Page 39 of One Last Summer
“Oh, don’t worry, El; Millen and I are going to show him how the game’s played.”
If Mack was also frazzled by our new role as teammates, he didn’t let on. Instead, he grinned with competitive delight at Eloise’s disappointed face. I recognized this look; he was sniffing out a weakness, plotting how to use this against her in the game.
I’d always liked this shark-like part of Mack that mixed so easily with his mellow, laid-back nature. We’d been kindred spirits in this sense; two very different people who both loved to win.
“And of course,” Nick said with a sweep of his hand, “losers buy lunch.”
“Well done, Nick,” I said.
Sam grabbed the two handkerchiefs, blue and green, from her lap, and tossed them at Nick.
“Questions? Comments? Inside jokes?” he asked.
“No pantsing,” Sam said, smirking, directing her gaze at Trey.
“It was an accident!” Trey exclaimed defensively, and everyone but me laughed. I turned slightly to Mack, tilting my head in his direction, but not so near that he’d assume I was trying to get closer to him. I didn’t want him to think I was still playing last night over in my mind.
Because I wasn’t.
At least, not right this very second.
“I don’t remember anyone getting pantsed,” I murmured, drifting just close enough to his shoulder to catch a whiff of sunscreen, that industrial-strength camp laundry detergent, and a hint of musky sweat. Eau de Mack.
“It was a few summers ago,” he explained. “Four years ago, maybe? We were playing a very drunk game of kickball. Trey accidentally grabbed Regan’s shorts while trying to get her out at home plate. It did not go well.”
“Sounds like my kind of game.” I plastered a smile on my face like a shield, so he wouldn’t know that my brain was doing equations of how many summer reunions I’d missed, grieving the memories I’d lost out on making.
Mack nudged me with his shoulder. “Don’t worry, Millen. We’ll make new inside jokes this week.”
I turned to catch his eye, waiting for the wisecrack. Instead, he offered me a kind, knowing smile. This was the most unnerving thing about him, what had unraveled me so intensely last night. He didn’t just know where the door was to all the soft, vulnerable truths I rarely revealed to people; he held the key in the palm of his hand.
“All right, Greenies.” Nick waved Trey and Eloise toward him as he jogged backward like a soccer pro. “You’re with me down by the far goal!”
Eloise paused in front of Linus, planting a hard and fast kiss on his lips before running off after her teammates. He cleared his throat awkwardly and gave us a sheepish look, taking his glasses off and wiping the kiss-created smudges off with his T-shirt.
Mack stood next to him, sunglasses crooked on the top of his head, and looked directly at me, running the edge of his tongue along his bottom lip that had felt like witchcraft when pressed against my neck. He said nothing, but his eyes narrowed as they caught mine, as if to say, Remember how we did this last night? Remember how good it felt? We could do it again, if you wanted to.
It was enough to send my stomach scrambling with nerves, to weaken all my best intentions. Then I remembered how fast he’d switched from hot to cold, the stupid game with the wireless password. It had been just another one of our silly, antagonistic disagreements, and if it had been anyone else, I would have laughed it off. But every interaction with Mack stayed with me, and stung, lodged under my skin like a splinter.
I turned my gaze back to Linus.
“I have no idea what I’m doing,” he began with a tepid smile on his face. Then his slender brow furrowed ever so slightly. “But I think it would be fun to beat my girlfriend.”
“Yeah, man,” Mack encouraged with a light punch to his shoulder. “That’s the spirit.”
“She kicked my ass in Bananagrams last week.” Linus peered over his shoulder to where Eloise was huddled in a tight circle with Trey and Nick, and his lips unfolded into a smile before turning back to face us. “So she has it coming.”
“I like you,” I said. “Anyone who loves Eloise but also loves to win is my kind of person.”
Linus’s face perked up, a blush creeping across his skin.
“And Millen doesn’t like anybody that easily, man,” Mack chimed in, the teasing dripping from every syllable. “So you should really take that as a compliment.”
“Aw, that’s not true for everybody.” I reached out and patted Mack on the top of his head, trying to ignore the softness of his hair, bouncing like delicate wisps of cotton against my skin. “It’s just that you make it so hard.”
Linus’s eyes darted between us as Mack ducked away from my touch and jogged a few steps away.
“Uh, so how do we play?” he asked.
