Perfect Summer (4 page)

I
was returning back to the kitchen to start the wash when the door to the spare
guest room opened, and Rachel came out wearing an oversized black punk rock
t-shirt, obviously Ryan’s. Ryan followed right behind Rachel, wearing only his
boxers and no shirt. He was good-looking in a pale and thin Goth way that
suited Rachel, but I averted my eyes. It was strange seeing Rachel as this
sexual being, having known her since she and I were only four or five years
old.

“Good
morning!” Rachel practically sang.

“Looks
like you’ve had a great night,” I said, preparing her breakfast for her at the
counter. Nat had left a skillet full of eggs with roasted red pepper, turkey
sausages, and potatoes he made this morning for everyone. I scooped a good size
portion onto white plates and took it over to Rachel and taking the seat next
to her.

Rachel
beamed back at me. “Ryan really knows how to push my buttons.” She leaned over.
“So…how was Nat and you? I know. I hate to think you can be with one of my
brothers, but…the way Nat and you couldn’t take your hands off each other last
night when you got in…I assumed, you two would hook up, after all these years.
Summer, after all these years, Nat’s finally returned your feelings. I am so
happy for you because I know Nat will treat you right. He’s such a gentleman
and a good brother. If he wasn’t my brother, and if I wasn’t so into Ryan, I
would pick Nat.”

“I
thought you were Team Astor,” I said.

“I
was, but now that you’re not even remotely going there with him, unless you
surprise us somehow, then I would think you are genuinely and utterly torn
between my two hot brothers.”

“Um…”
I began. “We did get physical, but there are still some obstacles.”

“Not
as big as the ones you and Astor had, though, Summer.” Rachel made a sad face.
“Okay, I was secretly hoping you and Astor would last. He’s such a nice guy,
and so good-looking. Not to mention, fun to be around. You know when he heard
you mention that I wanted to give acting a shot, he immediately set me up to
meet with his agent and manager. Next month when I can fly back down here.”

I
smiled, thinking about Astor. He was incredible, and so perfect. It was hard to
believe a guy like him could exist.

“He
did asked about you when I saw him at the school yesterday,” Rachel said. “He
helped me teach one of the classes, and well, we all had a great time…one of
the better classes I’ve taught.”

“So
he’s no longer this intimidating star you see onscreen?” I asked.

“No,
I’m way past that now. Now, he’s just Astor, a super nice guy with good looks
and natural charm. He kinda have that sexy dangerousness to him, too, if you
see his films. Reminds me of that actor, Alex Pettyfer.”

“Careful
Rachel,” I said, “don’t let Ryan hear how much you’re gushing about Astor, he
might think you’ll dump him for golden boy.”

Rachel
blushed. “I wouldn’t! Ryan is incredible, too. In his own way. Plus, Astor only
has eyes for you. He kept asking about you, how you were doing, and when will
you start at USC.” Rachel stopped. “He’s staying in town for a while before
going off to film his new project, which, he said, would be filmed in Vegas for
a few weeks.”

“That’s
great, Rachel. I’m happy for him, but he and I are no longer together. We broke
up, remember. First me with him, and then he publicly with me. You had
something to do with it, remember?”

Rachel
shrugged. “Yeah, but you’re still friends. He’s still part of our lives, as
long as we’re all tied to Aunt Sookie’s Acting Academy. Astor said he wanted to
talk to you, Summer…about the Academy. He had some really good ideas for the
school.”

“Great,”
I said. “I’m heading over to the Academy this morning. Maybe I’ll see him
there.”

“As
a matter of fact…” Rachel grinned slyly. “He’s teaching my class this morning
for me so I can spend the day with Ryan. I head back to San Fran tomorrow,
Summer, to start the last semester of school. It sucks. I’m the only one who
isn’t in college yet. Even Drew got early admissions.”

I
went over to hug Rachel. “It’ll go by fast, and then you’ll be regretting not
enjoying your last semester in high school. I know I did. I can’t believe I
start at USC this week.” I went over to the door, grabbed my purse and keys,
and said, “I have to run. This is probably the only day I can spend at the
Academy working on the budget and schedules before starting college. I’ll be
there all day, if you need to find me.”

“Okay,
good,” Rachel said, munching on her breakfast. “Ryan had something planned for
me today so I don’t know where I’d be, but call me or text me if you need me.
And if I hear anything from Drew, I’ll let you know.”

“Great!”
I gave her a thumbs up, and ran to the large SUV I inherited from Aunt Sookie,
got in, and made my way through the side streets to the old converted theater
now acting school Aunt Sookie ran for nearly a decade.

Everything
looked clean and tidy when I stepped into the theater. Rachel surprised me with
how well she ran the place when I was gone for the day. I went down the aisles
and headed to the back where Aunt Sookie’s office was. Now that Winter’s break
was over, I had to begin planning for the Summer classes, especially Summer
Camp for the kids. It was the busiest time for the Academy, and I couldn’t miss
getting ready for the season. As I made my way over to the office, I noticed
there was a light coming from underneath the door. So, it seemed Rachel had
forgotten to turn off all the lights and lock up last night.

Too
much Ryan on the brain, I thought.

How
lucky Rachel was to be able to enjoy such an uncomplicated relationship with
Ryan, although, if Ryan wasn’t in the picture…I wondered if she would make her
moves on Astor.

When
I thought about my ex, I only have fond memories of him. Astor did sweep me off
my feet enough for me to forget about my long-time crush on Nat, and even
distract me from the insanely sexy vibes I kept getting from being anywhere
near Drew.

Speaking
of Drew…I checked my messages for any missed calls and texts on my phone. I was
still worried about Drew, but less than before I found out he was heading down
to Southern Cal. When he contacted Rachel instead of me nor Nat, I got it. He
was angry at us. And he wanted to avoid us.

But
he was Drew, and no matter how much Drew could get under my skin, could screw things
up, or could make me get so frustrated at him; he was still Drew.

I
texted him:

mE:  Drew, I’m sorry. I never meant to hurt
you. I still care about you and am worried about you. You said you would be
here for me. That you would always be there for me. Well, I need you. And I
need to know you’re alright. If you’re around today, I’ll be at the Academy all
day. Hope to see you soon. I love you.

I
sighed, feeling the exact places that was heated up last night from my phantom
lover, and shook my head to clear those thoughts. If my phantom lover was Drew,
he sure knew how to exact revenge on me, getting me aroused and heated like
that, only to leave me and tell me I won’t ever experience that again with him.

Fine.
If Drew was angry at me, and didn’t want any contact with me, then I’ll leave
him alone. He knew how he could reach me. I wasn’t going to spend another
moment longer worrying about him when I had other things on my mind…like trying
to make ends meet with running Aunt Sookie’s Academy.

I
reached out to open the handle on the office door, when it flew open, and a
large body crashed into me, sending my phone flying across the room, while
knocking me on the ground, sprawled down.

My
summer beach dress flew up around me, and before I can push my skirt down, a
body landed on top of me, pushing me down hard enough to hit my right elbow
against the concrete floor. Intense pain shot through my elbow that brought
tears to my eyes. I screamed out, and tried to kick the person off of me, but
grubby hands covered my mouth, while another hand fumbled with my panties,
groping.

I
was pinned by my arms and legs, and the person was too close to me where I
couldn’t get a good look at him. When he moved his face close enough where I
could smell the rancid cigarette breath, I did what I learned to do in
self-defense class. I head butted him as hard as I could, causing him to jump
off of me.

“Bitch!”
an unfamiliar voice grunted.

I
tried to get up, but my right arm felt numb. Useless. I couldn’t even use it to
help me stand. But my mouth was free from his foul dirty hands, and I yelled,
“Help! Anyone!  Help!”

I
didn’t know if there was anyone else in the theater. The first class would be
beginning in fifteen minutes, and I thought I had unlocked the front doors to
let students in early. I hoped and pray a student would arrive early enough…

In
the dark of the theater, I saw the man get up, and was heading back towards me
when a second figure walked in through the side door of the theater and rushed
him, crushing him against the wall of the theater.

The
man was stunned for a minute, but got up and ran out the door.

I
tried to get up again, but fell back down. My right arm was numb, and a sharp
pain ran through my back. I could only stare straight up, feeling like a
useless rag doll.

“Summer?”
the newcomer said, coming toward me.

My
breath caught in my throat as I realized who it was.

“Summer,”
there was such pain and concern in his beautiful masculine voice. “My gosh, I
wished I’d gotten here sooner so that son of a bitch couldn’t hurt you like
this.”

“Drew,”
I croaked out, trying to hold back my tears. “You got my message. You’re here.”

Drew
looked at me, his face worried, but full of pain, anger, and love. “I can’t
stay away from you, even if I tried. And I did, believe me, I did.”

“You
got here just in time,” I said. “I don’t know what would’ve happened if you
didn’t.” A shudder ran through me then, and Drew noticed.

He
gently bent down, touching my face. “Hush, Summer. Don’t even think about it.
I’m here, and if I let myself think of what could’ve happen to you if I came a
second too late, I’d rush out there, find the guy, and beat him to an inch of
his life.” He bent down to try lifting me so I can get on my feet, but I winced
with pain when he touched my arm.

“Can
you walk?” Drew asked. He gently touched my arm. “Your arm…”

“I
think it’s broken,” I said. “I’m just hoping I don’t lose my volleyball
scholarship to USC now,” I said, biting my lips. “What a way to start college
in a couple of days.”

“It’ll
heal,” Drew said. “We get sports injuries all the time, but they heal.” His
eyes took in the remainder of me, lying prone on the hard floor. When his eyes
lingered longer over my breasts and my barely-clad lower half; I couldn’t help
think of the phantom from last night.

In
the distance, I heard several voices.

“Oh,
crap, class is starting in a few minutes,” I said, trying to get up again.

“I
need to get you to the doctor’s,” Drew said. “To get you checked out. You’ll
have to cancel the class.”

“I
can’t do that,” I said. “Maybe if I can sit, I can direct them what to do
today.”

“If
you’re up to it,” Drew said.

“Can
you help me up?” I asked.

“You
don’t have to ask,” Drew said, placing his strong arms underneath me and
lifting me up to carry me into the main classroom.

He
made me feel tiny in his arms, and I was grateful having him there with me. “I
would never have guessed this would happen to me,” I joked. “That I would have
your strong arms around me, carrying me around like I weighed nothing.”

“You
do!” Drew smiled then, adjusting me so I was more comfortable. My hair slipped
forward and brush across his face. His smile disappeared. For a second his face
froze, and his eyes grew serious as he stared down at me, darting between my
eyes and mouth. From beneath his t-shirt, I could feel his heart quicken as his
grip on my waist tightened. “Gosh, Summer,” he said softly. “You smell,” he
swallowed. “Good enough to eat.”

It
became hard to breathe, as my breath quickened to match his. I didn’t dream
about Drew showing up in my bedroom last night, did I? I had to find out.

“Drew…about
last night…did you come by the Pad? Were you in Malibu?”

Drew’s
eyes met mine, and it was dark with desire. “What about last night?” he asked.

I
looked away. It had to be Drew last night. Who else could it have been?

“Look,
Summer,” Drew said as we got closer to the back of the stage where we could
enter to go onstage. “What went down at Nat’s apartment, I’m trying to deal
with that right now.”

“I’m
sorry you saw us together,” I said. “But technically, you and I aren’t together,
either.”

“I
know,” Drew said fiercely. “But I wanted to change that. You know I do.”

“I
thought you just wanted the physical with me, Drew, like you do with all the
girls.”

Drew’s
head fell back as though his face was slapped. “That’s all you think I think of
you?”

“I
know that’s what you want with me, Drew,” I said.

“I
do,” Drew admitted, his eyes devouring my body appreciatively. “But with you…I
want so much more, Summer. So much more than you’re willing to give me.” He
paused, “Every single touch, every single look you give me, I cherish.”

“Drew,”
I began. “I’m sorry…”

“I
know, Summer. I know you can’t help wanting Nat. It’s the same old story.
Nothing’s changed over the years. Seeing you and Nat together just confirmed
it. I have to protect myself, Summer, from getting my heart broken each time I
see you with Nat. Or anyone other than me.”

“What
are you saying, Drew?” I asked.