Page 24 of Summertime Rapture

“I’ll be around,” Mallory replied. “Cole and my mother’s boyfriend and my aunt’s boyfriend are all racing. Are you?”

“No way,” Brodie blurted. “I’m nowhere as skilled as your brother. But I’d love to learn.”

Mallory held his gaze for a long moment before stepping back toward the street. After a split second, Brodie surged forward and dropped a kiss on her lips, one that made her knees bottom out.

The kiss was like lightning, consuming her. When it ended, she blinked out across the boardwalk, surprised that everyone there hadn’t stared at them, overwhelmed at the energy they’d created. But no. They were just a couple of young lovers kissing on the boardwalk, just like thousands of other lovers before them.

“Good night, then,” Mallory breathed before stepping back and walking quickly down the dark road with her phone lifted to call a car service. A subtle, “Good night, Mallory,” followed after her, soft, alive, and hopeful.

Six minutes later, Mallory fell into the back of a black car headed for the Remington House. The driver played Destiny’s Child on the radio, bumping his head in time. Mallory wanted to scream out her excitement to the Vineyard night sky above but kept it within her, where it grew.

Back at the Remington House, everyone had made their way to their bedrooms for the night. Mallory undressed, washed her face, and slid beneath the sheets, her gaze on the empty crib in the corner. She ached with missing Zachery, yet felt herself coming alive with a brand-new vision for herself.

He accepted me for who I was. He saw me and he didn’t run away. Maybe I am enough.