Chapter 13
THIRTEEN
KAIRI
“Out of everyone you could have picked to date, why did it have to be Colton?” Zale’s lip curls slightly when he says his name.
We sit on the cool sand just beyond the reach of the tide, and the early morning air is still cool against my skin despite the wetsuit clinging to me. The ocean stretches out in front of us, calmer than I feel.
Practice starts in thirty minutes, and Zale looks like he hasn’t slept at all. Dark circles shadow his eyes, his hair messier than usual, like he’s run his hands through it one too many times.
“What’s wrong with Colton?” I ask, turning to look at him.
He lets out a disbelieving laugh. “Are you serious right now?”
“I am.”
“Did you forget he ditched the team when everything was already falling apart after what happened with Fin?”
“Did you forget why he left?” I frown. “Fin’s ex kissed Colton in front of him and made it look like they had been seeing each other behind Fin’s back…that’s what caused the incident that almost killed him.”
“Yeah. I remember,” Zale says. “But that doesn’t explain why he left us.”
“Can you imagine the guilt he was feeling for being the reason behind why Fin got hurt?” I ask, sitting up straighter. “And the guilt he felt for ruining the team's chance at qualifiers for the tour?”
“And so his only other option was to leave the team entirely and go straight to our biggest competitor?”
“What was he supposed to do?” I shoot back. “Quit surfing entirely so no one gets their feelings hurt?”
“No,” Zale snaps, his voice rising. “He could’ve talked to us, explained himself, or even given us the chance to fix things or support him.” His jaw tightens. “We’re supposed to be a team, Kairi. A family.”
The word hangs between us as I study him, taking in the frustration and the hurt that hasn’t faded away with time, and suddenly, Gabriel’s words to Colton make sense.
Trust—that is what’s missing.
“I get why you’re upset,” I say more gently. “I do. But that has nothing to do with me dating him. That’s a separate issue.”
Zale exhales sharply, dragging a hand through his hair again. “I just don’t think it’s a good idea. There are other guys out there,” he says. “Guys who’d treat you better.”
I tilt my head. “Like who?”
He hesitates as he holds my gaze.
“You?” I push, quieter now.
His eyes widen, caught off guard. “Kairi…”
I let out a small, humourless laugh and look back out at the water. “I appreciate the concern, I really do. But I can decide for myself who’s worth my time.”
Silence stretches between us and when I finally look back at him, something in his expression shifts.
“What?” I ask, uneasy.
“Nothing,” he says, though his gaze lingers. “You just…seem different.”
I smile faintly. “In a good way?”
“Yeah,” he says, a little distracted. “More confident and sure of yourself.”
His eyes drop to my lips and stay there, making my stomach do backflips.
Is he…
Zale leans in slightly.
Oh my god, he’s about to ki—
“There you are Kairi.”
Zale straightens abruptly and we both look over our shoulders—my heart still racing—to find Eliana walking toward us, camera bag slung over her shoulder. The rest of the team trails behind her, spilling out of the house with boards under their arms.
“I went up to your room earlier,” she says, glancing between me and Zale suspiciously. “Thought you might want to help me set up,” her eyes narrow slightly, “but you were already gone.”
Zale pushes to his feet, stretching like nothing happened. “She’s all yours, Eli.”
He walks off toward the others and she turns to me the second he’s out of earshot with narrowed eyes.
“Tell me I didn’t just interrupt something.”
I groan softly, pushing to my feet. “I don’t even know what that was.”
Her eyes widen. “Well let me fill you in—he was about to kiss you.”
“I—maybe?” I say, pushing a wayward curl out of my face. “One second we were talking, and the next…”
“Well,” she says slowly, studying me, “your love coach is going to be thrilled to hear about this progress.”
I follow her gaze and find Colton standing off to the side, his arms over his head as he stretches while his eyes stay locked on me.
“Or not,” I mutter before making my way toward him.
“Morning,” I say softly.
“Morning,” Colton replies easily.
He lowers his arms from his stretch and curls his hand behind my head, pulling me in just enough to press a kiss to my hair. Heat rushes to my face but I remind myself he’s just performing because Zale is nearby.
“Busy morning?” he murmurs.
“You could say that,” I sigh.
“Alright, lovebirds,” Gabriel calls. “Team meeting.”
I slowly turn and find every single person looking at me, except for Zale. He’s staring at Colton like he wants to fight him here and now.
“Sorry,” I mutter, embarrassed as I step forward.
Colton catches my hand and doesn’t let go as we walk toward the group together, fingers intertwined, and I feel Eliana’s stare burning into the side of my head.
Right.
The last update I gave her was that Colton and I weren’t dating.
“Alright,” Gabriel says, glancing at his clipboard. “Competition’s in two days and we’re making a few lineup adjustments.”
He looks up and stares directly at Colton, whose hand tenses around mine.
“Colton, you’ll be stepping in for Griffin. He’s dealing with some personal matters and can’t make it.”
My stomach drops and I glance at Eliana quickly but she’s already looking down, focusing way too hard on her camera with a tight smile.
Something is wrong, I can feel it in my gut.
“Got it, Coach,” Colton says.
Gabriel nods. “Let’s get to work.”
The group breaks apart and Gabriel heads straight for Eliana, resting a hand on her shoulder as if to comfort her. She turns toward him slightly, wiping at her eyes quickly, and my chest tightens seeing my best friend upset.
“It’s Fin’s parents,” Colton says quietly behind me.
I turn. “What?”
“They’re not doing well,” he says. “Fin told me he doesn’t think they’ll make it to the wedding.”
The words hit hard and I look back at Eliana, but she’s already setting up equipment, slipping into work mode like it’s her only shield.
I know how much she’s been looking forward to having Griffin’s parents come to their wedding in a few months.
They both jumped through a ton of hoops to get it approved by the care home, so I can only imagine how hard this must be on them.
“So,” Colton says, crouching beside his board as he begins waxing it. “How’d your take with Zale go?”
I grab my board, dropping it to the sand and kneeling across from him.
“He’s not exactly thrilled about the idea of you and I dating,” I mutter, dragging the wax across the pale green surface a little harder than necessary.
“Shocking.”
I hesitate before I tell him more. “I think he tried to kiss me.”
Colton’s hand stops and he slowly looks up. “Tried,” he repeats, “or did?”
There’s an edge to his tone that I’ve never heard before and it sends a chill up my spine.
“Tried,” I say quickly. “Eliana showed up before anything happened.”
His jaw tightens as he looks past me directly at Zale. “I should knock him out.”
“What?” I whisper, eyes widening. “Why would you do that?”
“Because he just tried to kiss my girl.”
My breath catches and my heart races wildly in my chest.
My girl.
“It’s fake,” I remind him, a little breathless. “You know that we’re only fake dating, Colton.”
“Yeah,” he says, standing. “I know that, but he doesn’t. If we want this relationship to look real to him, I should play the part of an angry boyfriend, Kairi.”
I quickly stand and grab his arm before he can go too far. “Okay, how about giving him a little warning instead of knocking him out?”
He looks down at me, expression softening for a moment before hardening again. “Fine,” he says. “A warning.”
I release him and watch as he walks up to Zale, but to my absolute horror his warning is delivered in the form of a punch straight to Zale’s stomach.
My heart leaps into my throat as he doubles over and Colton immediately grabs him, pulling him into what looks like a rough hug, masking it with a few firm pats on the back just as Gabriel glances at them.
Zale coughs while Colton leans in and murmurs something in his ear before letting him go with a shove and walking back to me like nothing happened.
“What part of a warning did you not understand?” I hiss.
“That was a warning.”
“No, that was a punch!”
He shrugs, picking his board back up. “I told him to stay away from you.”
My jaw drops. “Colton, the whole point of this fake relationship is to make him not stay away from me,” I whisper urgently, grabbing his arm again.
He leans forward until we’re eye level, his expression frustratingly calm.
“Zale chases what he thinks he can’t have, Kairi,” he says. “Trust me, this just made things more interesting for him.”
I stare at Colton, not quite convinced.
“You’re welcome,” he adds before straightening.
Gabriel blows the whistle to signal the start of our practice. Colton bends down and grabs both of our boards, handing me mine before running toward the water with the rest of the team while I’m left watching him, wondering if he just helped me or made everything infinitely more complicated.