Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 53466 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 267(@200wpm)___ 214(@250wpm)___ 178(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 53466 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 267(@200wpm)___ 214(@250wpm)___ 178(@300wpm)
“Good. He looks at ease, and I’m glad. He’s a good man, Summer. He doesn’t deserve to be hurt.”
“Is that directed at me?” I ask, suddenly defensive. “Because I’ve been nothing but up-front with him before and now.” I bite the inside of my cheek and decide Ava pretty much knows everything about my shared past with Ben. “In fact, I did everything I could to try and let him keep his job. I wasn’t the one who didn’t return phone calls back then, so let’s not throw around insinuations about who hurt who.”
“You pass,” Ava says. “You’re defensive for yourself, but you worry about Ben.”
“You know, I don’t appreciate being tested,” I mutter.
Ava rolls her shoulders and leans back against the swing. “That’s what friends do. Look out for each other. I hope you’ll forgive me.”
I sigh. “I’m glad he has good friends.” I have Ivy, but we are both always so busy it is hard to make time for quality get-togethers.
“Ben’s a decent guy. He was there for me when I needed him, and I’ll never forget that and always keep trying to repay the favor,” Ava explains.
I cross one leg over the other and look up at the blue sky. “Given what I know about Ben, he wouldn’t want repayment. He helped you because that’s what he does for his friends.”
“I appreciate that about him. But it’s a two-way street.” We sit in silence for a few minutes, then Ava speaks again.
“What’s it like being a pop star? Singing in front of huge audiences?”
I give the question some thought. “It’s all I’ve ever known. When I was little, I sang at festivals, in chorus at school, in local plays. I love the performance aspect and the fact that I can feed off the energy of the crowd.”
“I admire that. I can’t carry a tune, and I’m much better off in the shadows,” Ava says wistfully.
“Well, I admire what you do. Keeping people safe is no small feat.”
“Would you give it up for any reason?” Ava asks.
I’m surprised by the question. “It’s all I’ve ever wanted. This opportunity to be the opening act for the biggest pop star in the world?” I shake my head. “I can’t think of anything that would make me walk away.”
“Not even for love?”
The question blindsides me, and I sit stunned that Ava would go there. Little does she know, Ben put emotional attachment off-limits, and that is the smart way for me to think as well. I have no idea where my life is headed.
Before I can formulate a reply, the sliding glass door to the house opens, and Ben appears.
“Everything okay out here?” he asks.
I meet his gaze, his blue eyes zeroing in on me as he steps out into the fresh air. I drink him in, his white tee shirt lovingly clinging to muscles I held on to last night when he was deep inside my body.
No, we didn’t just sleep together one night. Now that we are alone in the apartment, defensive barriers gone, at least as far as a sexual relationship is concerned, we’ve made good use of our alone time. He switched from the pullout sofa into my bed, the move a natural transition we barely had to speak about or acknowledge.
Suddenly I can’t tear my gaze away from his handsome face, Ava’s question lingering in the back of my mind. Would I give up my dream for any reason? Including true love?
Not something I intended to think about. Not when my aspirations are finally within reach and the man in question isn’t interested in that kind of a relationship with me, anyway.
* * *
Ben
At first, I worry that Ava has been her usual overprotective self when it comes to her friends and alienated Summer, because ever since I interrupted their talk outside, Summer has been pensive and quiet. Then again, she’s been quiet since we arrived. But my friends are welcoming, Ava included, and as the day goes on, Summer warms up to them. I’d have hated for her to feel like she didn’t belong and am glad she’s begun to come out of her shell.
What a contradiction she is, a vibrant star when it comes to performing and a typical shy girl when in an intimate group of people she doesn’t know. I am a contradiction as well. On the one hand, I want to keep her separated from my friends and my life in order to better protect my heart; on the other hand, as I watch her today, I silently cheer when she hits it off with the people who mean the most to me.
Dan grills burgers, hot dogs, and corn on the cob. Ava brought some sides, and the guys came with store-bought desserts, everyone contributing. I’m not surprised Ava picked up a cake with candles for me, although I really could have lived without a big to-do. Turning thirty is enough for me to deal with. The brat didn’t bring candles with the numbers three and zero, no, she lined the entire cake with individual candles and made a production of lighting each one. The upside to the traditional birthday celebration was Summer’s gorgeous voice in tune and sounding over the guys’ raspy attempts at singing.