Elizabeth of East Hampton (For the Love of Austen #2)

Chapter 23

CHAPTER 23

Lizzy watched the ocean waves crash on the shore from her small balcony at the Ocean Surf Inn as she zipped up her wetsuit. The motel wasn’t anything fancy, but it felt cozy and was in a prime location along Montauk’s Ditch Plains Beach. Plus, the oceanfront views from her room were spectacular.

When Lizzy was nine, her Aunt Jean and Uncle Larry had come to visit from Syracuse and told their nieces a rumor that this strip of coastline was the best place on the whole eastern seaboard to go hunting for shells. They brought all five girls here for a weekend to confirm it, renting two rooms at the Ocean Surf Inn and helping them collect sand dollars, textured scallops, whelk spirals—all in perfect form.

Lizzy smiled at the memory, then snapped a picture of the Ocean Surf Inn sign and sent it to her sisters.

THE BUTTER FACES

LIZZY

They still have the same sign.

KITTY

Oh, I love that!

JANE

Have fun—maybe you’ll meet a hot surfer!

LYDIA

You both need to pull back on the romance novel meet-cutes.

JANE

Never!

LYDIA

Whatever. Lizzy, be back for Tristan’s party in NYC next Saturday!

LIZZY

Hard pass. Don’t go to that, Lydia.

LYDIA

Too late. Already have THE BEST outfit.

MARY

You know what’s too late? Fixing the ocean’s co2 levels.

Good luck finding any good shells.

LIZZY

Thanks, Mary

JANE

Not sure why you’re still texting us when there’s probably great waves today. Go!

Jane was right. There were already a few surfers out, and it wasn’t even seven a.m. Lizzy got up and shut the sliding door, then grabbed her newly waxed board on her way out of the room.

She hustled down the sand of Ditch Plains Beach and into the ocean, diving under each crashing surf with her board until she could paddle out to deeper waters. There was an etiquette to the sport when so many surfers were out there in a lineup. The one closest to the peak got priority, so Lizzy patiently waited her turn.

It was worth the wait. Each ride was smoother and longer than the last. She got into a rhythm, a zone, and lost herself completely in the pure joy of every perfect ride and forgot to keep an eye on the shoreline. When she finally looked up, she found that she had been pushed east, well past Ditch Plains Beach.

She’d never been up this far before. The way the land and the rocks extended into the ocean felt like she had reached a stretch of undiscovered coastline. The walk back would be long and treacherous along the rocky beach, but she didn’t care. It was beautiful. The sun was shining and she had the waves all to herself, so she rode one after another until she collapsed in the sand with a smile on her face.

That’s when she caught sight of another surfer along the beach. She sat up and watched him expertly tackle the long swells, maneuvering his board with ease until he hit the shore and went back out again.

He was good. Really good.

Guess he’ll be doing the same trek back to Ditch Plains , she mused.

She lay back down against the sand, looking up at the fast-moving clouds, willing the mid-September sun to dry her off. This weekend was exactly what she needed to clear her head. She was already starting to feel like her old self again. Focused. In control. Even… happy.

Grabbing her board, she untethered her ankle and stood up, ready for the long walk back to the motel. The other surfer had the same idea and was starting to head in her direction. Whoever he was, he was tall—even from this distance, she could tell that much. His wetsuit clung to his long legs, the top half zipped open and hanging low around his waist, exposing his bare chest and the hint of his board shorts at his hips. As he got closer, one of his hands moved to push his blond locks out of his eyes, and Lizzy froze.

It was Will Darcy.

The soft sand of the beach suddenly felt like cement, rooting her to the spot. Her mind screamed for her to flee, but her body refused to listen. All she could do was stand there, pulse thundering in her ears, waiting for the moment when—

“Elizabeth?” Darcy’s voice rang out loudly over the crashing waves. He slowed when he approached, his eyes locked on hers.

Shit.

“Hello. Hi.” She gave a little wave, her board slipping out of her grip and falling forward. She cursed and grabbed it before it hit the sand. Then she straightened again, brushing her hair out of her eyes even as the wind pushed it back. “Hey.”

“What are you doing here?”

“I live here. I mean, not here . I’m surfing here. I don’t live here. I’m just visiting. Here.” She breathed in deeply to stop herself from rambling. But then her gaze found his again, darting from his hair to his eyes to his lips. The memory of those lips on hers was overpowering—his hand in her hair as he held her still, what he tasted like, how he kissed her like he needed her to breathe.

Shit shit shit .

Heat shot to her cheeks as she forced a smile and pointed a thumb over her shoulder. “Okay, well, good to see you.”

Then she turned, her board under her arm, and started walking along the beach away from him.

She made it four steps before his voice called out behind her.

“You can’t get back to Ditch Plains that way.”

She stopped. She could feel his eyes on her back, sending her pulse into an uneven staccato as every impossible option swam in her head. She could try to maneuver the rocks, or maybe take her board back out and battle the tide. But then she realized that brought up another question.

“How were you going to get back?” she asked, finally turning around.

“I wasn’t.”

She stared at him, her nose scrunched up, and waited for him to continue.

“My house is just up there,” he said, nodding to the wooden stairs leading up the bluff.

She blinked. Oh … oh my God . “Are you telling me I just washed up in front of your house? In Montauk?”

“It would appear so.”

If there was a merciful God anywhere in the universe, Lizzy prayed he would open a crack in the earth right now just below her feet and swallow her up. Unfortunately, in the long moment that followed, there was only the steady lull of the waves at her feet and the cool breeze against her flushed cheeks. God was apparently busy.

This could not possibly get any worse , she thought.

“Come on.” He nodded toward the stairs. “I’ll drive you back.”

Never mind , she thought. This is worse.

“No. It’s okay,” she said, waving a hand in front of her. “I’ll just… figure it out.”

He stared at her for a long moment. It was like he was waiting for her to realize she was out of options.

“How will you figure it out.”

It wasn’t even a question. Probably because he already knew she didn’t have an answer.

That realization only made her more committed to coming up with one. Or at least lying to make it sound like she did. Because the truth was too mortifying. She’d traveled alone to Montauk to stake out his beach? Now she was the one who sounded like a psychopath.

“I’m staying with my aunt and uncle over at the Ocean Surf Inn,” she lied, ignoring the fact that Aunt Jean and Uncle Larry hadn’t visited in years. “They’ll probably come looking for me soon.”

He cocked his head to the side. “Oh really?”

“Yup.” She nodded, a little too enthusiastically. “We’re going to Mike’s Crab Shack for lunch, and I think they made reservations, so…”

“I didn’t know Mike’s Crab Shack took reservations.”

Crap . Mike’s might have the best seafood on Long Island, but it was also just a one-room shack off Montauk Highway that used paper towels as napkins and picnic tables for seating. The chances of someone like Will Darcy even knowing about a place like that were minimal, though, so Lizzy lifted her chin defiantly. “Well, we’re very loyal customers.”

He considered her for a minute. “In that case, I’ll give you a ride and save them the trip.”

She shifted from one foot to the other, balancing her board under one arm as she weighed her options. “Are you sure?”

He nodded. Then his lip twitched, almost like he was suppressing a smile. “You can even get in the car this time.”

Her mouth fell open just as he turned and started walking to the stairs.