23. Eliana
TWENTY-THREE
I blinkawake as the soft morning light filters in through my bedroom curtains. It’s Tuesday, and the Regional Surf Team Finals are today. The whole house was on edge last night, especially Griffin. He’s been acting strange ever since returning from his physiotherapy appointment yesterday, but each time I’ve asked him if he’s okay, he insists he’s just nervous for the competition.
I can tell he’s lying to me, but I don’t feel like I have a right to call him out on it. Not when I’m hiding things from him too.
I rub at the sleep in my eyes and yawn, but as I move to stretch my body, I realize I’m trapped by two strong arms wrapped around my waist. I look over my shoulder and find Griffin asleep beside me. The soft morning light softens his features, his worry and exhaustion lines invisible.
I had let him spend the night with me because he claimed Colton snores too loudly for him to fall asleep, but in truth I think he just wanted my company last night. We haven’t had sex yet, and I’m not sure why. I’ve made it clear to him that I’m ready, but he’s kept it strictly oral this whole time.
My eyes trace the contours of his face, lingering on the faint beauty mark that sits on his upper lip. It’s my favorite part of his features. I never realized how safe I would feel to have him next to me, holding me in his comforting embrace. His chest rises and falls with each steady breath that he takes.
I slowly turn in his arms until I’m facing him and reach out to brush a stray lock of his dark hair from his forehead, my fingers lingering on his skin. He looks so tranquil, and I don’t want to wake him, but I know I need to.
I gently nudge his shoulders until his eyes flutter open and his gaze locks on mine. His lips pull up into a lazy smile as he looks down at me, pushing a strand of hair behind my ear before he tilts my head and softly kisses me.
I return the kiss but pull away with a playful grin. “Morning breath,” I tease, burying my face into my hands in mock disgust.
He chuckles. “You’re one to talk.” His voice is husky with sleep and the sound sends an electric zap straight to my core, lighting up my nerve endings.
He pulls me into his embrace and holds me close as if I might run away forever. I melt into his arms, the warmth of his body enveloping me like a shield from the outside world. I close my eyes and savor the feeling of being in his arms, and the sound of his steady heartbeat echoing in my ears.
We lay like this for another ten minutes as we both slowly wake up, but I’m first to reluctantly extract myself from his arms, regret tugging at me instantly when the cool morning air greets me.
“It’s competition day, we should probably start getting ready,” I mutter as I sit up and stretch my arms.
Griffin rolls onto his back and scrubs at his face with his hands. “Yeah, probably,” he replies, his tone filled with resignation, “but can we stay like this for a little longer?”
I smile at him, my heart beating faster as I lay back down beside him. “Of course,” I whisper as I curl into his side.
He tilts my chin up again and kisses me more insistently, a flame of desire igniting between us. As our kiss deepens, each movement of his lips sends electric shocks throughout my body and all my worries of morning breath slip away. He rolls atop of me as his fingers trace their way over the contours of my body until he finds the waistband of my pajama shorts, sliding them down.
Is today the day I lose my virginity?
His lips move from my mouth to my chin as he kisses a trail down my body, each kiss feeling like flames licking my skin, until his mouth closes around my nipple. He stays there, lapping and nipping at each side before he makes his way down again and nestles himself between my thighs. I gasp breathlessly as he spreads my legs apart and lowers his mouth, tongue darting across my clit.
I slide my hands under the sheets and dig my fingers into his hair as his tongue sinks into me, licking and lapping my entrance. I curve my back as he devours me unforgivingly. It’s as if Griffin has lit an inferno inside of me, every nerve ending sparking to life and consuming me completely.
“Fuck.” I throw my head back, lips parted, and eyes closed.
“You taste so sweet, sunshine,” he says, his lips teasing my clit before he dives his tongue back inside.
His tongue is unrelenting, bringing me closer to the edge. My breathing becomes shallow as my toes curl, black spots appearing in my vision as I come undone, my thighs pressing the sides of his head as I come. The pleasure rolls through me in waves as I tremble beneath him.
Once the waves of pleasure have subdued, he kisses my center once more before tossing the sheets off us and crawling over me.
“That was the best thing I’ve ever experienced.” I sound like I ran a marathon with the way I’m breathing.
“Yeah?” He lowers his mouth to mine and kisses me, the taste of my arousal lighting another spark of pleasure before he pulls back.
“Yeah,” I confirm, a goofy smile plastered on my face.
He laughs and rolls to his side, pulling me against his chest. “I love that I’m exceeding your expectations,” he says, lips brushing against my hair, “and I love how good you taste while I do it.”
“I do, too,” I reply, sleepily, as I close my eyes and bask in his warmth.
The team is sprawledout under our tent at Sunset Beach. It’s the main beach in Bluewater Bluff, the hometown of the Rip Raiders. They’ve passed our tent a handful of times, giving Colton dirty looks as he shifts beside me uncomfortably each time they pass.
“Why are they being so extra about it?” Maliah says, annoyed.
The rest of the team haven’t been as welcoming to Colton since he transferred back to The Saltwater Shredders, but despite their cold welcome, they’ve been very protective of him today. Everyone except Griffin who is mid-competition ritual.
He’s kneeling in front of his board, headphones on, as he focuses on waxing. I can tell there’s something still bothering him, despite our wonderful morning. We showered together after finally getting out of bed, and when I asked him how he was feeling he instantly dropped to his knees and buried his tongue in my pussy again.
I don’t want to push him, seeing as I’m not innocent from keeping secrets too, but I worry that whatever he’s hiding is bad.
When the Rip Raiders pass us again, they slide a hand across their neck as they narrow their eyes at Colton.
Enough is enough.
I push myself to my feet and charge toward them, prepared to give them a piece of my mind, but I’m pulled back by a strong grip. I look over my shoulder to find Colton holding onto my wrist and shaking his head.
“It’s okay, Eliana, they won’t do anything to me. They’re just upset that I screwed up their chances at winning the Regional Surf Team Finals.”
“It’s not okay, you shouldn’t let them threaten you like that.”
“I promise they won’t do anything,” he says, letting go of my wrist, “now, can you tell me what’s going on with Fin?”
We both look toward him and see that he’s no longer waxing his board, staring blankly at the ocean instead. I sigh and shrug, turning back to Colton.
“I wish I knew. Every time I ask him, he avoids the question…but I don’t think it’s good, whatever it is.”
He nods. “I don’t think it’s good either.”
Both girls camefirst place in their heats and it’s now the boys’ turn. Koa, Zale and Griffin were paired to surf in the same heat and are currently near the edge of the water, stretching. I stand near the makeshift stage not too far away, taking pictures of the banners and flags of this competition’s sponsors.
I hear the horn blow and spin around to capture photos of all three of them as they paddle out in the water, their sleek bodies cutting through the waves easily. As they reach the lineup, the judges give the thumbs up and the competition begins, another horn echoing across the beach when the waves start rolling in.
My heart races as I zoom in, snapping pictures of Koa as he sinks further into the wave barrel, breaking out at the last second and scoring major points. Zale is next, performing aerial after aerial with ease and precision that also earns him a huge point jump.
I focus my lens on Griffin who looks more focused than ever as he paddles after a wave and drops in on it without hesitation. He carves intricate patterns into the face of the wave before he executes a heart-stopping aerial, spinning completely around in mid-air. My finger holds down the capture button as my camera explodes in shutter mode.
When he lands the maneuver, the crowd erupts into cheers, almost everybody standing up as they clap for him. Without looking through my camera lens, I can see the huge smile that spreads across his face as he sits on the board and stares at the cheering crowd. I can’t stop my own lips from pulling up into a grin, a giggle escaping me.
I know this is the moment he’s been waiting for since returning to the team. It took a lot of work for him to get back to this point, but he did it. It’s inspiring, the way he pushed through all the physical and mental blocks that were stopping him from getting to this point. I knew he could do it, but I’m so happy that he now knows he can do it too.
The sun begins to dip below the horizon, casting a rosy glow on the ocean and sand as the competition comes to an end. All three boys paddle in, their faces lit up with wide grins and they laugh and push each other playfully. I walk towards the tent and meet them there as we wait for the judge’s final score.
“Fin, I didn’t know you could surf like that!” Zale exclaims, his eyes lit up with excitement.
“I had to give it my all, it’s our last chance at getting into Qualifiers.”
Gabriel joins us in the tent, patting Griffin on the shoulder. “You did great out there, kid. I knew you still had it in you.”
Griffin’s smile falters but he quickly pastes a forced one right back into place. Alarm bells ring in my head as I watch him thank Gabriel before his eyes slide to mine. I give him a small smile, not wanting to kill the adrenalin high he’s on right now, and he pulls me in for a kiss.
A camera goes off beside us and we pull apart to see Meghan standing just outside our tent with a photographer. Her eyes travel from Griffin to mine with a psychotic smile plastered on her face, causing goosebumps to crawl up my arms.
“I guess this is why you didn’t want to get back together, huh?” she asks, waving a dismissive hand my way.
Griffin doesn’t reply, but his body tenses next to me as his grip around my waist tightens.
He’s scared?
I don’t know if he’s scared of her or of what she’s capable of, but I don’t like that she has this hold on him.
How bad is she, to have Griffin this on edge?
“You must be Meghan,” I say, “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“Pleasure is the last word I would use.” She looks me up and down before yawning exaggeratedly.
“Miss Martinez, how can I help you today?” Gabriel asks, stepping in between us and her.
“Coach Matthews, it’s nice to see you again.” She perks up, her eyes travelling hungrily over Gabriel.
“I’m sure it is,” he replies dryly, “interesting article you posted about the boys.”
She bristles. “Glad you liked it.”
“I wouldn’t go that far.”
She clamps her mouth shut and her brows pull together as she stares at Gabriel. When he doesn’t shrink away, she stomps off with her camera man in tow, muttering under her breath. Gabriel turns and grins at us both.
“I’m glad to know your taste in women has improved drastically.” He pats Griffin on the shoulder and walks off toward the stage.
I snort as I look up at Griffin whose jaw hangs open. “Did he just compliment and insult you at the same time?”
“That bastard,” he mutters, closing his mouth.
He takes my hand, and we join the rest of the team in front of the stage and watch as the presenter walks to the X marked in the center, a small card in hand. He glances down at the paper before returning his attention to the crowd.
“The points were tight this competition, but unfortunately only three teams can progress to Qualifiers.” He adjusts the microphone before standing up straight.
“In third place, we have the Wave Warriors.” A small group of people cheer and clap in the crowd as the Wave Warriors coach takes to the stage to accept their ticket to Qualifiers.
“In second place we have the Rip Raiders,” he calls out.
My heart starts to flip flop as I watch the whole team take to the stage to accept their ticket. They smile down at us smugly before exiting the stage. I guess losing Colton didn’t set them back as hard as we thought it would.
“I’m going to be sick,” Maliah groans, rubbing at her lip nervously.
“And in first place,” he pauses dramatically, “are The Saltwater Shredders!”
The crowd erupts in screams of joy and rapid clapping as the team grabs onto each other in a big hug. Griffin pops his head out from the huddle, searching for me, and pulling me in to join.
“We did it, guys,” Kairi says, her voice shaking with emotion, “we’re finally going to Qualifiers.”
“Will someone from The Saltwater Shredders come up to accept your ticket and answer some press questions?” the presenter asks into the microphone.
“Fin, you should go,” Maliah nudges him toward the stage.
“Yeah, get up there,” Colton says, ushering Fin on stage with the help of Koa and Zale.
I watch as Griffin takes the ticket from the presenter, shaking his hand before standing in front of the mic. He runs a hand through his wet hair and smiles at the crowd, the girls swooning.
“Griffin Jones,” a reporter shouts from the front of the crowd, her blonde hair tied up in a messy bun, “can I ask a question?”
He smiles down at her from the stage. “Sure.”
She takes a step forward, her camera man recording the interaction. “This is the best your team has ever surfed in your whole career, what did you guys do differently to get here today?”
Griffin lifts his eyes to the team before they find mine, softening slightly. “We had our lucky charm with us today.”
My breath catches in my throat as he winks at me, goosebumps appearing across my skin.
Did he just call me the team’s good luck charm?
I’ve never heard anyone call me that. Most of my adult life has been spent as the bad luck charm. My throat tightens and my eyes gloss over as he returns his attention to the reporter.
She’s completely spun around, searching the crowd to see who he winked at. I duck behind Colton, not wanting to get sucked into an interview.
“I swear sometimes Griffin acts like a real-life book boyfriend,” Kairi squeals as she comes to stand beside me and Colton.
“You like stuff like that?” Colton’s tone is curious as he watches Griffin on stage.
“What, romance? Duh, every girl does.”
“Good to know.”
Her cheeks flush, but she forces her eyes straight ahead until Griffin walks off the stage and makes his way back over to us. Gabriel meets us back at the tent, the biggest smile on his face as we pack up our belongings and head to the car. I swear he even smiles the whole drive back home, whistling along to the country songs on the radio as his fingers tap along to the beat.