The Summer Solstice ~ Enchanted (7 page)

I raise my eyes, knowing that I should be
impressed. “That’s great. What about you Ava?”

Ava darts a worried glance in Iris’s direction and
then puts on a half-smile. “My dad’s a cop.”

Iris lets out a laugh. “Ava is on the cheerleading
squad too. You should try out this year.” The offer is a blatant challenge.

I shake my head. “Probably not, but thanks.”

Iris smiles with mock sympathy. “Yeah, it’s not for
everyone.” She turns to Alec now. “You ready to eat babe?”

Alec nods, rolls his eyes and looks directly at me.
“See you around? Or, you could join us, if you aren’t headed somewhere.”

“Thanks but I’m meeting up with Charlotte. Thank
you though.” Despite my disappointment at the interruption of the two fiery
blondes, I return his smile before he turns away.

As I watch the three of them walk off there’s a
sinking in my chest. Before the girls arrived I was beginning to warm up to
Apollo Beach. But Iris and Ava reminded me why attending a new school is harder
than it should be. They have claimed their territory and I’m a threat.

A vibration in my
purse causes me to pull out my phone and look at the screen.

Meet me at the car.

Char

Once we’re back in Apollo Beach, Charlotte takes a
turn before our neighborhood’s main gate. A storybook land opens up in front of
us, as tall green towering trees shield what comes next.

We pass over a short one-lane bridge with
cement-sculptured rails and end posts. The bottom looks as if it’s made of
cement and wood blocks. The large overhead sign reads
Summer Island
Community Center.

So
this is Summer Island
. We
drive in a short distance and Charlotte approaches a guard gate. She’s barely
flashed her magical smile before the wrought iron gate opens ahead. The letter
S stands within a circle above the gate.

The tree cover fades past us as we arrive in an
entirely new community, filled with historically structured townhomes that look
as if they are used for office buildings. There seem to be tennis courts and
swimming pools and – that’s all I can make out.

Charlotte turns left and enters the parking lot of
a Bay front restaurant, The Island Bar and Grill.

As we exit the car and enter the large circular
tiki-syle restaurant that’s both indoor and outdoor I notice beer brands and
tattered nautical items scattered over all supporting wood pillars. The bar
sits in the middle of the room with TV screens circling the upper frame of the
bar. I see pool tables, darts, a Ping-Pong table, and even a stack of board
games on the opposite side of the room. The outer tables, facing the Bay front
are decorated with white and navy umbrellas.

This
would be a fun place to work.

The hostess gives Charlotte a familiar glance and
smiles. “Booth?” She asks bouncily. The girl looks to be my age. I wonder if
we’ll be going to school together in the fall. Her nametag reads Trisha.

Charlotte responds with a nod and we are led to a
booth in the back of the restaurant. Still admiring the décor, I barely notice
Alec, Iris, and Ava sitting at one of the tables. Alec’s back is toward me but
Iris catches my eye. I smile and lift my arm in a wave just to be friendly and
am rewarded with a smirk. She looks away and continues her conversation.

That was odd. Surely she would have said “hi” if
she saw me. She was probably just in the middle of a conversation. I follow
Charlotte to the table while trying to ignore my negative thoughts.

I glance sideways at Alec, wishing that I wasn’t
the new girl in town. Wishing that I could be at their table, sitting with
them. Well, sitting with Alec.

Charlotte who excuses herself for the restroom
disturbs me momentarily. I turn back towards Alec and his friends, and wonder
again if Iris is Alec’s girlfriend.

“You’re new friend is so weird.” I hear the
familiar voice but it sounds like a whisper all around me. I whip my head
around, expecting to see someone speaking to me.

“Who?” Asks another voice. That sounds like Alec. I
look towards their table again. Impossible. Their table is on the other side of
the loud restaurant. I couldn’t possibly be hearing them.

The voices continue.

“That Summer girl you were talking to earlier.
Rose’s granddaughter. How do you even know her?” Her tone is almost accusing.

“Her name is Kat.” The voice belongs to Alec. “We
ran into each other on the beach.” I watch him shrug his shoulders and reach
for his soda.

“You think she likes you?”

“I don’t know, why would I think that?” There’s
laughter in his voice.

“Alec, you are so funny. The girl obviously has a
crush on you. Just be careful.” Her tone reeks of genuine concern and now I’m
embarrassed.

Alec is chuckling. “It’s really none of your
concern, Iris. Just leave it alone. She’s just a friend. She’s new. She’s nice.
I’m going to invite her to my Fourth of July party so she can get to know
everyone.”

That
sounds like fun
, my hope to fit
in, sparked.

Iris’s features are not returning his calm. She
frowns and shakes her head. “Alec I’m serious. You know what I’ve told you
about the Summers – my parents tell me that there’s something strange
about them. And that old woman thinks she rules this town. You shouldn’t be
getting mixed up with her.”

Alec just laughs again. “Well, Rose does rule this
town, Iris. She’s lived here longer than anyone else and she does a lot for
this place. She’s the reason we’re sitting at this restaurant now. I respect
her.”

Ava chimes in now, tone equally as disturbing as
Iris’s. “Rose won’t always rule this town, Alec. She’s old. Others more
suitable should run this place – and soon they will.” Ava speaks quietly
but matter-of-factly.

Iris nods. “And when that happens you won’t want
anything to do with Kat Summer.”

As grateful as I am to him for his defense of Rose,
the disturbance of this conversation remains. Why would Iris and Ava be so
possessive of this town? And why would Iris’s parents have anything mean to say
about Rose?

Their words disturb me more than I want them to.

“Kat.” The next voice is clearer and right in front
of me. I snap out of my trance and look up to see Charlotte sitting in the
booth. She has a worried look on her face. “You okay?”

I recover quickly and nod my head. “Yeah, I just
thought I heard something. What’s good to eat here?”

Just then, a scruffy guy, probably in his late
teens, steps up to our table. I assume he wants to take our order but he says
nothing. His brooding eyes and solid hands never leave his notepad. I watch him
curiously.
What is his problem?

Charlotte clears her voice, forcing my eyes to meet
hers. Heat fills my cheeks. “The Summer salad is great,” she winks at me now. I
forget about the waiter and laugh with her. I like that Charlotte is playful.

My eyes scan the menu. “Do you want me to come back?”
A gruff voice asks above us.
He speaks.
I raise an eyebrow to his rough
tone and impatient demeanor, and then lift my face to tilt my head at him. I
can’t help but notice his unshaven face and tired eyes. He hasn’t slept much.

“We’ll have two chicken salad wraps with fries.”
Charlotte orders for us and hands him the menus. His eyes are directly on me
now with a chilling look that could shatter my bones. With a nod, he turns and
walks away.

Are all of the people in this town strange?

I excuse myself for the restroom once we’re done
eating. Since I have to pass by Iris, Ava, and Alec’s table, they see me.
Alec’s eyes widen in recognition. “Hey!”

The excitement in his voice brings a smile to my
face. “Hi.”

“We’re about to play some pool. Wanna join us? We
need a fourth.” I almost can’t believe that this is the same guy from the beach
that first night.

I look behind my shoulder at Charlotte and she must
understand what’s going on because she gets up and walks over to us.

I turn back to face Alec. “I’ve never played pool
before.” I must sound dejected because Iris and Ava eat it up.

“If she’s playing she’s on your team Alec.” Ava
says, eyes glaring.

If the girls want me to feel uncomfortable they are
successful. I swallow a knot of air, eyes wide, and back on Alec. His smile is
reassuring. “Fine by me.”

“Hi Kat.” Charlotte approaches us. “Everything
okay?”

Alec extends a hand to her. “Ms. – Charlotte.
I’m Alec Stone. I live a few houses down from you.”

Charlotte’s eyes grow wide with recognition and a
smile spreads across her face. “Oh yes, Alec. So nice to meet you.”

“We were just asking Kat if she wanted to play some
pool. I can walk her home if you didn’t want to wait around.”

Charlotte searches my expression for something
– maybe my approval or disapproval. Then she looks to the two blondes and
smiles at them. “Hello.” But she doesn’t linger there. Her eyes are back on
Alec. “Okay. I’m going to head back. Kat, if you need anything call or text me.
Have fun.”

I sigh thankfully, knowing that she’ll talk Rose
down before I get home.

I head to the restroom before meeting the group at
the pool game. They’ve already set up the balls in a colorful triangular shape.
I’ve only watched others play, so the pole thing is weird in my grasp.

Alec helps me position the stick in my hands, as he
does, I can feel his breath over my shoulder and I stiffen. He smells fresh and
laundered. I see him smile at me from the corner of my eye. Once I have the
positioning right he tells me to aim for the white ball. The white ball is supposed
to hit the solid ball behind it. If done correctly, the solid ball will go in
the pocket to my left.

As complicated as it sounds and feels at first, I
get the hang of it after my first couple of turns. Iris and Ava flaunt around
the table, taking their time, pouting their lips in true show-off fashion. Iris
misses every shot but she finds a great excuse each time. “I swear. This table
is so crooked.”

Alec is great at pool, but after talking to him a
bit more between turns, I find out that he’s great at a lot of things. In the
winter he plays football for Apollo Beach High School and during the spring he
plays basketball.

It’s the first time I’m really getting a sense for
who Alec is. The two other times we’ve bumped into each other were awkward and
rushed. This time, I pay close attention to his relaxed demeanor and playful
tone with Iris and Ava. Their reactions make it clear that there is more than
friendship there – at least for the girls. If I’m not mistaken, Ava seems
to have the hots for Alec too, but she hides it better than Iris.

“Okay, Kat. You’re up. No help this time, you’re
getting good.” Alec winks at me and the heat rises in my face.

I eye the table, planning my next move. I notice a
solid ball near the middle pocket but the white is jammed behind a stripe. If I
aim for the top of the table, it would bounce back and hit the yellow solid
right into the pocket. I firmly position myself, eyes focused.

“Whoa getting fancy,” Alec exclaims.

“Yeah right,” Iris says, as if she can’t believe I’m
trying this.

I look up at Iris just as I hit the ball, meeting
her challenge. I’ve never felt so confident. I feel the tip of my stick hit the
white ball perfectly. The white ball takes off, just missing the stripe ball,
and ricochets off the back plush green velvet. I watch with anticipation as it
successfully hits the yellow solid. The yellow ball sinks into the deep black
hole.

Alec is whooping and hollering and hugging me. Iris
and Ava stand off to the side, arms folded, and unbelieving expressions on
their faces.

As I’m laughing and raising my arms in celebration
my right fist slams into a person behind me. I turn in horror to see whom I’ve
struck.

The scruffy, troubled waiter who was taking our
order earlier is holding his nose, cringing. My mouth is wide and I step closer
to him. “I’m so sorry!” I reach for his face.

He just glares at me and walks away. I’m left with
a deep sinking hole in the pit of my stomach.

“He’ll be fine,” Alec
says and pulls me back to the table. “It’s your turn again, rock star.”

We played two more games, all of which, Alec and I
won. Iris and Ava took off in Iris’s red Fiat shortly after, fuming. I knew I
recognized their long blonde locks. They almost ran me over in the shopping
mall parking lot.

I ask for an application as we exit the Grille. “I
think I’d like to work here,” I tell Alec.

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea. It’s against
bar rules for employees to shark all of the customers.”

I throw my head back and laugh. There’s something
about Alec that affects me. It’s as if I’m finally
myself
, whoever that
is. But I’ve never been this elated before.