Chapter 20
Twenty
JADE
Fifteen years ago
“Ready for some bigger waves?” Xander asks as he pulls up his wetsuit.
“Maybe.” I glance nervously at the waves. “Will you be disappointed in me if I chicken out?”
He straightens with a frown and closes the distance between us. “Why would you even ask that?” His calloused hands cup both sides of my face.
For a second I think he’s going to kiss me again, finally.
After our kiss on the beach in Mexico, he hasn’t tried it again even though I desperately want him to.
We’ve been home for a few days but haven’t had much time alone.
Mom’s been dragging me all over the city to finish college shopping since she won’t be back until the day before I move into the dorms.
When we are at home, she won’t leave my side.
I don’t think it’s because they suspect anything happened between us or anything.
More than likely she’s just trying to soak up as much time with me as she can.
I get it, even if it is slightly annoying.
It’s been her and me for most of my life.
Men have come and gone, but she and I are the foundation.
But as of this morning, it’s just Xander and I for about ten days. Mom took a red eye to New York to take a class on new special effects makeup application, and then she’ll be in Europe for several projects. Stephen is in New York working on a new film.
The feeling of his thumb as it sweeps over my lip draws my attention back to him. “I don’t know why I said that.”
“You could tell me you never wanted to get on a surfboard again, and I’d be fine with it.” He drops his hand and steps back. “As long as you promise to sit on the beach and watch me while I surf.”
My lips twitch into a smile. “Glady. But I’ll give it a go today. I trust you to know what I can handle.”
His answering grin makes my stomach flip. That damn dimple will be the end of me. Every time he smiles at me, I want nothing more than for him to press me against the wall and kiss me until I’m breathless.
I think I’m about to be granted my wish as he steps toward me again. Then someone calls his name, and his head snaps to the side. A group of three guys with surf boards approach us, and he gives them the smile everyone else gets, no dimple in sight.
“Hey.” He bumps fists with them as they join us. “Guess we all had the same idea.”
One of the guys looks at me, his bright blue eyes leering down. “Is this why we haven’t seen you around lately? Get a girl and fall off the side of the earth?”
“Nah.” Xander gives a forced laugh. “This is my stepmother’s daughter, Jade.”
“Nice.” The tallest one holds his hand out to me. “I’m Zach.”
“Nice to meet you,” I say giving his hand a shake.
“Jose.” The one with warm brown eyes says with a little wave.
“I’m Chase.” The one with creepy blue eyes crowds me but looks over at Xander. “I see why you’ve been hiding your stepsister.”
Xander’s eyes pinch at the corner. “Not hiding anyone, just teaching her how to surf on beginner waves.”
“Boring,” Chase says, standing over me. “The best way to learn is to jump in the deep end.”
I sidestep him to get closer to Xander. Everything about this guy screams danger and not in the good way. Just two minutes in his presence and the red flags are flying.
“I’m good with baby steps, actually. Common sense and all that.”
“We’ll meet you guys down there,” Xander says, effectively dismissing them.
Zach and Chase take off without another word, but Jose hesitates. A look passes between him and Xander, some sort of conversation I’m not privy to. Then with the slightest nod, Jose follows the other two.
“If we’re out on the water and I catch a wave, stick close to Jose. And stay away from Chase.” Xander says as he pulls our boards out.
“You don’t have to tell me twice,” I repress a shiver. “He gives horrible vibes.”
“I’m glad you caught that. Zach’s a spineless pushover. Stay away from him, too.”
“Okay.”
“If you don’t feel comfortable, I’m fine with leaving at any point. We can go right now, if you want.”
“No. I’ll be fine.” I know he’s excited to be out here. The last thing I want to do is be a big baby and make him go home because some asshole on the beach gives me the ick.
“Okay,” he reaches over and gives my hand a brief squeeze.
“How’d you meet these guys?”
“Just out surfing. I met Jose first, and he grew up next door to Zach. Chase is Zach’s cousin. They all grew up in Newport Beach.”
We fall in step beside each other as we cross the sand. There are already about a half dozen surfers out on the water and people filling up the beach. It’s a perfect day to be out here. The sun is already warming up, even though it’s still early in the day.
Xander talks me through everything he’s taught me so far this summer as we paddle out into the line up. Once we’re out past the break, we sit up on our boards, legs dangling in the water. A few sets go past, the swells lifting and dropping us as if the ocean is breathing beneath us.
Chase bullies his way onto a wave, dropping in even though someone else had a better line. Jose paddles over to us with a shake of his head. He stops on my other side and sits up. The guy that Chase cut off yells something that the wind carries away before we can hear it.
“Have you caught any waves this size yet?” he asks me.
“No. This is the first time we’ve come down to this beach. We’ve been sticking to Santa Monica.”
Jose nods. “You’re in good hands with Xander.”
“She’s ready for bigger waves.” Xander looks over at me. “Do you want me to help you get in the line up, or should I catch a wave first?”
I roll my lips over my teeth. “You can go first. Then tell me what to expect.”
“Alright.” He looks over at Jose and then lays down to paddle over to a group of surfers.
Xander waits his turn as a few people catch waves.
Then a larger swell comes through, and Xander starts paddling toward shore.
As the wave builds he drops from view momentarily, but then we’re able to see his head as he rides the wave in.
I love sitting out here, but part of me wishes I was able to see him better.
One of my favorite things about our lessons is when I sit on the beach and watch him after I’m finished.
Xander pops out from beneath a wave after doing a turtle roll. He shakes water out of his hair when he reaches us. A huge smile crosses his face.
“That was great,” he says as he sits up on his board. “Bigger than what you’ve had so far, but I know you can handle it.”
“Really?”
He nods and looks out over the horizon. “I wouldn’t have brought you if I didn’t think so. Let’s get you in the line up, so you can try for the set after this one coming in.” He looks over at Jose. “You good paddling beside her, so we can get her set up?”
“Hell yeah, brother.”
The three of us paddle over with everyone else. I stay laying down on my board while Xander pops up to look behind us. All the things he’s taught me run through my mind as nervous anticipation builds.
“Okay, this one is yours.” Xander drops to his stomach and both he and Jose paddle beside me. “You’ve got this. Go, go, go,” he coaches as both he and Jose fall back.
As soon as I drop onto the wave, I pop up, a little unsteady for a few seconds, but then everything falls into place.
The world around me fades as I feel the water moving beneath me.
I put a bit more pressure on the back side of my board the way Xander taught me as I ride the wave toward shore.
The peak of the wave drops and knocks me into the water.
Adrenaline surges through my body as I pop back up and take a deep breath.
The chilly Pacific water seeps into my wetsuit, but I barely feel it as I paddle back out to the guys.
Xander and Jose whoop when they see me. Both of them smile as I join them, but the pride in Xander’s eyes makes my stomach flip.
“How was it?” he asks.
“So much fun. I can’t wait to do it again.”
They whoop again, both encouraging me.
We spend a couple hours out on the water until the waves start to intensify and get a bit too scary for me.
I paddle back in and walk over to where we left our stuff on the beach.
It’s too warm to leave my wetsuit on, so I strip out of it and sit down with my hands braced behind me so I can watch the guys surf.
Zach is actually the best surfer of the guys, but I think Xander has the best finesse.
Jose is good, too. Chase is just an aggressive asshole out on the water.
Almost every time he gets a wave, he’s cutting other people off.
From what Xander’s taught me about surf etiquette, Chase could definitely use a few lessons.
I watch with trepidation as he gets into an argument on the beach with another surfer who just watched him cut someone off again. The man laying into him looks quite a bit older than Chase. I look away quickly when Chase notices me. He blows the guy off and starts crossing the sand toward me.
My heart beats thickly in my chest. I glance nervously out to see where Xander is. Even from out on the water, I feel his attention lock on Chase approaching me. Jose looks over quickly too. Xander lays down and paddles hard for the wave coming up.
Chase drops his board next to me and plops down on the sand right beside me. He shakes his hair, sending water droplets all over me. “Can you believe that guy? Geriatric and trying to start a fight with me?” he scoffs.
I shift my weight, trying to put space between us subtly. “You did drop in on that guy out there,” I say because my body might be on high alert, but nothing pisses me off more than a mediocre man.
“My line was better.” He shrugs. “If they want the wave so much, they can fight for it.” He turns and leers down at me. “But I have to say the view is much better here anyway.”
I physically recoil when he reaches over and runs his pinky along my hip.
“I can’t believe Xander’s been hiding you away for so long.”
I want to stand and walk away, but that would put my ass in his face, and the last thing I want is his lecherous gaze on any part of my body. When I look out at the water, I see Xander walking up from the shore with his board tucked under his arm.
“He hasn’t been hiding me anywhere. I’m just learning how to surf.”
“You had a few decent rides.” He leans closer to me. “But I know where you can have one you’ll never forget.”
My lip curls in disgust that I don’t try to hide. “It’s inspiring that you don’t let your height get in the way of your confidence.”
He jerks back. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing. I would just expect you would need to be a little more creative with how you try to get laid.”
“You’re a nasty little bitch, aren’t you?”
My heart is pounding in my chest, but I try to keep from showing my nerves. “Call it like I see it.”
He pushes to his feet, towering over me. “You know what I see?”
I tilt my head back, trying to look as unbothered as possible. “I don’t particularly care.”
“A spoiled little cunt who needs to be taught a lesson.”
“Back the fuck off,” Xander charges up to us and dumps his board. “I know I didn’t just hear you call her a cunt.”
“What are you going to do about it?” Chase lifts his chin, but even having the higher ground, he’s still barely past Xander’s shoulders.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Zach slips between them and faces Chase. “You’re not doing this. You’re still on probation.” He pushes Chase away, who holds up his hands and walks off, but not before kicking sand at me like a petulant child.
“Are you okay?” Xander reaches down and helps me to my feet.
“Yeah.” I brush the sand off my side. “I’m fine. He was just being a gross asshole.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be.” I grab my stuff. “But can we go home?”
“Yeah.” He picks up his board. “Of course.”
I’m unusually quiet on the drive home. That wasn’t the first time I felt unsafe like that. Mom briefly dated a guy when I was twelve who had the same energy. I caught him watching me change clothes once. I’ll never forget the fear that overtook my body.
You can say a lot of things about Suzette Maxwell, but you can never call her a bad mother because as soon as I told her what happened, she believed me.
She threw him out and tried to report him, but the police said they couldn’t do anything.
Apparently when they spoke with him about the complaint, he claimed it was a misunderstanding.
I’ve never seen her so pissed. We moved to a different apartment complex after that.
Xander keeps sending me furtive glances out of the corner of his eye. When we pull into driveway, he doesn’t get out of the car.
“Are you okay on your own for a bit? I have something I need to do.”
That’s weird. I tilt my head and look at him, waiting for him to elaborate. When he doesn’t, I shrug. “I’ll be fine. Probably just take a shower and watch a movie or something.”
“I’ll grab food on the way home for dinner.”
I reach for the door handle, but he grabs my hand. When I look over at him, there’s nothing but turmoil on his face. His fingers tighten around mine.
“I’m so sorry you had to deal with him. I wouldn’t have brought you to that beach if I thought he’d be there. They don’t usually leave Orange County.”
“It’s okay.” I hesitate before leaning over the center console and pressing my lips to his briefly. “It’s not your fault. Plus, I put him in his place.”
He looks down briefly at my lips when I pull away but doesn’t say anything else. I feel him watch me until I close the door behind myself. As soon as I’m completely alone, I let the tears I held back flow, and my body expels the fear and anger in a rush.