OFF LIMITS

Everyone knows the rules in the Outer Banks.
Kooks stay with Kooks.
Pogues stay with Pogues.
And some people are simply off limits.
I've spent my entire life in Figure Eight.
The Hayes name is well-known. My family has money, connections, and a place among the people who run the island. My best friend is Sarah Cameron, and I've grown up spending summers between expensive parties, beach houses, and the Pogue hangout spots Sarah and I were never supposed to be at.
So technically, I'm a Kook.
But I've never been very good at following the rules.
Especially when it comes to the Pogues.
John B, JJ, Kiara, Pope... they've become my people just as much as anyone from Figure Eight ever was.
And then there's Rafe Cameron.
Sarah's older brother.
My childhood friend.
The boy who used to annoy me when we were kids and somehow grew into the one person who knows exactly how to get under my skin.
Rafe and I have never exactly gotten along.
We argue.
We push each other's buttons.
He tells me to stay out of trouble.
I tell him to mind his own business.
But lately, something feels different.
Maybe it's the way his eyes linger a little too long.
Maybe it's the way he always seems to know when I'm pretending I'm okay.
Or maybe it's the fact that every time I tell myself to stay away from him, I find myself getting closer.
But Rafe Cameron isn't someone I should get close to.
He's Sarah's brother.
He's dangerous.
He's complicated.
And our families have more secrets than either of us realize.
Because while the Pogues are chasing a legendary treasure and the Kooks are trying to keep their perfect little world from falling apart, I'm about to discover that the people I've trusted my entire life haven't been telling me the truth.
And by the time I realize how deep everything goes...
It might be too late to turn back.
Rafe Cameron was never supposed to be an option.
So why does he feel like the one thing I can't stay away from?