Page 31 of The Summer for Us (Golden Falls #1)

JULIETTE

I hadn’t expected Wes to say yes. In fact, I’d mentally prepared myself for him to say no.

Turns out, I should’ve spent that time preparing to be alone with him. The buzz from my earlier shot with the girls and my Aperol spritz was gone, and the soda water was refreshing with the summer heat. I finished it off and set the glass on the bar.

It was just a dance, and yet somehow, we kept getting pushed together. At least the scowl was finally off his face. Sometimes, I was surprised his face wasn’t permanently like that.

But even with his scowl, he was still devastatingly handsome.

The more I got to know him, the more good looking he became.

Especially now that I knew how kind, protective, and considerate he was.

Maybe he still put his foot in his mouth every now and then, but who didn’t?

What I knew now that I didn’t my first day in Golden Falls was that Wesley Richards didn’t have bad intentions.

He just cared about this town and his family. A lot.

Wes gently, hesitantly, took my hand in his, looking at me almost as if he was asking for permission.

I gave his hand a reassuring squeeze in response.

I wanted to memorize the way his warm, calloused hand felt on mine.

It made me wonder how his touch would feel on other parts of my body.

How it’d feel for him to grip my thighs, spread my legs, and?—

Oh, god.

No.

This couldn’t be happening.

I wasn’t thinking about Wesley that way. Nope, not going there.

By the time we squeezed our way through to the dance floor, the song that caught my attention was over but replaced with one equally upbeat.

Some people were swaying, others were rocking their bodies side to side.

One thing I knew for sure was Wesley and I were not going to look like we were at an awkward middle school dance.

“Are you actually a good dancer, or did Cooper set me up to have you stepping all over my toes? I just painted these, you know.” I’d opted for a red polish on my fingers and toes.

He huffed a laugh. “Somewhere in the middle. I’m a decent dancer and won’t step on your toes. That I can promise you.”

“So, you’re decent at it,” I said as I set his hand on the curve of my waist, “but you hate it.” I held on to his other hand, and it didn’t take long for us to fall into rhythm. “Your lip curved at the mention of it and everything. Your scowl turned into even more of a scowl.”

“It did not,” he argued, which caused a laugh to escape me. His grip on my waist tightened in reaction, drawing me closer to his chest. “And one dance won’t kill me. It’s not that I don’t like it. I don’t like the attention that comes with it.”

“That’s fair, but if it makes you feel any better, no one is paying attention to us.

Everyone’s in their own little world.” I had to tip my head back to look up at him.

He smelled like a mixture of mint and mahogany—fresh and woodsy.

I was glad I hadn’t opted for another drink.

His cologne was more intoxicating than any alcohol.

“I mean, look at us. We’re not paying attention to anyone else, right? ”

“Right.” He hummed in thought while looking down at me, and it took everything I had not to look away.

His gaze was too intense, too observant.

I wished I could get into his head for a moment to see what he was thinking.

I knew he saw me out on the dance floor earlier.

Every time I looked over at him, he was already looking at me.

It wasn’t in a bad way or in a creepy way.

Almost like…he couldn’t look away. And I couldn’t either. We kept finding each other.

But now that we were this close, all I wanted to do was look away. This whole time I’d wanted Wesley to give me a chance, but now I was scared of what would happen if he did .

Because the glimpses I’d gotten on the boat and later that night were a version of Wesley I liked. But did he like the version he’d seen of me?

“What’re you thinking about?” I asked him.

He let out a deep exhale, finally looking away. Jeez, that sounded heavy. “Is there anything going on between you and Cooper?”

“What?” I swore I heard him wrong.

“Do you have feelings for him?” Wesley questioned. “I’d get it if you want to be dancing with him instead.”

I blinked up at him, my mouth open as I shook my head slowly.

“Why would you—no, I don’t have feelings for Cooper.

I’m friendly with him because he’s your best friend and one of the handful of people I know here tonight.

If I wanted to be dancing with him, I would be.

But I’m not, because I want to be dancing with you. ”

His shoulders visibly relaxed at my words. Interesting.

“Is that—were you jealous?”

The muscle in Wesley’s jaw twitched. “No, of course, I wasn’t jealous.”

“I can’t believe you were jealous!”

A low growl left him, and he pulled me closer into his chest, a satisfied smile on my face.

The music quickly picked up.

“You ready?” Wes asked.

I looked up at him, confused. “Ready for—” I started to ask but was cut off when he stepped back. He held on to my hand but dropped the one that had been on my waist.

He spun me around. Once. Twice. Before pulling me into his arms, my back against his chest.

Wesley Richards was full of surprises.

I leaned my head against his chest, tipping it back to sneak a look at him as we swayed. We didn’t stay in that position for long—unfortunately—before Wes spun me again, unraveling his hold on me. The whole time, I couldn’t stop smiling. My cheeks were even starting to hurt.

We stepped and moved our bodies in a casual rhythm, his shoulders relaxing. Wes was focusing on us—nothing else mattered.

As the song started to wrap up, Wes gave me a final slow spin, pulling me close and firmly placing his hand on my lower back as he dipped me.

I tipped my head back with a laugh, and when I looked back up at him, he was grinning down at me. A full-fledged grin that made him even more devastatingly handsome, if that was even possible. Maybe it was good he didn’t smile often. I didn’t know if I could take it.

“How did you…” I stammered, unable to find the words.

He pulled me back up. His grin softened, but he was still smiling. “You’ve kept me on my toes all summer. Thought it was time I repaid the favor.”

I gave his chest a gentle push and immediately regretted it. Because his chest was a wall of solid muscle I wanted to drag my nails down.

“Well, you certainly did. That was…really nice.” The song was replaced with a slower one, couples now drawing closer and swaying together.

I licked my lips. “We don’t—” I started at the same time Wes pulled me closer.

His hands found the same position as before—one on my waist and the other holding my hand—but he was more confident this time.

His grip even moved down ever so slightly so he was holding on to my hip instead.

It was a hot summer night, and yet I craved Wesley’s warmth.

“You wanted to dance, so we’re dancing.”

“You said one dance wouldn’t kill you, but what about another?”

“I’ll be fine, Juliette.”

I rolled my lips, hiding my smile, and nodded. “Okay.” I stepped closer to him, tempted to rest the side of my head against his chest as “Love You Anyway” by Luke Combs played through the speakers.

I’d heard this song countless times, but it was the first time I truly listened to the lyrics. About loving someone even if you knew it was going to end in a broken heart. About how it’s worth it anyway.

A lump formed in my throat, and tears welled in my eyes. Something about being in Wes’s arms in this moment, dancing to this song, and knowing this all had an expiration date caught me off guard. I didn’t expect it, just like I didn’t expect him.

“What’re you thinking about?” He dipped his head closer to me, his forehead nearly resting on mine. His low voice was barely a whisper above the music, but it vibrated through my body and cut through my thoughts.

I let out a shaky exhale, keeping my eyes down.

I didn’t want him to see me like this. Oh, nothing.

I’m just thinking about how I like you more than I realized and how this is all going to end when summer does.

So, even if this did turn into something, it would only be temporary. The very thing you don’t want.

“Oh, uh,” I said with an awkward laugh, “just kinda spaced out.”

He took a moment to respond, and I didn’t like that. It meant he noticed something. “So, you have my hand in a death grip for fun? You’re not thinking about murdering me or anything?”

If only. My life would be simpler if that was what I was thinking about.

I looked at our hands and saw what he meant. I loosened my grip immediately. “No, I’m not,” I sighed.

He moved his hand from my hip, gently gripping my chin with his thumb and pointer finger. “Juliette,” he said softly. “What’s going on?”

It was the softness, the tenderness, in his voice that got me. I stepped back from his touch. I didn’t hear what Wes said after, because I was quickly weaving my way through the crowd to the back hallway.

The warm buzz from earlier in the night was long gone, but I still needed fresh air. I needed to clear my head. Because the softness in his voice hit deeply. Straight to my heart.

Right now, my heart was telling me I needed Wesley. And that just wasn’t going to happen.