Page 115 of For the Win

“I deserved that,” he says loudly.“Don’t apologize.”

Now I’m really laughing and in danger of falling in myself.“Harrison, you nut.Get back on your board.”

The water is shallow enough for him to walk, and he tugs his board along, grinning.

Inside Stand-Up Guy Paddleboards and Makara Yoga, everyone returns their boards and disperses.Harrison’s gone too.My shoulders slump and I look around in confusion.Then he appears from the men’s change room, dressed in dry clothes—a pair of jeans and a T-shirt—his hair still damp.

He approaches, his gaze fixed on me with solemn focus, and stops in front of me.“Can we talk?”

I nod, my heart hammering.

“I’m not stalking you,” he assures me.

“I know.”

“And I didn’t come here to pressure you.Just to talk.If that’s okay.”

I nod slowly.

“Maybe we can go over to Bandits for a drink.”

“Sure.Let me grab my things.”I head into the changing room for my bag.I slide my feet into flip-flops and check my appearance in the mirror.Not that I can do much about it.My cheeks and nose are a bit pink from the sun, my hair’s in a ponytail that’s coming loose.Whatever.

I rejoin Harrison and we walk outside to cross the parking lot to the restaurant.

“Are you limping?”I ask, stopping short.

“Maybe a bit.”He rubs his left hip.“Had a run-in with a goalpost last night.”

“I saw it.”I catch my lip between my teeth.“Are you okay?”

“Oh yeah.Stiff and bruised, that’s all.”He rolls his left shoulder too.

My stomach clutches at the thought of him in pain.

We resume walking.“Congratulations on the win last night.”

“Thanks.”He beams a big, wide grin.

“You played fantastic.”

“I did.”Then he laughs.“It was a team effort.”

“When does the next series start?”

“We don’t know yet.Eagles and Blues play tonight.Then we’ll know who we play against and when.”

“It would be...funny if you played against the Eagles.”

“It would be a great matchup,” he says.“Might cause some family strife, though.”He rolls his eyes.“As if we don’t have enough of that.”

“Anything new happening with that?”

“Not really.Everyone agreed we’ll deal with things after the playoffs.”

“Right.”

We sit outside on the patio since it’s a nice afternoon.A potted palm flutters near my head as I settle into my chair, taller palms outside the patio swaying in the ocean breeze.

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