Jeremy (Broken Angel #4)

by L. G. Castillo

  “That’s just great. They saw the whole thing. I’ll never hear the end of it at school,” she mumbled under her breath.

  “Nice wipeout,” one of them said to Leilani.

  “Bite me, Chucky!” She snatched the towel off the beach chair.

  The boy scowled. “It’s Kai.”

  “Chucky.”

  “Kai!” He scowled at Leilani, then turned to Sammy. “Tell your dad he can borrow the truck any time he needs it.”

  “Okay, see ya later, Kai,” Sammy said as he slapped more sand onto his growing sand castle. He was obviously more interested in building his little kingdom than the teen drama.

  “Good riddance,” Leilani mumbled when Kai left. As she sat down on the beach chair, drying herself, her mumbling shifted to Jeremy being a stupid hot tourist thinking she needed saving.

  He felt someone jerking on his shorts. He looked down at Sammy, who crooked his finger. He squatted, and Sammy whispered in his ear, “What’s wrong with her?”

  “She’s mad at me,” Jeremy whispered back.

  “Oh, yeah. The change,” Sammy sighed, and turned his attention back to the sandcastle.

  “I’m sorry, Leilani. I didn’t mean to embarrass you. I thought you were in trouble,” he said.

  She looked up at for a moment and let out a breath. “Fine. Just don’t try to save me again. I wasn’t drowning, you know.”

  “I know that now.” He sat in the sand next to her, thankful she wasn’t the type to hold a grudge. He’d hate to lose her friendship. “So why did you call that guy Chucky?”

  She laughed. “His mom and my mom are friends. He lives across the street from us. We used to play together when we were little. One night when he stayed over because his mother was working the night shift, we watched a horror movie. He was so scared he upchucked all over Mom’s brand new rug. He’s a total jerk face. He thinks he’s all that because he won the high school surfer competition last year and all the girls drool over him. I gotta keep him real, so I call him Chucky.”

  “Jeremy wants to learn how to surf,” Sammy said. “You gonna teach him, Leilani?”

  Her eyes gleamed with excitement. Damn. Was she excited to teach someone to surf, or was it because it was him? He had to be careful. She was so young. The problem was he wanted to learn. It looked like fun.

  “Uh, I don’t think that’s a good idea, buddy.”

  “Why?” Leilani turned to him with the same fire she’d had in her eyes when she’d ridden the wave. “Do you think I can’t teach you?”

  “I didn’t say that.”

  “Okay, then meet me at Kalapaki Beach early tomorrow morning. I’ll bring my soft top.”

  14

  Sitting under a palm tree, Jeremy watched the horizon light on fire. A mixture of yellow and orange painted the sky as the sun peeked from the ocean. Smiling, he took in the scenic beauty surrounding him, from the palm trees swaying in the wind to the lush, rolling hills in the distance. It was like he was experiencing the island for the first time: the way the warm sand hugged his toes as they slid down with each step he took; how the air smelled of salt, sand, and plumeria flowers; the calming white noise as waves rolled into the bay, then splashing as they hit the beach. For the first time in the weeks since he’d arrived, he felt relaxed, peaceful. The moment his head had hit the pillow last night, he’d fallen into a deep sleep. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d slept so soundly.

  He was so eager to start his first surfing lesson that he was out of bed the second the alarm went off. He was out the door and on his bike a minute later. He’d watched the surfers riding the waves as he went on his daily walks. It looked so easy. He was sure he’d be able to pick it up right away. How hard could it be? He was a strong swimmer and had the grace and balance that all angels had.

  Popping the last of his granola bar into his mouth, he wondered why Leilani chose this beach for his lessons. The waves seemed small compared to the ones he’d seen her surfing.

  There was a high-pitched giggle. A little girl wearing a pink life jacket dashed past him. Her tiny feet slapped the sand as she ran to the water.

  “Wait for your father!” a woman yelled after her.

  A man scooped the little girl up, making her squeal with laughter.

  “Daddy!”

  “You forgot something.” he said, placing a blue boogie board on the water. Transparent plastic filled a large hole in the center of the board.

  The little girl climbed on the board while her father held it steady for her. As he walked around the shallow end of the bay, she kept her face plastered against the glass.

  “Ooh, look, Daddy, soda. I want some.”

  Jeremy shook his head as the girl’s father yanked out the bottle from the water.

  “Dude, toss it here,” Jeremy said, walking over to them. “I’ll throw it away for you.”

  “Thanks.”

  Jeremy scanned the beach for a place to dispose the bottle. On the other side of the bay, he spotted a trashcan. Sitting a few yards away from it was Leilani. She stood by a couple of surfboards, her jaw moving steadily, hands on hips as she watched a couple with their two kids surfing.

  Smiling, he hurried to her, ready to get out into the water. He chuckled as she blew a pink bubble so large it covered her entire face. After the ice cream incident, he’d be surprised if she didn’t get gum all over her hair.

  When he got closer, he noticed there was something different about her today. Maybe it was her hair. It was all spiky and messy with that just-rolled-out-of-bed style, but it looked too perfect.

  And what was she wearing?

  Normally, he didn’t notice that kind of stuff, but this was way different. Instead of the loose t-shirts he’d seen her wear, this one was formfitting and accentuated her long waist.

  And what happened to her knee-length khakis?

  He slowed down his pace, placing one foot carefully in front of the other as he focused his eyes on her. He was barely able to believe what he was seeing. The shorts molded tight like a glove to her body, barely covering her . . .

  He froze. No. She couldn’t be doing what he thought she was doing with the clothes, and the hair, and the—

  Was she wearing makeup?

  His mouth went dry when he took in the tint of pink along her cheeks and over her lips. Her lashes were darker, longer, and . . . how did she get them to curl like that?

  Aw, shit! She IS wearing makeup.

  This was a mistake. He should turn around and leave right now. Yep, that was what he should do, but his stubborn, selfish feet were not moving. He gazed at Leilani’s pretty face, so young, so innocent. Leaving now was the right thing to do.

  Sighing, he slowly turned away. It would’ve been nice having friends while he was on the island. He liked being with Leilani and Sammy. There was something about her and Sammy that made him feel like he was back home.

  “Yo, Golden Boy! I’m over here. Ready to surf?”

  He paused at the sound of her voice. A flurry of thoughts rushed through his head.

  Yes! Let’s do this.

  No! She has a crush on you, moron.

  Damn.

  He was so confused. He didn’t know what to do.

  “Scared?” she yelled.

  Maybe.

  He’d been in battles against Lucifer. He’d fought Saleos, arguably one of the most powerful dark angels. He’d never thought a teenage girl would be the one to make his heart feel like it was about to leap out of his chest and run down the beach in terror.

  “No.” He grinned, walking to her. He could handle this. All he had to do was keep their interactions in friendship territory. Besides, he was overreacting. There were plenty of boys her age on the beach. Maybe he could subtly steer some her way.

  “Well, come on. I don’t have all day. I brought a board for you.” She pointed at a board lying a few feet away.

  “Thanks for the offer to teach me. I’d been wanting to learn, but wasn’t sure if—the board’s pink
.” He gawked at the surfboard.

  She blew a bubble and quickly snapped it back in her mouth. “Yeah.”

  “With flowers and butterflies.”

  The design screamed chick board. The thing was huge. It was at least a foot taller than him.

  “This was your board?” She didn’t come across as the girly type.

  “Oh, yeah, about that.” She placed her hands behind her back and swayed heel to toe. “I forgot my mom sold my soft top a few years ago. I borrowed this one from a neighbor.”

  He swore he saw her lip twitch.

  “Okay, so let’s get started.” She clapped her hands. “Strip!”

  He choked. “What?”

  “Take off your shirt. Duh.”

  “Oh, right.” He brought his hands to the edge of his shirt. He hesitated as he felt the weight of eyes watching him. He looked at Leilani. She stared back at him for a moment, furrowing her brow.

  This was getting way too uncomfortable. She’d seen him without a shirt on. Why was this bothering him so much?

  “Geez, are you, like, all shy now?”

  “I’m not shy,” he said, peeling off his shirt and tossing it aside.

  “Alright, then. You’re not shy.”

  He stood, his heart racing while she walked around him, eyeing him up and down. Was she checking him out?

  “Leilani, what are you—Hey!”

  There was a loud slap, followed by another as her hands whacked his back.

  “Are you hitting me?”

  “I’m. Not. Hitting. You.” Her voice strained with each pounding. “I’m trying to push you forward.”

  “Why are you trying to push me?”

  She let out a frustrated breath and marched around to face him. “I need to see what your natural footing is when you fall forward. That’s the foot you need to use to balance on the board. But pushing you is like trying to move a statue. Are you, like, superhuman or something?”

  Brown eyes studied him curiously.

  Damn it! She was suspicious. She was oddly observant for a fifteen-year-old. He was being too lax in his human form. He had to remember to watch his strength.

  “I work out a lot,” he said.

  “Yeah, I can see that,” she said, taking in his muscular arms and washboard abs. “Let’s try this another way. Pretend you’re falling forward. Okay?”

  This was a first for him. Angels didn’t fall. They were too graceful for that. He closed his eyes briefly and imagined he was falling. His right foot came out first.

  “There you go. You’re goofy-footed.”

  “Who are you calling goofy?”

  She rolled her eyes, then bent down and attached a surfboard leash to his left ankle.

  “Goofy-footed means you naturally ride the board with your right foot.”

  “Oops, sorry.”

  “Yeah, yeah. Now, lie on the board.”

  “Don’t we need to take this into the water first?”

  “Nope. First you need to learn how to stand on it, then you can try it out on the water.”

  To his relief, Leilani was all business as she explained what to expect when surfing. How it may look easy just to stand, but with the waves it made balancing difficult. He practiced paddling by motioning his arms and then jumping on the board. She explained a few positions to hold his arms. When she lightly placed her hands on his arms, he looked down at her. She simply gave him a warm smile. He’d been overreacting. She was just being friendly.

  “Okay, you’re ready to go out into the water.”

  Going over her instructions in his head, he picked up the pink board. He was surprised to feel that it had some weight to it.

  “This is heavy. You carried it all the way down here?” He glanced at her arms. They were so puny. He could wrap his hands around them.

  “I’m stronger than I look.”

  He gazed at the intense scowl on her face. Fire flashed in her brown eyes. He had no doubt she could do anything she set her mind to do.

  “Yeah, I can believe that.” He grinned.

  “Don’t freak if you wipe out the first time,” she said as they headed into the water.

  “I won’t fall off.”

  “Everyone wipes out the first time.”

  Not angels. He couldn’t wait to see the shocked expression on her face when he got it right the first time. He looked back at her standing on the edge of the beach. She had her hands on her hips, studying him suspiciously.

  On second thought, maybe he should fall off a couple of times. He was about to place the board on the water when she added, “Even golden boys fall.”

  The smug tone of her voice was hard to miss.

  He paused, turning back to her. She blinked innocently with a wide grin on her face. She couldn’t wait to see him wipe out.

  “Wanna bet?”

  “Do I look like I have money?”

  “Okay, if I win, you owe me a Sammywich.”

  “Fine. And when I win, you have to write Golden Boy on your forehead and walk around the beach carrying the surfboard.”

  “You’re on!” He got on the surfboard chuckling. There was no way he was losing the bet.

  As he paddled, Leilani waded into the water shouting instructions. Looking over his shoulder, he paddled faster as the wave headed to him. When it neared, he felt it push the board forward.

  “Now! Jeremy, now!” Leilani squealed.

  He jumped on his feet, his arms extended, back straight. For the first time in his life, he felt like he was actually going to fall. The board wiggled underneath his feet, threatening to disappear.

  “Woo!” he yelled, jutting his fist up in the air. This was way better than swimming.

  “Not straight! Crouch!”

  Immediately, he crouched, regaining some balance. He was doing it. He was surfing.

  He rode the wave as it leveled out, bringing the board to shore. Just as the board was about to touch the sand, he lifted his foot to step off.

  “Wait, Jeremy! Don’t—”

  15

  Jeremy tumbled forward and fell onto the beach, spraying water and sand everywhere. He lay sprawled on the beach, mortified. He really hoped no one noticed. Before he could get up, a couple of teenaged boys gracefully landed their surfboards close by. They shook their heads laughing as they headed inland with the surfboards tucked underneath their arms.

  “Uh, I forgot to tell you. Don’t get off until after the board has stopped.” Leilani stood over him. She bit down on her lip looking like she was about to explode.

  “Yeah, that was information I could have used before I—”

  She burst out laughing. “I’m sorry. It’s not funny.” She clamped her mouth shut for a second, then erupted into laughter again. She laughed so hard tears ran down her face as she clutched her stomach.

  Her laugher was contagious and he chuckled along with her.

  “I guess I can’t call you Golden Boy anymore. That was . . . that was . . . so not perfect.”

  “I guess not.”

  She stuck out her hand to him.

  Well, this is a first. A human, a very tiny one, is helping me. Me. An archangel.

  “Well, come on, Mr. Wipeout, let’s try that again,” she said.

  For some reason, an image of a goat flashed through his mind. Raphael had mentioned that in their ancient past their family had owned a flock. Why was he thinking of that now?

  He shook the thought away. Grinning, he took Leilani’s hand. So he was wrong. Angels did fall. He had a lot to learn, and she was willing to teach him.

  After a few more hours with Leilani yelling instructions, he seemed to get the hand of surfing. It was thrilling, feeling the water spray against his face, the rush of adrenaline as he rode one wave after another. With Leilani’s encouragement, he paddled out farther, ready to tackle the larger waves. As he paddled, excitement fluttered in his chest. When he stood, spreading his arms open as if they were his wings, he felt alive.

  From a distance, Leilani’s
pink bubble formed, covering her entire face, then popped. He chuckled as she jumped up and down clapping for him, yelling, “Way to go, bruh.”

  When he settled on the beach, they walked to the shade under a palm tree.

  “Not bad,” she said, tossing him a towel.

  “So when do you think I can graduate to your surfboard?”

  “You’re not ready yet.” She snapped open a large beach towel and sat. “You’re a fast learner. But there’s still some other things I want to teach you before you go on the larger waves. I don’t want you drowning, ya know. All your fans will miss gawking at you.”

  She eyed a group of shapely girls walking past them, checking him out.

  “You seem to attract a lot of them,” she added.

  He rubbed the towel over his head, ignoring them, and for once he was actually a bit annoyed by their attention.

  “How long have you been surfing?” he asked, settling next to her.

  She was quiet for a moment, fiddling with a bottle of water.

  “Here,” she finally said before handing him the bottle. “Since I was ten. My dad taught me right before he . . .”

  She went quiet, and her pretty face twisted. She looked so fragile as she stared intensely into the horizon. He wished he could read her mind. He had all these angelic powers, he even had some ability to heal, but he couldn’t read people’s minds. Maybe it was because an individual’s privacy was so revered. Angels did have the ability to manipulate minds. So it was possible to force a person to tell him what they were thinking. But mind manipulation was rarely used, and one had to have a really good reason to do so. Free will was also highly respected in the angel community.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pry,” he said.

  “It’s alright. It’s no biggie, really.” She dug into her pocket, taking out a piece of gum. She popped the old piece into the wrapper and the new one into her mouth. Pulling up her knees to her chest, she let out a slow breath.

  “The last time I saw my dad was the summer he taught me how to surf.”

  “He passed away?”

  “Nah, he split.” She chewed slowly, keeping her eyes on the horizon.