The Summer Girlfriend (Heart Beach, #1)(85)
She glanced at him now, and he caught eyes with her and winked. He seemed so much more relaxed now than when they’d first come to Heart Beach weeks ago. Lately whenever one of his family members brought up a story about his grandfather, he didn’t tense up like he had before. Instead, he joined in on the conversations, sharing more memories about his grandfather with Noelle. And there was considerably less tension between him and Percy. This morning, she’d even seen them on the back porch drinking coffee together. They hadn’t been talking, but they hadn’t been arguing either, and that seemed like progress.
“Oh shit,” Danny said, suddenly jumping to attention. Something had caught on his line.
Everyone gathered around him. Whatever he’d caught was putting up a fight as he tried to reel it in. Jeremiah leaned over the edge of the boat and peered at the water.
“Damn, it looks big as hell,” he said. “It might be a black sea bass.”
With keen concentration, Danny continued to reel in the fish. But when he lifted the line from the water, there was no black sea bass, or a fish of any kind, attached to the hook. Instead, they stared at the tangled mass of an old black fishing net. Danny’s shoulders drooped on a deep sigh.
“So,” Jeremiah said. “I was wrong.”
Danny laughed and shook his head. Amara came closer and helped Danny detangle the net from his hook.
“Maybe you’ll catch one next time,” she said.
Danny’s disappointed expression gave way to a soft smile. “Yeah, maybe.”
A flush spread across Amara’s cheeks, and Noelle glanced quickly at Jeremiah to see if he’d noticed this small interaction, but he was busy putting away his fishing gear. Then he turned around and clapped his hands together.
“Well, we obviously won’t be eating any fish today,” he said. “Who wants pizza?”
* * *
They ate pizza on the boardwalk, and afterward, they took their time walking back to the house. Jeremiah, Danny, and André walked ahead, while Noelle walked with Tati. Amara stayed behind on the boardwalk to hunt down some saltwater taffy, but Noelle suspected she’d used that as an excuse to avoid Danny.
“Okay, so what’s up?” Tati asked, lowering her voice. She looked at Noelle expectantly.
“What do you mean?”
“You know.” Tati nodded her head toward Jeremiah. “What are you going to do when he moves?”
Noelle blinked and looked away. “I’m going to focus on school and hopefully I’ll have a new job to focus on too.”
“You’ll obviously find a new job, girl,” Tati said. “You always do. And I have no doubt that you’ll be the best student to ever grace Riley University’s campus. But what about your heart? This is the first time that I’ve seen you genuinely like someone in years.”
“I…” Noelle looked at Jeremiah, watching as he smiled and nodded, listening to something that André was saying. She emitted a shaky sigh. “I think I’ve set myself up for heartbreak.”
Tati hummed sympathetically. “That doesn’t have to be the case if you don’t want it to be.”
“But how can something between us work beyond summer?” Noelle asked. “We’ll both have a lot going on in the fall. And…and it’s not like we’ve been together for years and have the foundation to sustain long distance. I really, really like him, but what if our feelings aren’t enough for us to last?”
“Maybe they won’t be,” Tati said. “Or maybe they will. I think, at the very least, you should allow life the opportunity to surprise you. Don’t miss out on something good because you’re afraid.” Tati lowered her sunglasses and raised her eyebrows. “Girl, he has a boat. You don’t let somebody like that get away.”
Noelle barked out a laugh. “I’m not with him because of his boat.”
“I’m joking, obviously,” Tati said, laughing too. “But y’all seem like you have a real connection, and he makes you happy. All I’m saying is maybe you should try and hold on to that connection a bit longer and see where it goes. I think you deserve to give yourself that chance, don’t you?”
Noelle let Tati’s words marinate. She’d made many points—points that Noelle agreed with. But she had to find the courage to give herself the chance and believe that things wouldn’t end in disaster.
“Look at you being all philosophical,” she said, wrapping her arm around Tati and hugging her close.
Tati smirked and turned her nose up in the air. “I’ve always been this way. You were just too busy being distracted by my other amazing qualities to notice. And you know I love you, but it’s too hot to hug.”
Noelle giggled as Tati scooted away from her. The sound of her laughter caused Jeremiah to glance back at them. He immediately mirrored Noelle’s smile. The guys waited for Noelle and Tati to catch up. Jeremiah fell into step beside Noelle and wordlessly entwined his hands with hers. She welcomed the overjoyed butterflies.
When they returned to the house, they swam in the pool for a couple hours. Amara eventually returned too, and she, along with Robin and the twins, joined everyone in the pool. Evening turned to night, and Tati and André decided to begin the drive back home before it got too late. Celeste, who’d been in her office most of the day, sent Tati and André off with boxes of Smith’s Sweets assorted snacks and apologies for not being around to properly chat.