Free A Summer Remade by Nicole Deese Page A

long path of silence. “But the sale of this cabin, just like your parents’ marriage, isn’t in your control. Maybe it’s time to stop holding on so tightly to everything that was and try to accept what is.”
    I know he’s right, but whether I’m Joslyn the child or Joss the adult, the pain of that truth is the same.
    Drew crouches in front of me. His warm hand brushes over the top of my head and skims the length of my hair. “What are you thinking?”
    I lift my face to his, steady my gaze. “That I’d like to jump off the dock. With you.”
    He pulls me to my feet and hugs me. “You’re strong, and if anyone tells you differently, you can send them to me.”
    I pull back just enough for him to see my face.
    “Don’t you mean I should go tell ‘my neighbor, Drew Culver?’” Not only do I nail the tone and verbiage of his casual introduction to Dotty only minutes ago, I seem to have struck a nerve.
    Drew’s almond-shaped eyes sharpen on my face, his gaze blazing a path to my lips. He’s not amused by my impersonation.
    “You’re more than my neighbor, Joss.”
    “How much more?” I’m baiting him. And by the slight crease at the edge of his mouth, he knows it.
    “Enough to wish I could redo our first kiss every time I see you.”
    Drew’s hands slide up my back to cradle my head. The pads of his thumbs rest under my jawbone, my pulse thrumming wildly against them. In mere seconds, the steady current between us sparks like a downed, live wire, flailing with want. His lips brush across mine, as if to test the charge.
    Drew takes the risk.
    Tightening his grip in my hair, Drew pulls me forward, my hands pressing flat against his chest. His mouth covers mine, his lips urging me to follow his lead, to find a rhythm that’s all our own. Knocking hard against my palm, Drew’s heartbeat hums the cadence of desire. I lean closer, invite him to take our kiss deeper.
    He doesn’t hesitate.
    Not the setting sun or the buzz of cell phones or even the lure of a legendary dock floating above placid water could pull us from this kiss, this moment.
    Because whatever we’ve discovered, it’s something.
    And something is significantly more than a summer fling.

Chapter Twelve
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    F luffy spun sugar, chewy caramel popcorn, and every kind of skewered meat that money can buy are the pungent aromas of Fourth of July on Lopez Island.
    We were at Harve’s warehouse till late last night, applying the finishing touches on the Trash or Treasure parade float. Really, there wasn’t too much left to be done, but once again, Drew had managed to get me out of the cabin during yet another round of showings. This trick has become a new favorite pastime of his: knocking on my front door with some ridiculous emergency, or a food craving, or a sudden itch to go fishing off the Culver’s dock.
    Over the course of the last week, a half-dozen families have walked through my cabin. And little by little, showing by showing, the cinched belt around my heart’s been adjusting, one notch at a time.
    Drew secures my hand in his, and together we walk to the end of the parade route, to Harve’s old Ford. The float platform is attached by a trailer hitch, and seeing this huge steampunk-style clock finished in all of its unique glory makes me smile.
    We did this.
    Drew squeezes my palm as we approach a familiar three-legged dog and his master. “Hey, Harve.”
    “There you two are,” Harve says, clearing his throat. “Thought you should do the honors.” He tosses a ring of keys at Drew.
    “Wait. You want us to drive? In the parade?” I ask, speaking the confusion written on Drew’s face.
    “Yep. I’ve looped that parade route more years than you two have been alive.” His wrinkles crease deep trenches on either side on his smile. “Just don’t forget to throw the candy. The kids love it.”
    Pete whimpers near Harve’s ankle, and the old timer bends to scratch behind the pit bull’s ears. “Let’s go get us a bite to eat,