internal cringing instinct has diminished over time.

“I told you,” Seth whispers in my ear.

I blink up at him and he has a huge smile on his face. His

eyes are hidden behind silver sunglasses and he has on a thin red

T-shirt, jeans, and sandals. “Told me what?”

“That you’d regret not wearing sandals.” He sticks his arm

out for me to take and I loop it through mine, like we are two

ordinary people taking a nice stroll down the sidewalk. Only we’re

not and I’m reminded of that when he opens his mouth again.

“Do you… do you want to talk about it?” he asks as we pass

by a store displaying a collection of sunglasses in the window.

I shake my head, taking in the stores beside me, trying not to

think about how I felt seeing Caleb again, the things he said to me,

or the fact that my mom has called and text me a least a hundred

times and left me countless messages I refuse to check. “I’m okay,”

I say. “And despite the fact that I don’t have shorts or sandals, I’m enjoying the sun and sand.”

He grins at me and it beams in the sunshine. “Well, I’m glad.”

The smile fades. “But if you need to talk…”

“Then I’ll come to you.” I point to the candy canes hanging

on the streetlamps just above our heads. “It’s kind of strange

seeing Christmas decorations without snow on the ground.”

“Indeed it is.” His phone rings inside his pocket and he

reaches his hand in to silence it without even looking at it.

I eye him over, but he only smiles, and I don’t press,

returning the favor of limited questions because that’s what he’s

doing for me.

Kayden and Luke are walking just a little ways in front of us,

talking and laughing. Luke keeps checking out girls as they walk

by, particularly the ones dressed in tight dresses.

“I don’t understand how they can be so comfortable dressed

like that,” I say as Seth jerks me to the side to swerve me around a

man who’s dressed as a taco and handing out florescent-pink

flyers.

“How can who be dressed like what?” He steers us back over

to the center of the sidewalk.

“People.” I glance around the busy street with my shoulders

slouched. “I mean, most of the girls are wearing nothing.”

Seth laughs at me and then draws me closer to him. “I think

you should try dressing like that.”

My eyes widen and I start to panic as I take in the limited

fabric on almost everyone. It’s not like they’re naked or even in

swimsuits but a lot of women are wearing short dresses and it

makes me uneasy. “Seth, there’s no way I’ll ever be able to wear a

dress.” I think back to Caleb and how he called me a slut on the

porch. I know it shouldn’t bother me, but it does.

“I doubt that,” he assures me with certainty. “I think that one

day you’ll be just as comfortable in your own skin as all of these

people are in theirs.”

I frown with doubt. “I don’t think so.”

He scans the street and his eyes land on a tall woman with

flowing blonde hair the color of sunflowers who’s wearing a

white-and-pink sundress. Her hair is dancing in the light breeze

that smells like salt and fish and everything that is linked to the

ocean. “How about something like that?”

I shake my head, breathing in the fresh air to still my

accelerating heart. “No way.”

He fires a death glare at me, his brown eyes darkening as his

eyelids lower. “Why not?”

“I was twelve the last time I wore a dress,” I say quietly, with

my head held low as shame washes over me. It was pink and had

flowers on it and I loved spinning in it.

Suddenly he understands. “Oh Callie, I’m sorry.” He hooks a

finger below my chin and forces my eyes away from my feet.

“It’s fine.” I shuffle my feet along the boards of the slightly

arched bridge as we walk over it. “You didn’t know.”

He’s quiet for a while and I return to staring at my feet. “How

about you just try it?”

I blink up at him, stunned. “I thought we moved passed the

subject.”

He shakes his head with his gaze fastened on me. His blond

highlights glimmer in the sun and he’s paler than most of the

people around here. “I don’t want you to stop moving forward.”

I wave my hand in front of me. “But we are moving forward.”

He smiles. “That’s not what I meant.”

“I know.” I sigh heavily, with the heat of the sun kissing my

cheeks. “It doesn’t really matter either way. I don’t own a dress.”

A grin expands across his face and he starts bouncing with

excitement and swinging my arms. “Oh my God, I should totally

buy you one.”

I glance around at the store windows. A few of them are

clothing stores with half-dressed manikins on display. Others have

knickknacks and beachwear, and there’s an Umbrella Hut near the

corner of the street, and a man is walking around in front of it with floral board shots, a tank top, and a Santa hat. “Seth, I really don’t think I can.”

He nudges me with his shoulder. “We can at least try.” He

jerks me to the side by the arm and then we cross the street to a

fluorescent-pink store with daisies painted on the window and

dresses hanging up on a rack underneath the outside deck. “We’ll

buy you one and then if you feel like wearing it you can.”

“And if not?”

“Then we’ll have had the pleasure of buying a dress.”

I sigh but don’t argue and he takes that as a yes. He speeds

up and weaves us through the people, and I keep my shoulders in

to stop anyone from touching me.

“Hey, where are you two going?” Luke calls out from the

sidewalk with his hands cupped around his mouth.

Kayden’s looking at us like he thinks we’re running away

from him. He’s got on a pair of dark denim jeans and a fitted black

shirt. His bangs are hanging in his eyes and the ends flip up

around his ears and neck. He’s still scruffy on his chin and strong

jawline and I wonder how long it will be before he can shave

again—be around a razor again.

He mouths, Are you okay?

“Yeah, go get your clothes,” I call out as I wave and then Seth

tows me backward and we step up onto the curb of the opposite

sidewalk. “We’ll catch up with you.”

Luke looks puzzled, but then shrugs and heads up the

sidewalk with Kayden behind him. I tear my gaze off them and turn

around, tripping on my shoelace that’s come untied. I kick up sand