After Tuesday by Renee Ericson Page A

never play poker. Your face tells me he’s a much better kisser than you’re letting on.”
    “All right!” I chide. “You’ve tortured me enough, so now it’s your turn. What happened with Owen?”
    Lexi goes on to tell me in way too much detail about her time locking lips with Owen and how his roaming hands are very, um…roaming. I hear more information about tongues and shuffling clothes than I want, but I try to be a polite listener. She’s very excited by the whole thing, and frankly, I’m happy we’re close enough that she wants to share these things with me. All these wandering hands though make me wonder something.
    “So, are you guys, like, a couple now?” I ask.
    “Am I his girlfriend? I don’t know. School starts soon, and summer probably doesn’t count.”
    My heart sinks. Is that what this weekend was with Brent? Summer fun? “Oh. Well, did he ask you out again?”
    “Yeah, next weekend.”
    “Well, that’s encouraging.”
    “Maybe. I hope so. I really like him. When we get to school, I hope he doesn’t take one look at the freshman meat and forget all about me. But I know how it goes. I was a freshman once, too,” she acknowledges. “If that’s what he wants though, I’ll just move on to the next.”
    “Sure.” My eyes wander to the lake, looking into the reflective canvas for answers.
    “Hey, don’t worry, Ruby. Brent likes you. He won’t stop texting me about you. That’s got to mean something. And I know he wants to see you again.”
    “Yeah, ya think?”
    “Girl…” She laughs. “The boy can’t help himself.”
    She’s a total dork.
    As we head back to our cabins for the evening, I see a text from Brent..
    Send me your schedule, so we can talk this week :-)
    I text him back with the days and hours I’m free to chat, and then I tuck myself into bed around ten o’clock. I try to get to sleep early because we need to be at the mess hall at seven in the morning for our weekly meeting, and then the kids arrive at nine. As I turn over and shut my eyes, my phone buzzes with another text. I’m half tempted to ignore it, but I know I won’t be able to sleep until I see who it is. I grab it and smile at the sight of Brent’s name.
    You up?
    Well, I am now. Yeah.
    Are you alone?
    Huh? What does that matter? He knows I’m at camp. Yes. No kids until tomorrow. Why?
    Within a few seconds, I hear a knock at my door.
    “Ruby,” Lexi says softly.
    “Yeah,” I say and then clear my throat. “Come on in.”
    She opens the door, wearing her pajamas. In the moonlight, I see her smile impishly before she steps away.
    “Lex—” I start to call out after her, but then I see another figure enter the light. “Brent. What are you doing here?”
    “I just wanted to say good night.” His face lights up with a smile, showing off his dimples.
    I slip out of bed to meet him at the door. “Shit, Brent, you could have just called or texted. What if someone sees you here?”
    “I’ll be quick,” he says.
    Suddenly, he glides his hand to the back of my neck, pulling me to his lips for a searing kiss. I think my senses are heightened in the dim light because his mouth feels more sensual than before, causing my heartbeat to skyrocket. I slip my hands around his waist, pressing our bodies closer to one another. My fingers move up, running along his back, as one of his hands slides down the length of my neck to my shoulder, loosening the strap of my camisole. His lips press on mine gently before he pulls back, looking into my eyes.
    With labored breathing, he clears his throat. “Good night, Ruby.”
    “Night,” I barely whisper.
    He kisses my forehead and then releases my body from his hold as he steps away.
    “I’ll call you this week,” he says before turning away into the night.
    Without his arms around me, I feel naked as I stand in the doorway in a somewhat shocked state. I jump back into bed, hoping the weight of my blanket will alleviate the empty feeling. It