by Taylor Hart
She yanked it back. This was exasperating. “I have to go.”
“You know, this could have been our song.”
She let out a laugh. “When you say things like that, it confirms my stalker theory.”
Kyle blinked. “Stalker?”
Giving him an accusatory look, she crossed her arms. “You were staring at me and little Benjamin—the kid I was giving a lesson to—for, like, half an hour. Finally, his mother asked if I knew you.”
“It was, like, ten minutes,” he countered.
She pulled away from him, waving her hand in the air. “Tell Carrie and Jenna that I’ll see them at home.”
But he walked with her. “Is this about the mint chocolate chip ice cream? Because we can leave. I know a great ice cream place.”
Dumbfounded at this guy’s persistence, she scoffed. “No, I’m leaving by myself.”
He held up two fingers. “You realize this is the second time you’ve turned me down.”
“And the second time today you’ve had stalker eyes,” she retorted, rushing off the dance floor, out of the dance area.
She pulled up her phone and pushed the Uber app. She needed to put major distance between her and the guy that made her feel too many things. The Uber didn’t take long, and as she got in, she hoped she would never see those green eyes again!
Chapter 3
Kyle stood on the back porch of his small rambler and looked at his pool. It was late, but it was tempting to jump in and swim a couple of laps.
He loved the water. Truthfully, being a Navy SEAL had been hard, but it hadn’t been as hard for him as it had been for some guys. He loved the water, loved anything to do with it. All through high school, it’d been a thing. Since he’d grown up in Florida, he’d also loved to surf.
Being out of the Navy for the last two years? That was hard. Getting dumped by his fiancée had been even harder.
The sliding door between the house and porch opened. Kyle didn’t turn, well aware that it was his roommate, Russell. Russell had gone to school on the GI Bill, working on getting his degree. He didn’t need to stay with Kyle, but it was nice to have him.
“You can’t quit thinking about her, can you?” Russell grinned at him.
Kyle let out a breath. “Not in the mood, Doctor. And no, I’m not thinking about her. I was thinking about going to that ridiculous event this weekend.” Of course, now he was thinking about her.
Russell had a mischievous glint in his eye. “You’re just one of the lucky ones who gets my professional advice.” Kyle gave him free rent because they were best friends, and Russell gave him free counseling—whether he wanted it or not.
“Thanks.” With a grunt, Kyle turned back to the pool and pulled his shirt off. “I’m going to swim.”
“Of course you are.” Russell used a superior tone.
Kyle paused. “What does that mean?”
Russell tsked his tongue. “You’re busy, Kyle. Right now, you’re sensing I want to talk about this woman, and you don’t, so you’re going to swim. The last two years you’ve busted your butt getting your business off the ground—which has been awesome, by the way, but you don’t slow down. You don’t think. Cassidy dumps you, and you don’t pause. You just throw yourself into the next project.” He snapped his fingers. “You just do something else. Surf, go to the gym. You never stop.”
With a grunt, Kyle tossed his shirt away. “Maybe just say thank you for free rent.”
Russell’s face fell.
Kyle winced. He knew it was a low blow. “I’m sorry, never mind. I didn’t mean that.”
“I’ll leave if that’s what you want,” Russell said quietly.
“No.” Kyle shook his head. Russell was right: he didn’t like to pause and talk about his feelings.
Russell wagged a finger at him. “Need I remind you that you’re the one who asked me to live here rent free?”
Kyle scowled at his friend. “I know. I’m sorry.” He raked a hand through his hair. “This whole ‘go to Jackson and see the ex’ has me twisted up.”
Russell let out a long breath. “I know.”
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Eventually, Russell hummed to himself. “Kennedy, Kennedy, Kennedy—I never would have thought about that name for a girl, but it works.”
Kyle was grateful his friend wanted to make peace so easily. “It sounds like you’ve been thinking about her enough for both of us.”
“Oh, you mean, did I like the ticked-off blonde beauty? Uh, yeah. Too bad I think you might already have her locked in.”
“I wish, but I don’t think so. She was ticked off.” Kyle snickered, thinking he kind of liked that about her. “Man, that attitude.”
Russell ran a hand through his hair. “She’s got a lot to prove. She’s just trying to figure out how to do it.”
Kyle found it interesting that Russell was so in tune with people. “Probably right,” he admitted.
“A hand is a lot to lose.”
“There was something about her. I wish you could have seen her surf, and the determination in her eyes.”
“Hey, dude, I’m not blind. I danced with her too. The woman is attractive, and she doesn’t realize that to guys like us, to vets, we don’t care about little things like hands.”
“Exactly.” It made Kyle smile to realize how well his friend was doing. Russell had had a couple of hard months when he’d gotten back. It had been awesome to see him taking classes and moving forward. “Yeah, there are a lot of worse things to lose than a hand.”
Russell was silent for a while, as if weighing the topic. “I asked Jenna about her. She lost both of her parents in a car wreck, and she was driving the car.”
“Ouch,” Kyle said.
“That’s how she lost her hand, too.”
Kyle frowned, his heart sinking as he imagined what this girl had been through.
Russell patted his shoulder. “Can I just tell you I’m tired of you getting all the women?”
“That’s rich.” Kyle forced a laugh, and decided Russell would be happy about what he was about to tell him. “Kennedy called me a stalker tonight.”
Russell burst out laughing, full-belly laughter that left him gasping and then wiping beneath his eyes. “Ah, oh man, that’s good.”
Kyle still smarted from the comment. “No, it’s not.”
“Dude, chill. You’re just this dichotomy. When you don’t want to talk about something, you just shut down, but when you want something, you come on like a heat-seeking missile.” Russell wagged a finger at him. “Although I haven’t seen you come on this strong with a woman in a long time.”
This was all too on the nose for Kyle’s liking. He crossed his arms. “Haven’t been interested like this.”
Russell sighed. “Yeah, I know it’s hard for you. Most of the time women just throw themselves at you.”
Kyle scoffed. “I haven’t had time for women.”
“No, you haven’t wanted any of those other women. Cassidy broke your heart, and because you haven’t wanted to deal with it, you built a company and ignored your feelings.”
“A successful company,” Kyle reminded him.
“Yes, but you still have those pesky feelings to sort out.”
Relenting, Kyle shrugged. “Fine. Maybe I do.”
Russell smiled at him. “Finally, he speaks.”
“I loved her and she didn’t love me back.” The words felt heavy on Kyle’s tongue.
“I don’t think that’s true. Cassidy had her own issues.”
Kyle thought about the hours in captivity when he and Russell would talk about Cassidy. When he would wonder if he would ever get out.
Russell said, “Kyle, the best thing and the worst thing about you is you decide what you want. Then you throw yourself into it. But you need to remember you have to give others space to make their own decisions, too. This girl is young. She’s still in college.”
Kyle didn’t see how this was relevant. “So?”
“Thi
s girl, man. I’ve seen the fire in those eyes, and I don’t think you’re ready for a woman like that.”
Kyle sputtered an incredulous laugh. “I’m not? Are you really trying to talk to me, or sabotage me?”
Russell shook his head. “A woman like that isn’t just one of those gym rats that follows you home all the time. The ones that I never take the time to meet, because I know they’re not going to be around that long.”
Kyle smarted from the barb, but he couldn’t argue. It was true.
Russell continued to look superior. “No, a woman like Kennedy is going to make you evaluate all those psychological demons you have, and I bet you’re not going to like it.”
“Shut up, man.” Kyle rolled his eyes.
“I know you don’t need my advice, but I like to give it. Plus, you might just forget her and get too busy to think about relationships. That’s what you normally do.”
The truth irritated Kyle, but the side of his lip quirked up. “Man, I don’t know why I need a girlfriend when I already have the equivalent of a nagging woman who lives with me.”
Russell laughed, then put his arms up in surrender. “Hey, don’t be bugged. You’re looking at a guy who lives his social life on the Internet. I’ll stick to my Bumble, but it’s not the same for you, and you know it.” He let out a frustrated sigh. “Actually, I’m about ready to go off all social media and do it the old-fashioned way.”
This intrigued Kyle. “Oh, and what way is that?”
“The old lady down on the corner claims she can arrange the perfect marriage.”
Now, Kyle did laugh, and he felt lighter. “You’re going to let Old Lady Savvy set you up with an arranged marriage?”
Russell shrugged. “I’m hoping the girl has all her teeth.”
Kyle laughed, turned, and dove into the pool. Maybe he ignored the world by being busy. So what? As he swam lap after lap, he decided he would do something that would surprise Russell. He wouldn’t just wait around. He wasn’t just going to throw himself into his work. He would go find Kennedy.
Chapter 4
Kennedy locked up the surf shop and started for the parking lot. She stopped and frowned, not liking the thought of heading back to an empty apartment, and instead moved around the shop toward the beach.
Families were still out. She slipped off her flip-flops and let her feet sink into the sand. When she’d first come to Miami three years ago, the older guy who owned the shop, Rex, had seen her surfing all the time and asked her if she wanted a job. It had been perfect.
Unfortunately, Rex had recently told her he was going to sell the surf shop. He wanted to retire. That made her uncertain about what she would do for work. During the school year, she worked one afternoon a week and every weekend, but in the summers, he pretty much let her be the manager. Nervous butterflies went through her lower stomach, and she thought about the audition for the radio station tomorrow. She needed to take the shot and get the job.
Deciding she needed to surf to get her mind off her nervousness, she picked up her board from the shed around the side and took off her clothes, revealing her swimsuit underneath. She needed the ocean. It was nice that she didn’t need a wetsuit. She loved evenings in Florida. Sauntering out to the ocean, she put her board in and paddled out. The thing the ocean had on everyone else in this world was that the ocean didn’t care what you looked like or how many hands you had. It just sent the waves in.
She got out to the perfect spot and then waited. A wave swelled behind her, so she started paddling, gaining speed. At just the right moment, she popped up, getting her balance perfectly, and let go. It was fabulous, the feeling of flying in the air, riding something greater than herself. She leaned on her back foot and steered the board as best she could, riding the wave for as long as possible.
Her mind flitted to thoughts of the night before, of rushing out of the dance club. Of Carrie coming home later that night and saying, “Kyle likes you. I don’t know why, but he does. Wouldn’t even dance close with me after you left.” Carrie’s words had her tossing and turning all night. She’d thought about those green eyes, and she’d thought about Carrie telling her he would be at the station doing an interview tomorrow and someone was going to win a trip with him.
As she stepped out of the ocean, she froze, dumbfounded.
Kyle was standing there in a white tank top, tattoos winding around the top of his bicep. His blond hair fell over his eyes.
Her heart rate jumped up a notch. Not knowing what to do, she turned back to the ocean. How come he was here? What the heck was he doing here? Why had he come? Glancing over her shoulder, she saw Kyle taking off his tank top and sandals. Was he coming out here?
She watched him go to the side of the surf shop and pick up a broken board that was stacked. That was where Rex had her put all the boards that needed to be fixed. It annoyed her that he’d taken a board. He couldn’t just do that. She watched as he ran into the ocean. He looked like a freaking commercial—all tanned and gorgeous.
Climbing on her board, she focused and started paddling to get the next wave. Soon she was up. She loved surfing. It was part of her. The ocean spoke to her soul. It’d been like that since she’d come to Miami to go to school.
Her gaze went to him. He was already paddling. A moment later, he was up on a wave too.
She turned her focus back, finished riding the wave in, and hopped off her board. Kyle was riding a large wave, and he was good. Dang, he was attractive. His whole body was flexed, and he had serious abs. Like an eight-pack. It wasn’t just that he was strong; the laser-like focus was hypnotizing. Not knowing what to do, she started in for the beach.
“Hey,” he called after her.
For a second, she kept walking.
“Hey.” He was getting closer to her.
She turned, pointing to the board. “That’s not yours.”
He stopped and looked down at the board in confusion. A grin washed over his face. “I know.”
Giving him a “duh” expression, she nodded. “You need to pay to rent it.”
He held up the board. “I can pay for it, but it’s broken.”
“No kidding. Do you think maybe that’s why it was sitting by the side of the shop?” She turned and marched up the beach back toward the surf shop.
He jogged alongside her. “Sorry. Look, I can pay for it.”
She shook her head, thinking she didn’t want to open the shop again. “No, it’s fine.” Annoyed, she got to the surf shop and put her board down.
He put his down next to it. “Do you pay for yours?” he asked.
“What? No—I mean, yes. We can use the boards as part of working here.” She picked up her clothes and roughly pulled them over her swimsuit. “Plus, I don’t owe you an explanation.”
A smug smile washed over his beautiful face. “Yet you’re giving me one.”
Cocky. She glared at him. “I don’t know why you’re here, but you can go.” This entire thing was crazy. What the heck did this guy want?
Before she could stomp off, he was next to her, taking her forearm. “Would you just wait for a sec?”
She stopped and looked down at his hand on her.
Quickly, he pulled back and put his hands up in surrender. “Sorry, I just want to talk to you.”
He was close, too close. She thought of dancing with him the night before and how there had been chemistry between them, just like now. “Your eyes.”
The look on his face shifted to one of amazement. Then he chuckled. “What did you say?”
Totally embarrassed, she spun to leave. “Nothing.”
Before she could get away, he was next to her again. “Listen, I texted Carrie today, and she told me you would be here.”
Her thoughts clouded. Both of her roommates were gone for the summer, yet Carrie was still interfering. “Why would you do that?”
A smile played at his lips. “What can I say? I wanted some mint chocolate chip ice cream. Been thinking about it since you left me alon
e on the dance floor.”
The first thing she thought was, why would he even want to see her? Why was he pursuing her? In her experience, most guys didn’t want a girl like her. Yeah, it hurt, but she was way past crying about it. After everything last night with Russell, and now seeing Kyle stare at her this way, she was confused. “I—”
“Just say yes.”
She didn’t move.
“Mint chocolate chip. C’mon, you want it, too.”
“Are you going to interview at the radio station tomorrow?” The question was out before she thought about it.
Surprise washed over his face. “What?”
She felt her cheeks warm. “Are you going to be at the radio station tomorrow?”
“Yeah, I am.” His eyes narrowed. “Are you?”
Not wanting to answer his question, but knowing it would be even more uncomfortable, she shrugged. “Carrie put my name into some contest, and I won an audition to be an intern on The Ray Ray Show.”
With a slow grin, he said, “So I guess we have a date tomorrow?”
Rolling her eyes, she took a step back. What was it with this guy’s obsession with dating her? “No, we don’t.”
He flashed her a smile and snapped his fingers. “So, wait. Since you won that contest, you are technically entered to win the trip to Jackson this weekend with me.”
All the puzzle pieces slipped into place. “Oh my gosh.” She put her hand to her mouth. She’d heard Ray Ray advertise a big contest for all the previous winners, but she hadn’t thought about it. She blinked and then pulled her hand back, telling herself to be calm. “What are the chances of that?”
His expression turned smug and catlike, like a lion in a documentary on the Wild Kingdom channel she’d watched one time. The kind where the predator was circling its prey. “I don’t know. I guess we’ll see what the universe has in store for us.”
The man figured she was already going with him, like it was already done. She stumbled back. “I have to go.”
“Don’t look so happy!” he called out after her. “See you tomorrow.”
