Chapter 9
It’s only nine, and I have no idea what to do today. I’m supposed to log into the school website and fill out forms and check my class schedule, but I’m a major procrastinator, so the school stuff likely won’t happen until next Tuesday, before my first class.
Can you talk? I text Axl. I’m so freaking bored.
He doesn’t text back. I wait five minutes. Still no text.
It’s noon there. He’s not at work. He doesn’t work until later. Is he sleeping? Maybe he was out all night with Senna. What if he’s still with her?
I call his phone. He doesn’t answer.
“You better not be cheating on me,” I say, tossing the phone on my bed.
What am I doing? He doesn’t answer his phone, and I just assume he’s cheating?
I can’t do that. I can’t assume the worst every time I don’t hear from him.
He’s my boyfriend, and I love him and trust him.
But I’m still angry I haven’t heard from him.
His day is half over, and he hasn’t even sent me a text.
Grabbing my phone, I leave my room and go out the front door to the outside. I need to walk off this anger. I want to walk on the beach, but I can’t get to the stairs with Brock having a meeting out there.
After checking to make sure nobody’s watching, I walk around the side of the house, down to the edge of the property where it drops off to the beach. Looking over the side, it’s a long way to jump, but if I hold on to the rocks and carefully climb down, I think I could do it.
Halfway down, my hands slip, and I fall backward into the rocks and sand.
“Shit,” I say, rubbing my head. I slowly stand up, checking that Brock can’t see me. He can’t, but I can hear him talking. If he finds out I’m on the beach again, he’ll probably yell at me, but I don’t care. What’s the point of living on the beach if you can’t use it?
Walking faster than last night, I quickly make my way to the house where I saw that guy making out with a girl. It made me miss Axl. I hate not being with him. Not being able to kiss him or hug him or hold his hand.
I sit down on a large rock jutting out of the sand and check my phone.
No messages. No calls. No texts. Nothing.
What if something happened to him? Maybe I should text his mom.
But if something happened to him, she would’ve already texted me, which means he’s probably fine but not checking his phone.
Why wouldn’t he check his phone? He always checks his phone.
“Hey!” a guy yells.
I look over and see the guy walking toward me from his house. I think it’s the guy I saw last night. It was dark, and I was too far away to get a good look at him, but I could tell from his outline he was tall, with wide shoulders, like the guy coming toward me.
He’s closer now, and holy shit, the guy has some serious muscles. He looks like he’s around my age or a year or two older.
“You can’t be here,” he says, stopping in front of me.
“Where? The beach?”
“It’s private property,” he says, putting his hands on his hips, making him look even larger.
“I live here,” I tell him as I stand up.
“Where?” he asks, like he doesn’t believe me.
“Down there,” I say, pointing to Brock’s place, although you can’t really see it with the bend in the shoreline.
“Then you need to stay there. On your own property. This is mine, and I don’t allow uninvited visitors.”
I roll my eyes. “Seriously? I can’t even walk on the beach?”
“Not on this part. It’s private property.”
“It’s a beach. I should be able to walk on it.”
“And I’m asking you not to. If you can’t follow that simple rule, then I’ll need to call the cops.”
I huff. “Are you kidding me?”
“Do I look like I’m kidding?” he asks, staring down at me.
As I look at his face, I feel like I’ve seen him before. Why does he look so familiar?
He must have the same thought because he’s looking at me the same way, like he recognizes me.
“Have we met before?” I ask.
“You slammed into me on the street,” he says, folding his arms over his chest. “So in addition to trespassing on my property, you also almost tripped me when I was running.”
“I didn’t do it on purpose,” I say, crossing my arms over my chest, mimicking his pose. “I went to pick up my phone and didn’t see you.”
“How can you not see someone coming right at you?”
“I was upset, okay?” I narrow my eyes at him. “Maybe you should give people a break, especially when you don’t know all the shit going on in their lives.”
“What shit are we talking about?” he asks, sounding curious.
“Nothing. Never mind.” I sigh. “Am I allowed to walk across your precious beach to get back?”
“Yes, but that’s the last time. I don’t want to see you back here.”
I look behind me at the long stretch of beach. “What if I want to keep going? Do I have to go in the ocean to avoid stepping on your beach?”
“That’s private property too.”
“The ocean is not private property. You can’t own the ocean.”
“Why is this so hard for you to understand? You shouldn’t be back here. Period. Even if it wasn’t private, this isn’t a walking beach. It’s rocky and the waves are unpredictable. If you want to walk by the water, go to a real beach. A public beach.”
“Why would I do that when I have one right here? I don’t care if it’s rocky. I have shoes on.”
“Would you stop arguing with me and just go?” he says, raising his voice.
I glare at him. At those beautiful blue eyes. That chiseled face. If he weren’t so mean, I’d think he’s hot. I might even say he’s the hottest guy I’ve ever seen. But his attitude ruins it.
“Fine! I’m going!” I turn and run off toward the ocean.
“What are you doing?” he yells as I go into the water.
“You told me not to walk on your stupid beach!” I yell.
“You’re gonna drown!” he yells, running toward me.
“I’m not gonna—” I’m stopped by a wave of water slamming into me and shoving me to the ground. The water pulls me toward the shore, dragging me along the sharp rocks. I feel my shirt lifting up to my bra, the skin on my torso exposed, the icy water hitting it.
“Help!” I manage to scream just as another wave comes over me.
Strong hands lift me from the water, sweeping under my back and legs and carrying me back to shore.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” the guy says.
I can’t answer, coughing up the water that went in my mouth.
Still carrying me, he walks toward the rocky ledge just below the back of his house. When we reach the stairs that go up to his patio, he gently sets me down on my feet but keeps his arm around me.
“You okay?”
“No,” I say, shivering as the wind blows. “That water is really cold.”
He hesitates, looking up at his house, then back at me. “We need to get you inside.”
“Inside your house? You wouldn’t even let me on your beach, which is why I’m now freezing to death and bleeding.”
“Bleeding?”
I point down to my knee, which has blood running down it.
The guy keeps a hand on my back as he bends down to inspect my knee.
“Shit, you really got scraped up.” His eyes move over my body, then his hand goes to my abs, which are still exposed from my shirt riding up.
I suck in a breath as his thumb sweeps just below my bra. “What are you doing?”
“Wiping the seaweed off.” His hand swipes over my stomach, causing a ripple of pleasure through the area just below it. “You’re covered in sand.” He stands up. “We need to get this cleaned before it gets infected.”
“We?” I glance down the beach. “Um, yeah, I’ll just head home and do it there.”
“You’ll never make it. You’re a mess. I’ll get you cleaned up, then take you home.”
He wants me to go into his house? I think I can trust him, but then again, I just met him, and he seems a little unstable. The way he yelled at me for being on his property?
How is this his property? A guy his age can’t own a house. This is obviously his parents’ house, which means he shouldn’t be yelling at me for being here.
“Need some help?” he asks, taking my arm.
“No, I’ve got it.” I pull away from him. “I’m just gonna head home.” I take a step and pain shoots from my knee, like there’s a rock stuck in the skin that’s scraping me every time I move.
“I really think you should come inside,” he says. “You might’ve damaged your knee. You probably shouldn’t walk on it until we’re sure it’s okay.”
“It’s fine.” I take another step. More shooting pain. “Shit,” I mutter, biting my lip.
The guy comes in front of me. “What’s going on here?”
“Nothing,” I say, cringing from the pain. “I just need to go slow.”
“You can’t even walk. Let’s go inside.”
“No. Really. I’m fine.”
He cocks his head. “Are you afraid of me?”
“Afraid?” I nervously laugh. “Why would I be afraid of you?”
He puts his hand on my shoulder and looks in my eyes. “I’m trying to help you. I’m not going to hurt you.”
I stare back at him. “Said the killer before slaying the victim in his secret lair.”
He laughs. “Secret lair?” He points to his house. “Does that look like a secret lair?”
“The secret lair would be inside the house, like a hidden room.”
“There are no hidden rooms,” he says, holding back a smile in an attempt to be serious. “I promise.”
“Yeah, I think I’ll just take my chances and try to make it back.” I go around him, walking slowly and shivering as the breeze blows over my wet skin and clothes.
“Okay, this is stupid,” I hear the guy say as he picks me up from behind.
“Hey! Put me down!” I push on him, but his body is as solid as steel, and his arm muscles don’t even flinch at my attempt to get down.
“If you want to go home, I’ll drive you, but I really think we should go inside and clean you up first. At least your knee. You’re bleeding all over the place.”
He’s right. My knee is covered in blood, along with sand, dirt, and tiny rocks.
“Okay, you can take me inside but I’m calling the cops if you try anything.” I dig in my shorts for my phone. “It’s gone!” I yell. “Put me down! I have to go find it!”
“Too late,” he says as he carries me up the stairs. It’s a long, steep staircase, and he’s not even winded. “If you lost it in the ocean, it’s gone.”