my paddle into the water, but Atlas doesn’t let go. “Don’t change for me, Clover—I don’t expect you to and I don’t want you to. There’s room in my life for you just the way you are.”

It doesn’t feel like we’re talking about Aspen’s brother anymore.

I lean over and kiss him. When we catch up to the group a minute later, Denver is passing back drinks to Tessa and Aspen like Drake’s little tantrum never happened.

By the time we make it back to my house, where everyone is meeting to grill out and watch the fireworks, everyone has a touch of sun on their cheeks despite Aspen being vigilant about making everyone reapply sunscreen.

As an accessory to the touch of pink on our cheeks, we all wear relaxed smiles from the day together.

Hosting with this group doesn’t mean doing it all on your own. From the moment everyone pours out of the truck and on to my lawn, they’re helping. The guys go straight to the grill to get food going, and the girls drag out blankets and chairs to get them laid out for later.

Across the river, the park is filled with people showing up for the festivities, and to grab a spot for the show.

While we wait for the food, a cornhole tournament starts up. Everyone rotates in and out, so no one is stuck manning the grill the whole night.

“We really outdid ourselves,” Denver says, patting his flat stomach.

“So good,” I agree, laying my head on Atlas’s shoulder and looking over at him. “You’re going to have to carry me inside—I’m too full to move.”

He leans into my touch, dipping to kiss my forehead. “That can be arranged.”

“How are you feeling about all this? Does Wyoming feel like home again?”