Summer Boys by Hailey Abbott Page B

from Ethan. “You’re dressed like a guy who would,” she commented.
    Scott was wearing a brightly colored Hawaiian shirt with a hula dancer on the pocket and baggy denim carpenter shorts.
    “Yeah, well, my fashion sense and my music tastes are part of my charm,” he said with a chuckle. “You need help with that drink?”
    Jamie looked down at her half-empty cup, then smiled. “I could use some help getting another one.” She fished an ice cube out of the mixture of vodka and OJ and stuck it in her mouth.
    “You got it.”
    Scott disappeared for a few seconds, and then reappeared back at her side with the refill. “So, what brings you here tonight?”
    “Ethan invited me.”
    “But didn’t you guys break up?”
    Jamie chomped on her ice and shrugged her shoulders. “We did. But we’re trying to be all adultlike and put everything behind us.”
    “Wow, that’s great. Isn’t it awkward, though? Being here as his friend?”
    “Nah, I’m perfectly okay with it.” Jamie figured that maybe if she said things like this, it would get back to Ethan through Scott.
    “Really?”
    “Yeah. I mean, it was just a summer thing, you know?”
    “Right, I hear that.” Scott said, sort of implying that he’d been the victim of a similar kind of breakup before.
    “I really love that shirt,” Jamie giggled and tugged at one of Scott’s middle buttons. She was so close to feeling okay. Scott and the screwdrivers made for a wonderful distraction.
    “Thanks. I like your—” He looked her up and down, shyly. “Um, you look different. You look…amazing. Not that you didn’t look…um…before.”
    Jamie was flattered by how flustered he was. It made her feel like she was a supermodel and all of a sudden she was brimming with confidence. “Let’s dance.”Jamie took a big gulp of her drink, grabbed his hand, and dragged him out onto the floor. She wondered what Ella’s rule would be about flirting with Ethan’s friends. Knowing her cousin, she’d probably consider it a good thing.
    In the middle of the dance floor, Jamie started swaying, first her hips and then her whole body. She hoped Ethan would come upstairs any second and see her.
    “You’re not going scuba diving this summer, are you?” she asked Scott, trying to make some small talk.
    Scott shook his head. “No, but my dad and I are flying to Myrtle Beach at the end of the summer.”
    “That sounds like so much fun.”
    “It’s gonna be great. We’re taking the Cessna.”
    “Your dad knows how to fly planes?”
    “Yeah, so do I. Remember? We do that advertising business.”
    Jamie stared at him blankly, and gulped at her drink. Then it all started to come back to her—their first meeting at Ethan’s. “Oh yeah, yeah. Sorry.” She tucked her crazy hair behind her earshappily, then put her hands on Scott’s shoulders, moving in close to him.
    While she and Scott were dancing, Beth came by to ask if Jamie wanted to leave, but Jamie shooed her cousin away.
    Thankfully, Scott was interesting. Jamie would have made conversation with a flagpole just to look like she had something to do, but Scott turned out to be way more entertaining than necessary. His father had been in the military and had lived all over the world—Germany, Italy, Spain. He and Jamie shouted about it over the music while her hands remained tightly on his shoulders. Pretty soon she decided she didn’t care anymore whether Ethan saw her or not. After all, there were other boys to keep her occupied.
    After a while, they were both covered in sweat and Jamie felt lighter than air. She felt powerful and sexy, and not at all nervous about it, like she’d been before.
    “Do you want to go out back and sit on the deck?” Scott asked, fanning himself with his hands. “It’s hot as hell in here.”
    “I have a better idea. Let’s go down to the beach,” she suggested, getting a sudden urge to dip her feet in the water and be far away and alone with Scott. “I’ll get us some