Chapter 1 Chapter 1 The Sand Dunes
Tish and I bounced around in the back seat of Nick’s Suburban, the cooler wedged between us as we kept cracking open beer after beer. My head felt fuzzy, the buzz settling deep into my bones. The night air poured through the open windows, carrying the smell of dust and desert heat.
Tish kept flashing me that mischievous smile—the one that meant she knew we were about to get ourselves into trouble.
Nick drove with one hand on the wheel while Vince sat shotgun, turning around every few seconds to check on us. Music blasted through the speakers as the Suburban tore across the uneven sand in the dark.
Ahead of us, Colt’s truck kicked up a thick cloud of dust. Matt, Gemma, and Erika were crammed in with him. Behind us, Nick’s trailer jerked violently, bouncing hard over a dip in the sand and sending all of us jumping.
“Jesus, Nick!” Vince barked.
Nick just laughed.
The trailer rattled again. All the dirt bikes were strapped down back there—apparently the boys planned on riding tonight. Colt had stacked wood pallets in the bed of his truck for the bonfire.
Further back, Andreas and Dustin followed in Andreas’s Jaguar.
I still couldn’t believe he brought that car out here.
Rich boy didn’t give a shit if sand wrecked the suspension or scratched the paint. That was Andreas in a nutshell.
They had two girls with them tonight—new ones we hadn’t met yet.
My chest tightened at the thought.
My breakup with Andreas still weighed on me. It had only been two weeks.
We were never supposed to date in the first place.
I officially met him the summer after my sophomore year—right after I dumped my boyfriend at the time, Frankie.
Frankie thought he could control me.
That wasn’t happening.
That summer, I worked deliveries for one of the busiest pizza places in Vegas. We went everywhere—from Mount Charleston to the Spring Mountains. My boss didn’t care how far the order was, as long as the customer paid.
The tips were incredible.
And I knew exactly how to use my assets.
The second my chest filled out, I realized what kind of attention it pulled. A smile and a low-cut tank top could double a tip without trying.
Frankie hated it.
He constantly begged me to call off work so we could hang out, but that wasn’t happening either. My dad would’ve lost his mind if I started skipping shifts.
He wasn’t the kind of father who encouraged dating.
My dad was big, intimidating, and his thick Eastern European accent could make grown men nervous.
I worked nights and spent my days reading.
That summer, I checked out a stack of romance novels from the Flamingo Library.
One afternoon, I sat on the apartment stairs, sipping Dr Pepper and cracking sunflower seeds while I read. Andreas and Colt were painting the buildings.
Andreas’s father owned the complex. Apparently, this was his version of keeping the boys busy for the summer.
That same day, Tish got back from visiting her dad across the country, and we spent the afternoon at the pool.
We laid out to tan, both of us slicked up in tanning oil.
Colt eventually wandered over. He wore paint-splattered jeans and a plain white T-shirt. His blond hair was short and messy, his blue eyes squinting in the sun. Tall, thin—kind of awkward.
He cleared his throat.
“I’m Colt. I… uh… we were wondering if you guys wanted to hang out tonight?”
“We?” I asked.
I looked past him and spotted Andreas near the fence with a few other guys. They’d been welding and painting all day, finishing the perimeter.
Tish’s face lit up the second she saw him.
She had the biggest crush on Andreas.
She flipped her long blonde hair over her shoulder and smiled up at Colt, her mint-green eyes bright.
“Sure,” she said. “We don’t have plans.”
Colt practically bounced.
That was the night we got pulled into their friend group.
They were the rich boys from the nicer part of town.
I dated Colt for about a week before we both realized we were better off as friends. We kissed a few times, but that was it.
After Colt, I started seeing Andreas.
We never went all the way either.
But I still fell for him.
Harder than I meant to.
I even stopped seeing Bobby—the night manager at the pizza place—because of him.
Then Andreas ended it.
Said he didn’t want to be tied down.
Vince’s voice snapped me out of it.
“Slow down back there,” he said. “You two are getting hammered.”
Nick snorted.
“I think Elle has a right to get hammered,” he said. “Her ex just brought his new girl on a weekend trip.”
Tish wrapped an arm around me, her cheeks flushed, her eyes glassy.
Did it hurt?
Yeah.
Was I pissed he called her his girlfriend after two dates?
Also yes.
He had never called me that.
But at least I hadn’t slept with him.
I had gotten my hands on him once or twice, though.
A slow grin spread across my face.
“What are you grinning about, Elle?” Vince asked.
I leaned back casually.
“I really don’t give a shit about Andreas. He was never my guy.”
“You sure about that?” Vince pressed.
I shrugged.
“His dick was too small for me. That’s why we never got anywhere.”
Vince burst out laughing.
Nick slapped the steering wheel, laughing so hard the Suburban drifted slightly in the sand.
“Was he bad in bed?” Vince asked between breaths.
“I never slept with him,” I said. “But I might’ve… petted him while he was hard.”
I scooted forward until I was directly behind Vince.
“Look at my hands,” I said, holding one up.
“They’re tiny. He couldn’t even cover it across.”
I held my hand next to his shoulder.
“No thank you.”
Vince reached back and took my hand in his.
My mouth went dry instantly.
His hand completely swallowed mine.
His fingers slid between mine slowly before he lifted my hand and pressed a soft kiss to the back of it.
A strange flutter sparked low in my stomach.
His lips were warm.
Soft.
Something about it made my pulse spike.
I suddenly had a very strong urge to climb him like a tree.
His hands were huge.
Strong.
He finally let go and turned back around.
Nick elbowed him in the ribs, and Vince just grinned.
Tish grabbed my arm and yanked me back onto the seat beside her.
“What was that?” she whispered.
I shrugged, trying to play it off.
“He was never this brave before.”
Tish leaned in closer, her voice dropping like she was sharing something dangerous.
“Vince has big dick energy.”
I burst out laughing, nearly spitting my drink everywhere.
Nick and Vince both turned around to look at us.
Tish just grinned like the devil.