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Dylan grabbed my wrists, circled them
with his own hands. He pulled me to him, his grip firm, and I was forced to
rise up onto my toes.
    And
then his lips were a whisper away from my own. One tiny movement from either of
us, and we’d be kissing. I’d be able to see if the moment that I’d replayed in
my head for three years was as iconic as I’d remembered.
    My
breath was coming in pants when, just as abruptly as he had grabbed me, he let
me go without his lips ever touching mine. I stared at him, my fingers pressing
against lips that felt bruised despite the fact that he hadn’t touched them
    “Go
home, Kaylee.” Those eyes raked over me, and in that moment I felt like Dylan
saw right through to the very core of me—saw the quiet girl who was still in
there, saw the traits that I’d gathered over the last few years that were
nonetheless a part of me now.
    I
felt like he saw it all... saw it and wanted it.
    “Go
home,” he said again, and that intimate stare froze into stoicism. He turned
away from me, looking down the beach, and I knew that I’d been dismissed.
    Anger
warred with the need that had flooded me, and was ultimately drowned.
    How
could I be mad at him for judging me?  It was my fault that the twin he had
really wanted was gone.
    Wordlessly
I started to pull his t-shirt off, but he held out a hand and shook his head.
    “Keep
it.”
    I
was furious at myself for the gushy little surge of emotion that I felt.
Squelching it, I released the hem of the shirt and let it flop back down around
my thighs. His eyes flicked in that direction, then flicked away like he didn’t
want me to see where he’d looked.
    It
was infuriating. He wanted me too, no matter how upset he was with me
    “Goodbye,
Dylan,” I spat as I stooped to pick up my tank top and shorts, which were still
lying in the sand. He moved, just the slightest bit, a twitch that told me he
wanted to say something.
    I
didn’t want to hear it.
    I
felt his eyes on me as I stomped across the sand to the small concrete lot
where I’d left my car, a spot of heat on the back of my neck. Part of me wanted
to turn and run back to him, to claim the kiss that I could almost feel on my
lips.
    Instead
I continued on, climbing into my car. When I looked back at the beach, he was
gone, and I was relieved.
    Whether
it was justified or not, his judgment hurt. And I had no idea what to do about
that.

Chapter Four
    T here
was an extra car in the driveway when I got back to the house. I blinked at it
for a second, having trouble placing it out of context.
    “Maddy.”
Panic began to percolate in the depths of my belly, radiating outward until the
very tips of my fingers tingled.
    Normally
I would have been excited to see one of my friends, would have immediately
started planning parties and any other crazy adventure that I could think of.
    But
this was the one place I didn’t want to see anyone from my ‘other’ life. The
whole reason that I’d chosen a school all the way across the country was to
avoid this exact situation.
    My
heart in my throat, I let the door of my car fall shut behind me and climbed
the steps to the porch. I heard the voices before I was even in—Maddy’s rocker
chick rasp and Serena’s softer, sweeter tone.
    I
followed the sound to the living room. They were both kneeling on their heels
on the floor, trying to—I didn’t know what they were trying to do, exactly, but
they were both pretzeled up but good.
    “You’re
here for two minutes and you guys are already yoga hippie-ing out on me?” I
forced humor that I didn’t fully feel into my voice as I slouched against the
door jamb, deliberately casual.
    My
body was tense as I listened for sounds of my mom. But they must have already
met her, or they wouldn’t be inside the house.
    “Hi!”
Serena untwisted herself with far more grace than I could ever hope to have and
launched herself at me with the enthusiasm of a best friend who hadn’t seen me
for... oh, maybe a