by E. K. Blair
I saluted him. “Yes, sir.”
He waved as I started my car, and pulled away. I watched him in my rearview mirror until I was out of the parking lot. I was going to have a lot of fun figuring Jesse out.
I groaned as I pulled my car into our garage. My mother’s car was inside, which meant she was home. Why me? I thought she’d told me that she would be gone until tomorrow, but I’d apparently heard her wrong. I’d had such a good day, and I didn’t want to deal with her tonight. She’d just ruin my mood.
I slipped out of my car and walked to the door that led inside the house. Maybe, just maybe, if I were quiet enough, she wouldn’t know that I’d made it home. I crept through the house and went up the stairs to my room. Just as I was about to breathe a sigh of relief, I heard my mother’s bedroom door open.
“Emma, I see you made it home.”
Damn it. “Hi, Mom.”
“How was your day?” she asked.
What’s up with that? She never asked about my day. “Um, fine. Why?” “Can’t I ask how my daughter’s day was?” she huffed.
“Well, yeah, I guess. You just normally don’t.”
There was no use sugarcoating it. We both knew that she didn’t give a damn about how my day went unless it pertained to her. “Emma! That was very rude of you!” “Sorry,” I grumbled.
“I’m sure you are,” she said sarcastically. “I was talking to Todd’s mom today. She said the two of you went out last night. How did that go?”
And there it was. She didn’t give a damn about my day. She was simply fishing for information about Todd. His parents were one of the highly influential people who she chased after. The two of us together would be like a wet dream to her.
“It was nice,” I said.
“Just nice?”
It took every ounce of self-control I had not to run to my room and lock the door. I did not want to talk about Todd with my mother. Now that she knew we’d been out together, she’d never let it go.
“What do you want me to say, Mom? We went out. It was nice.”
“I thought you had a crush on that boy. Why aren’t you more excited over the fact that you two went on a date?”
“It wasn’t a date. We just went out for a little bit. He didn’t ask to go out again, so don’t get your hopes up for a repeat performance.”
“I might not be a teenager anymore, but the last time I checked, a date consisted of two people going out. I’d consider last night a date.”
Then, you’ll be glad to know I went on another date tonight with someone you wouldn’t approve of. I would have loved to say it to her, but I knew better. She’d lock me up and never let me leave the house again. She couldn’t have her princess going out with the poor boy. She’d freak over the fact that I went to the other side of town, let alone with Jesse.
“I don’t consider it a date.”
“Well, I think Todd did. That’s how his mom took it anyway.”
“I have no idea. Maybe you should go ask them if it was or not,” I replied, unable to keep the sarcasm from my voice.
“Don’t use that tone with me, Emma. I raised you to be polite.”
“No, the never-ending flow of nannies raised me to be polite.”
Before she could reply, I turned, walked into my room, and slammed the door behind me. I knew I was being a snotty bitch, but I couldn’t help it. My mom had no interest in being an actual mother. She simply wanted to use me to help her get in good with the high class folks of Santa Monica. Well, she could take that notion and shove it right up her ass. I had no intention of being her puppet.
I was up and dressed before seven the next morning. I’d spent most of the night tossing and turning. I was too excited at the prospect of spending the morning with Jesse. There was a good chance that I would embarrass myself before the day was over, but I didn’t care. I was going to spend time alone with Jesse. I’d take my chances with embarrassing myself.
I’d finally decided to throw caution to the wind and see where things ended up between the two of us. I wasn’t even sure if he was interested in me or not, yet I was willing to take a chance that my mother would find out that I was spending time with him. That said a lot about my self-preservation skills...or rather, the lack of them.
I slipped quietly from my room and went down the stairs to the door leading to the garage. Hopefully, my mother was still sleeping and wouldn’t catch me to see where I was going. I had every intention of lying if she asked, but I was a horrible liar. I didn’t want to tell on myself before I even made it out of the house. If I were going to get locked in my room for eternity, I wanted to at least commit the crime.
Luck was with me as I slipped into the garage and walked to my car. I cringed when I started my car and clicked the button to raise the garage door, but my mother never appeared. I held my breath until I turned the corner, and my house disappeared from view. I’d done it. I did a small happy dance as I drove through town. I was proud of myself for escaping and making it this far. I wasn’t too concerned about anyone seeing me on the beach with Jesse. No one who would rat me out to my mom would be on Jesse’s side of town. At least, I hoped not.
I followed the directions Jesse had texted to me the night before as I approached his side of town. Just like he’d said, the part of the beach that he surfed at was only a few minutes away from the restaurant we’d been at last night.
The lot was almost empty when I pulled in. I didn’t see Jesse’s Jeep anywhere, so I turned off my car and waited with the windows down. Even this early in the morning, the temperature was already starting to rise. I grabbed a hair tie out of my console and pulled my hair up into a messy ponytail, fighting the pieces already matted to my neck with sweat. I couldn’t wait to get in the water and cool off.
I glanced up as a car pulled in beside me. I couldn’t hide the smile that broke out across my face when I saw Jesse sitting in the driver’s seat of his Jeep. He was out of the car and opening the back before I even realized that he’d moved. I quickly got out of my car and walked back to where he was unloading two boards. He didn’t mess around.
“Hi,” I said nervously.
“Hey. Can you grab that duffel bag and carry it down to the beach for me? I’ll get the boards.”
“Sure,” I said as I picked up the bag from the back of his car.
I followed him down to the beach. We stopped halfway, and Jesse put both boards down in the sand and took the duffel bag from me.
“Where do we start?” I asked. I had no idea what surfing entailed, but I was anxious to find out.
“First things first. I’m going to show you the basics—how to wax your board, how to put the leg leash on, and things like that. I also borrowed Andy’s sister’s wet suit for you to use today. You two look like you’re about the same size.” He unzipped the duffel bag and pulled out what looked like a bar of soap and a leg rope.
“Are we taking a shower or something?” I joked as I stared at the soap.
“Huh? Oh, no.” He laughed. “This is board wax, not soap.” “And now I feel like an idiot,” I groaned.
“Nah, it’s cool. You’ve never been around this stuff, so it’s understandable that you didn’t know.”
He was trying to make me feel better, and I was fine with that. I hated looking like an idiot.
“Anyway, what do we do first?” I asked.
“I waxed both boards last night, but I’m still going to show you how to do it. You need to keep your board waxed, or you’ll slide right off. When you wax it, it makes little bumps that give you traction.” I nodded to show that I was listening.
“There are two different types of wax. The first is the base coat that you put on every few months. I’m not going to show you that because I already got both boards ready. The board I brought for you is called a longboard. It’s the easiest thing for you to learn on. I always wax the entire surface of a longboard with the base wax. After I do that, we move on to the top coat.
You have to add that wa
x a lot because it is softer and rubs off easily.”
He motioned me forward and held out the wax for me to take. I gripped it tightly as I looked at the board.
“Top coat—got it. So, how do I wax it?”
“With the base coat, you need to put a lot of pressure into it but not so much with the top coat. I always go from one end to the other until you cover it all. Try it.” He stepped back to give me room to start waxing.
I ran the wax across the board, unsure of whether or not I was doing it right. “Is this okay?”
“Put just a little more pressure into it, not much though.”
I did as he’d said, and I smiled when he nodded in approval. “I think I’ve got it.”
“You do.” He took the wax from my hand and threw it on top of the duffel bag. “Just remember, you’ll need to do it every few trips in because it wears off.”
“Great. What’s next?”
“Next is the leg leash. It’s easy to do once you do it a few times. Watch me do mine first, and then I’ll help you do yours.”
I paid close attention to how he tied his, and then I started working on my own. He had to help me once or twice, but I soon figured it out. I felt a sense of pride when I finished.
“Yay! I did it!”
He laughed, and I couldn’t help but stare at his dimple. Dear God, I wanted to lean forward and lick it. Forcing myself to look away before I did something stupid, I focused my attention on the board between us.
“What’s next?”
“Normally, we’d get in our wet suits and head out, but I want to teach you the basics before we get in the water.”
“Okay...” I had no idea how he planned to teach me to surf without water, but I wasn’t about to make myself look stupid by asking. I looked out at the water longingly. It was too hot to be this close without going in. “Do you care if I swim for a minute? The sun is about to fry me.”
“Sure, go ahead.” He watched me closely with an amused look on his face.
“I’ll be right back,” I said as I stood and shimmied out of my shorts. My shirt went next, and I threw them in the sand beside him. I ran out to the water, and I sighed in relief as I dove in. It felt cool on my overheated skin, and I loved it. I swam just a few feet out and dove under again before stepping back out of the water.
“Feel better?” Jesse asked as I approached him.
“Yes, much. It’s too hot out here.”
“You won’t even notice it once we get out there. Let’s get started, so you don’t have a heatstroke.”
His eyes traveled down my body slowly, and I tried not to fidget or cross my arms over my chest. His mouth said nothing, but his eyes told me everything that I needed to know. There was a heat within them that made me burn inside. I normally felt comfortable in a bikini, but with the way he was staring at me, I felt naked.
“You’re so sweet,” I said sarcastically, trying to relieve the tension in the air.
“I try. Okay, I’m going to show you where to lie on the board first. It’s important to position yourself right, or you’ll mess up when you try to stand. If you’re too close to the front, the nose will dip under, and if you’re too far back, the wave will go right under you. Go ahead and get down on the board.”
I crawled on top of the board, feeling like an idiot. “Am I doing it right?”
“You’re a little too far back. Scoot up a bit.”
I scooted up until he stopped me by placing his hand on my bare back. I jumped a little at the contact, but I said nothing. My skin tingled where he was touching me, and I focused on remembering how to breathe.
“Okay, that’s good. Try to remember where you are, so you can stay there once we go out into the water. Next, we need to cover paddling out. It sounds easy, but there are tricks that will help you. When you’re paddling out, you need to position yourself so that the nose is about an inch out of the water. When we are out there, you need to walk your board until you’re about waist deep and then mount it.”
I nodded. “Okay, I’ll make sure to remember that.”
“Good. Once you’re paddling out, you’re going to come across small waves. It’s easier to dip yourself and your board under them instead of fighting against them. If you don’t, you’ll wear yourself out before you even make it out far enough to surf. Grip your board here, and push down. It will sink under the water, and you’ll follow it. Once you surface, just keep paddling. I’ll let you know when we’re out far enough. You need to keep your board facing out toward the ocean until you see a wave you want. Once you do, you need to turn your board and start paddling. Remember to keep yourself centered, so you don’t dip the nose or let the wave pass under you. When you feel it start to move you, you’ll need to stand up, which is what I’m going to teach you now.”
“Okay, just show me what to do.”
“When you start riding the wave, do a push-up and pull your knees toward your stomach. Make sure to keep your center of balance as you stand up. Put whichever foot feels comfortable in the front, and keep your center of gravity low, or you’ll fall flat on your ass. Honestly, you’re going to fall off of this board a lot today.”
“Great. I can’t wait,” I joked.
“Learning is half the fun. I promise to have you standing up and surfing by the end of the day.”
“I’m holding you to that.”
“Please do. I like a challenge.”
I looked up to see him a lot closer than I’d realized. His eyes were sparkling with mischief, and I felt my stomach tighten. He was beautiful but even more so up close. I had no idea how I was supposed to ignore that little fact when I was going to spend half the day with him.
“Okay, let’s try it a few times. Remember, push up, pull knees, pop up, one foot in front of you, and keep your center of gravity low.”
“Got it,” I said as I prepared to stand. I did it quickly, feeling proud of myself until he shook his head.
“You stood up too fast. Out there on a wave, you’ll lose your balance and fall off. Try it again.”
I nodded as I repeated the movements, only slower this time. Again, he shook his head.
“Too slow. The wave will reach the shore before you finish standing up. Try it again.”
“You’re a slave driver, you know that, right?”
“Shut up, and try it again.” He shot me a smug smile.
I did it again, trying not to go too slow or too fast. I nearly did a cartwheel when he nodded his approval.
“That was perfect. Now, do it a few more times.”
After several minutes of me popping up off the board, I felt like I had it down. “I think I’m good. Can we get in the water yet?”
“Do you think you’re ready?”
“No, but I don’t think I’ll ever be. Might as well get on with the embarrassing myself part of the day.”
“Sounds good to me. I could use a laugh.”
I rolled my eyes as we put our leg ropes on, and I stood up. I picked up my board, and it was a lot lighter than I’d expected, but it still felt bulky and awkward in my hands.
Jesse stood up and pulled his shirt over his head. My eyes widened as I took in his tight stomach and broad shoulders. He wasn’t ripped, but he was in excellent shape for a seventeen-year-old guy in high school. Living in California, I’d seen a lot of shirtless guys, and I was thoroughly impressed with him to say the least. He grabbed his board, which was a lot smaller might
I add, and he started walking to the water. I forced my eyes away from him as I followed.
“Wait!” I called out. “What about our wet suits?”
“We can put them on in a few. I want to make sure you’re going to stick with this before we suit up.”
“So, you think I’m going to get discouraged and quit?” I asked, offended by his lack of belief in me.
“I think this is a lot harder than you think it is. A lot of newbies give up after being tossed around by the waves a few times.”
At least he was bei
ng honest. I’d give him that. It still didn’t make me feel any better about the fact that he assumed I would just give up if I didn’t get it as soon as we started.
“I’ll show you. I don’t give up that easily,” I said stubbornly.
“I hope not. Come on, let’s go catch a wave.”
I held my head high as we walked down the beach and into the water. I did as he’d said, and I waited until I was waist deep in the water before climbing on. Just like he’d warned, it wasn’t as easy to get on the board as I’d expected. He climbed on to his easily, and he waited as I tried to climb on to mine. It took a few tries, but I finally managed to get on the stupid thing.
“Okay, I’m good,” I said as I looked up at him.
“You might want to scoot up a little bit. You’re too far back.”
“Oh shit.” I slowly scooted up my board, not wanting to fall off after all my hard work of getting on it.
He’d been right. It felt completely different out here on the water, and I felt more than a little unsure of myself.
“You’re good. Let’s start paddling.”
I watched him closely as he started paddling, and I tried to mimic his moves. I was a lot slower than him, and I knew he was slowing down occasionally to let me catch up with him. I used the technique he’d shown me when we started meeting the smaller waves. I had to admit that the guy knew what he was doing on a surfboard. I was already impressed, and I hadn’t even seen him surf yet.
When we were out far enough, he stopped paddling, and he sat up on his board. “This is far enough. We’ll wait here until we see a wave we want.” “How do we know which wave is the right one?” I asked.
“You don’t want one that’s too small or too big. If it’s too small, you won’t be able to surf on it obviously, and if it’s too big, it’ll knock you down.”
“Why don’t you pick one out for me?” I asked as I looked out at the waves making their way closer to us.
“No way. You have to figure it out on your own.”
“Fine,” I huffed. “That one coming at us now—it’s too small, right?” “I don’t know. Is it?”
