Page 21 of Kai
“No need to apologize.” He drew a deep inhale as if to slow down the rapid breaths that lifted his chest and mine. “But…” He pointed to the surfboard, floating in the shallows, just steps from us. “You need to get on it.”
The blood drained from my face. Whatever heat lingered on my skin fled. My terror returned in full, along with the cold that squeezed around me and my heart like a frozen fist.
I locked my jaw and steeled my voice. “I. Don’t. Swim.”
“You do now.”
He moved so fast I didn’t see him coming. He picked me up and laid me belly down on the surfboard. Before I could protest, I found myself stretched out on the board’s rough deck, floating in the shallows, and obviously bay-bound.
“Grab on to the handles at either side of the board,” he ordered, sliding a pair of fins over his booties and then hooking the board’s leash to his ankle. “Three, two, one. Here we go.”
Taking advantage of a lull between the waves, he launched the surfboard. The flattened waves fizzled and bubbled around us. He jumped on the board and lay partly on top of me, pinning me down with his body.
“Noooooo,” I cried out.
Splash.
A wallop of water slapped me in the face. It stung my nostrils, surged up my open mouth, and poured down my throat. I would’ve screamed, but I was busy hacking instead. Kai kicked his legs and paddled with his brawny arms over the sides of the surfboard, propelling us over the shallows. I suspected that the average surfboard didn’t have handles attached to the edges. He must’ve installed these for my benefit. I curled my fingers around them and clutched them with all I had.
“You motherfucker,” I cried out. “You tricked me with a kiss!”
“Or maybe you tricked me.” The warmth of his breath against my ear sent a shiver of pleasure down my spine. “We’ll find out later.”
Later?
Later when?
“Hold on and take a breath,” he ordered as we entered the bay’s deeper waters. “We’re going under.”
Under?
I looked up at the foamy crown of the tall wave coming at us. Kai pressed the nose of the surfboard down. It dipped into the wall of water cresting above us.
Swoosh.
Water smothered my curses. Bubbles flew out of my nose and mouth and got lost in the darkness. Down we went, into a dim, watery world that triggered my panic. My whimpers echoed in my head, and so did theglug, glug, glugthat came as I swallowed mouthfuls of saltwater.
Kicking his legs, Kai swam us under the surface. My body lifted from the board, but I hung on tightly, and so did he. His body undulated over mine as he speared us through the surf. He kicked and kicked and kicked.
Somewhere behind us, a crash thundered against the rocks. Beneath the water, it all sounded subdued, but I knew better. The waves could roll us back into the breakers or trap us between the rocks, shredding us like Parmesan cheese.
As we came up for breath on the other side, I sputtered. “You son of a bitch!” I coughed some more. “I can’t breathe!”
“Close your mouth.” Another order. “Don’t inhale when you’re under. Instead, blow out if you can. We’re gonna do it again. Take a breath.”
Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit.
I inhaled and closed my eyes.
Swoosh.
The water rushed over, under, and around us.Glug, glug, glug. It poured straight down my throat.Crash. Boom. Swoosh.Despair.The night hit my face with the force of one of those enormous waves, just like the one looming over us again.Air!
“Breathe,” he commanded right before the next swellcame at us. “Going under.”
The wave charged us, hissing and roaring like a pissed-off beast. Every time we broke the surface, the weight of Kai’s body solidified over me, rippling against my back. Despite the darkness, he propelled us forward, regardless of his heavy load—the large wet bag on his back, the rifle, and me. He wasn’t even breathing hard as he maneuvered us through the bay. Kai was a sea warrior and the captain of his own boat, fate, surfboard… whatever.
“Breathe,” he commanded, and I inhaled a big gulp. “Going under.”
