Page 15 of Seashells and Other Souvenirs

“Truth or dare?”

The six of us bobbed up and down on the rolling waves, watching them break a few yards in front of us while Sutton considered.

“Truth.”

“Hmm.” Elle smiled. “What’s the best kiss you’ve ever gotten?”

It bothered me that she had to take so long to think about it, that she cut her eyes briefly to Gavin before she apparently scrolled through a lengthy mental list, like she was trying to impress him or something.

“Devon Thomas,” she finally decided. “At the ninth-grade winter formal.”

“No other details?” Rebekah prodded.

“Nope.” Sutton nonchalantly looked to Elle’s right. “You’re next, Gavin.”

Gavin scanned our group, and I silently prayed he wouldn’t say my name. If he did, I’d already resolved to take the dare. I’d turned fifteen two days prior and had no real kissing experience to boast of.

“Jude.” He turned to his brother. “Truth or dare?”

He must have been experiencing a similar internal conflict because it took him less than a second to answer. “Dare.”

Gavin swept his wet bangs from his eyes and nodded. “All right. I dare you to switch bathing suits with me underwater and then swim to shore to see if Kelsey notices.” He nodded toward their sister sitting on a towel with her headphones on.

Jude looked down as if to verify that the ocean was still dark enough that no one could see and then moved to the other side of his brother, putting a little more distance between himself and us girls. “Okay.”

He’d gotten off easy for picking a dare, and we all knew it.

“On the count of three,” Gavin instructed. As he reached for his suit and started counting, I looked away, just in case.

“One . . . two . . . three.”

There was a brief pause before Jude shrieked, “Gavin!” and I turned my head to see Gavin swimming furiously toward the sand, Jude’s shorts in hand.

Jude started to chase him but could only wade so far before he realized he was trapped.

Rebekah, Elle, and I stared in disbelief, unsure whether to laugh at the brilliance of Gavin’s prank or cry on Jude’s behalf.

It wasn’t until Gavin reached the sand that I saw Sutton had followed him. She chased him all the way to Kelsey who, upon understanding what was going on, tackled him to the ground and wrested Jude’s suit from his grasp. She tossed it to Sutton.

Her return trip seemed to take hours as the rest of us floated in silence, unwilling to even attempt to make conversation or eye contact with the mortified naked boy beside us. It was a real “bless his heart” moment as my grandmother would call it.

“Here you go, Jude.” Sutton tossed his shorts when she was sure she was close enough for him to catch them.

He mumbled a quick, “Thanks.”

“At least now you can cross skinny dipping off your bucket list, right?”

A small chuckle escaped Jude’s lips as he redressed beneath the water. The tension was broken, and the rest of us finally gave in to the giggles we’d worked so hard to hold back.

Gavin stood proudly on the shore, his sister still chewing him out, and saluted us.

“Fantastic.” Tyler throws his head back and howls with laughter. “Why have I never heard this story before?”

Jude takes a sip of his root beer and sets it back on the coffee table. We’re all sitting on the living room floor, despite the fact that there is plenty of seating for four people.

I look over at Gavin and forget why I was so freaked out about seeing him again. When he walked in the door from golfing this afternoon, he’d wrapped me up in a giant bear hug, and it was almost like any other summer reunion, picking up right where we left off.

Well, not right where we left off. But close enough.

“So, what else have you been up to since you got here, besides writing? You been to see Jude’s pirate show yet?”

Jude sighs.

“I’m not allowed,” I pout.

“What?” Gavin shakes his head at Jude. “How’s she going to meet anyone else in this town if you keep her sequestered in this house all summer, man? Introduce her to your friends!”

“Well, she’s already met the coolest person he knows,” Tyler boasts. “But, seriously Jude, you should at least bring her to one of Lincoln Shark’s gigs sometime.”

“Lincoln Shark?” I question.

“It’s a band,” Jude explains. “Ty’s their drummer. They play a lot of local joints and small parties and stuff.”

“Wow, way to really sell us, Mr. Publicist.” Tyler leans back against the couch and addresses me. “We’re very good, and you’d meet a lot of great people there. Only downside is . . . no pirates.”

Jude rolls his eyes.

“Ah, come on, Jude. You always have fun at our shows; she’d love it. Although, she wouldn’t get to meet you-know-who.”

The words have an obvious effect on Jude, and if it were just me, I would probably leave the topic alone, but Gavin can’t let this slide.

“Who?” he says. “Jude, is there a special someone you haven’t told me about?”

“No.”

Tyler fake coughs. “Norah,” he whispers under his breath.

Jude turns to me for help which, at this point, is a mistake.

“Norah, huh?” I ask. “What’s she like?”

“There is nothing going on with this girl. Let’s talk about something else.”

Tyler leans in. “Nothing other than the fact that she’s totally obsessed with you.”

“Hold on.” I set my own drink aside. “Tyler’s been to the pirate show? How does he know these people?”

“I’m going to bed.” Jude starts to stand, but I tug his arm back down.

“Stop,” I laugh. “We aren’t trying to gang up on you. We just care about you.”

“And so does Norah,” Gavin adds. Tyler snickers.

I let go of Jude’s arm. “But seriously, if this girl does like you, she obviously has good taste.”

“Don’t patronize me, Alex.”

“I’m not! Jude, you are a catch . You’re kind and funny and smart. You can cook. And you have an extensive book collection. I’m just saying. My only concern is if this girl is good enough for you, and how can I judge that if you won’t let me meet her?”

“She makes a good point.” Tyler nods.

“Oooh! We should host a dinner party!” I catch myself and lower my voice. “I mean, you should host a dinner party; it’s your house. But I could help.”

“A dinner party? I may know how to cook, but I don’t know if I can cook for a crowd.”

“Have you forgotten who you’re talking to, Jude? We’re at the beach. I only know how to cook for a crowd here. Just make sure this Norah is in that crowd, okay?”

“For the last time, nothing is going to happen. She’s like, four years younger than I am.”

“That’s not that big of a difference,” Gavin interjects.

“It is at this age. I’m twenty-one, and she’s still in high school. I refuse to be some creepy older guy who preys on high school girls.”

His words hang in the air, and he looks from Gavin to me and then quickly away. I’m positive now that he knows everything. The silence lasts just long enough to make us all feel weird.

“Well.” Ty pushes himself off the floor and picks up his drink. “I should probably head home. I have an early lesson in the morning.”

“Yeah,” Jude says, standing. “I’m washing linens at six. Goodnight, guys.”

“Early tee time for me.” Gavin reaches over and squeezes one of my socked feet. “Hey, if Jude is working late again, why don’t you let me take you out to dinner, catch up a little bit?”

“Yeah.” I hope my face isn’t as pink as it feels. “That sounds good.”

We all say our goodnights, and I follow Gavin upstairs and settle into the room beside his. I know I won’t sleep a wink.