Ruben and Shane: Footprints in the Sand

Chapter 1

June

Shane

My gaze was fixed on Louis. The wind tugged at him. But Louis made the element obey him. Subtly. And with a power that made me nod admiringly to myself. If he won this race, he would be the overall winner in the racing category of the kitesurfing competition.

I couldn’t keep up with his results. Years ago, I had come to terms with the fact that my surfing skills were good enough to compete somewhere at mid-level, even above average.

But I would never get any great endorsement deals in this life.

Surfing was my passion. A passion that hardly paid the rent.

I dug my toes into the sand. The rough scratching calmed me down, and I brushed away the strands of hair the wind had blown into my face.

I took a few leisurely steps along the shore.

Ahead of me, I could see the surf school and the Pride party area.

There not only the residents of Ocean View but also surfers who had traveled there especially for the occasion would be hanging out over the next two days.

I could hear the music. I knew the place was already filling up, but the biggest rush was expected later.

Just like every year, the last evening was the highlight of the Pride weekend festivities.

I turned back to the competition. The distance from all the hustle and bustle felt good. A deep sense of satisfaction tingled down my neck.

My life was perfect. Day in, day out, I could do what I loved most: surfing until the sun set. What might seem monotonous to some was heaven to me. Chilling, surfing, chilling. And surfing again.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed movement and turned toward it.

My stomach lurched. The reason why my assessment of life—alternating between chilling and surfing— was no longer quite accurate was hurrying toward me across the beach.

He was wearing shorts, a T-shirt that was way too big for him, as usual, and a cap.

The tips of his dark brown hair peeked out from underneath.

He probably had left his apron in his food truck at the party area. But he came bearing gifts.

A grin tugged at the corners of my mouth.

Damn. I hadn’t expected to run into somebody like Ruben this summer.

Although he had been at the beach the whole time, I had only noticed him a few days ago.

When he had fallen into my bed. And whenever we spent even only minutes there, I was reluctant to let him go.

Unfortunately, we both had work to do. The rest of the time, however . . .

His steps quickened, and he raced the last few yards toward me. I laughed as he ran past me into the water.

“Damn it!” He was adorable as his curses were harmless.

Smiling, I followed him. Gentle waves were washing around our feet.

Ruben closed his eyes, and with a relieved groan, he lifted his face toward the sun. “Why did I think it would be relaxing to walk here barefoot? My feet are burning.” Bowl in hand, he raised it to his head.

As always when he was near me, my hands took on a life of their own and I reached for him. “Because you work too much. And you still don’t know what’s going on at the beach. It can get pretty hot here, too. Not only at your stove.”

He lowered his head and studied at me with that tentative smile.

I pulled him toward me and licked his lips.

He immediately opened them for me, and I deepened the kiss.

He tasted of the mint gum he chewed as soon as he left his stove.

And as always, he tensed under my touch.

At the same time, he greedily demanded more with his mouth, only to finally pull away from me.

Ruben was out. I knew that. So, I was the reason for his strange behavior whenever we were outside my trailer. The unwelcome thought came rushing back to me. Why was I doing this to myself—again?

I took a step back and searched Ruben’s eyes. He eyed me pleadingly. Open and hopeful. He sucked in his lower lip, and I remembered why I was doing this to myself. My cook didn’t have a mean bone in his body.

He raised his hand and held out the bowl to me.

“I made pistachio ice cream for you.”

I happily reached for the cool surprise.

“Yummy. I love pistachios.” I immediately examined the sweet treat.

“I know,” Ruben murmured.

Fuck! I was being unfair to him. After all, it hadn’t even been a week since we’d gotten together.

Even though I had absolutely no problem with public displays of affection—whether with friends or sexual partners—that didn’t mean everyone else saw things that way.

I immediately took a step back and gave him space.

“Oh, really?” I asked. “Did I tell you that?” I tried to remember if we had ever talked about pistachios as I put the first spoonful into my mouth.

“God, this is good!” I exclaimed in amazement. A nutty mixture that melted on my tongue. Sweet with an almost smoky note. Not smoky. It reminded me of caramel. And with a pinch of . . . “What else is in there? Is that salt?”

Ruben ran his hand over the back of his neck and didn’t take his eyes off me. “Yes. I added a pinch of sea salt to the caramelized pistachios.” He played with his lower lip again. “What do you say?”

“What do I say?” I shoved a large spoonful into my mouth and turned to face him.

The delicacy had already melted away as I leaned toward him.

Why was I so unwilling to give him a bit of space?

The guy was driving me nuts. Pistachio nuts.

Were those nuts? I swallowed the ice cream, but the remains continued to tingle on my tongue. “Try!”

Ruben pressed his lips to mine. Licked inside my mouth. The cold spots warmed up immediately, and the sweetness mixed with the mint flavor from Ruben’s mouth. Shit. We had to get this from the beach to my trailer.

Gasping for air, we pulled apart.

“It’s absolutely delicious!” I moaned. God, was my utter lack of eloquence the result of brain freeze?

Ruben’s cheeks flushed red as he beamed at me, his eyes sparkled.

“I’m glad.”

I pointed along the beach. “Shall we walk a few steps together, or do you have to go back?”

Ruben shook his head. “Sway is filling in for me while I take a break before the big rush tonight.”

We strolled off.

I scraped the last bits out of the bowl and licked it clean.

Ruben’s laughter made me pause. It was infectious, and I grinned back.

“I can carry the bowl.” He held out his open hand to me.

I didn’t miss the opportunity and took it. I had to practice keeping my distance again. But after only a few days, I was addicted to Ruben’s touch.

His eyes widened, and he glanced at our intertwined fingers. However, he didn’t comment on it.

We walked a few steps in silence.

“I didn’t know you sold ice cream.”

Ruben shook his head. “I don’t. But the truck is fully equipped, including an ice cream machine, and I thought I’d give it a try. I also had leftover pistachios . . . ”

“Ha. I guess I got lucky today.” I turned to him, watching his profile.

He smiled and shook his head slightly. Ruben swept his foot through the water, and drops of the little wave splashed against my lower legs cooling my skin.

“I don’t want to get out of practice. My head chef in Germany insisted that ice cream had to be on the menu.

Every day. I guess it’s not a bad thing to know how to make it. ”

I nodded, and a twinge in my stomach reminded me again why what we had was rather fleeting. No matter how much my heart protested. After a few days, I couldn’t trust any emotions. They were deceptive anyway.

Ruben had traveled the world. He had a college degree. He was incredibly ambitious. After graduating from high school, I spent my time hanging out at one beach or another. Always chasing the sun.

But as always, I quickly remembered my personal motto. Chill! Enjoy every second of life instead of worrying about things you can’t change.

I put my arm around his shoulders and gave him a quick squeeze. “In any case, it was worth it. It’s delicious. I’m sure you could put it on the menu here. People would love it.”

Ruben inhaled deeply. As we walked side by side, he leaned into my embrace. His weight at my side was comforting. And it confused me. However, it encouraged me to leave my arm around his shoulders.

“I can’t experiment too much. My selection has to be kind of stringent. You were the perfect guinea pig, though. Maybe I’ll offer it at my next stop.”

“Oh. Are you already planning to leave?”

“Yeah. That’s why I wanted to talk to you.”

Those kinds of sentences never ended well. I peered at him questioningly. “Yes? What’s up?”

“The reason I came here in the first place was the Pride party. Business there is awesome. It makes up for the many slow days in between. And it’s over tomorrow.”

He didn’t finish the sentence but let it blow away between us in the wind. I desperately pulled him closer to me. When I didn’t say anything, he continued talking.

“Now, I wanted to move my truck to a beach further down south. The most lucrative days for me are over after the party and the end of the surfing competition anyway.”

“Oh. I didn’t know that.” We walked on, huddled together closely. I hadn’t expected it to be over between us so quickly. Although it didn’t have to be. But we weren’t in a position to make big decisions after a few days. Or were we? “How far are you going?”

Ruben shrugged. “About fifty miles south.”

Fifty miles weren’t exactly around the corner, but it wasn’t the end of the world either. We could work with that. “Cool.”

“Cool,” Ruben repeated.

Restlessly, I stroked his shoulder with my thumb. What did he want me to say? What did I want? Every summer fling had ended for me. Until now. I gripped his upper arm more tightly. “We’ll see how things go on.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ruben nod. “Do you want it to go on between us?”

“Yes. Of course.” I swallowed hard. After these few days, I hadn’t given it any thought of what I should make of the situation.

I was somewhat surprised that I didn’t sense any weariness in myself.

Normally, after a one-night stand, my curiosity was satisfied.

Two or three more times in bed with that person and I was ready to decline any repeat offers.

With Ruben, that wasn’t the case. Ever since we first slept together, I wanted more and more.

I could hardly wait for him to lock up his truck in the evening so I could pull him between the sheets in my trailer.

The prospect of him disappearing after a few days together made me unreasonably nervous.

My mantra of living from one day to the next had worked fine until now.

Ruben awoke something in me that I had suppressed for years.

The calm that had filled me a few minutes ago was replaced by a slight panic.

Only Ruben’s shoulder was my anchor point.

When we reached the surf school, Ruben stopped and turned toward the shore. Behind us, the receding waves swallowed our footprints in the sand.

“Will we be seeing each other tonight?”

“Of course!” I kissed him on the cheek. “I’ll stuff myself with your food, party with the guys, and then I’ll kidnap you to my humble abode.

There I will spoil you.” I concentrated on what I knew and could do.

With one hand on the back of his neck, I held his head steady.

“I’ll kiss every inch of that body from head to toe. Lick it. Taste it.”

A shiver ran through Ruben and he trembled slightly. “You already did that yesterday,” he murmured.

“Are you complaining?”

Ruben vigorously shook his head. “No. No complaining.”

Grinning, I stroked his cheek. “Maybe this time I should keep edging you until you come without touching your cock.”

A whimper was his answer.

Satisfied, I stroked his lips with my thumb. “If we don’t want to give the beachgoers a show here, we better break this up for now.”

Ruben had his eyes closed and spoke against my fingers on his lips. “Yes. No show. Work.”

Laughing, I took his hand. “Come on. I’ll even take you back to your truck.”