Page 21 of Always a Chance
Stalking it was.
I changed into a bright yellow and pink bikini and threw on a sheer cover-up before twisting my hair onto my head and slathering my skin in sunscreen.
By the time I reached Turtle Cove, I knew this had been a giant mistake. I never considered that following Johnny to the beach to get this interview meant actually having to go to the beach, to walk the same sand I’d been on that night and stare into the fathomless depths of the ocean.
My fingers clenched the steering wheel as I stayed still in the busy parking lot. The Surf Hut sat at one end of the beach, looking better than I remembered it. Even at this distance, I could make out the surfers dotting the water.
The waves looked good today.
This was for my job, for my life back in the city. I reminded myself of that over and over as I stepped out of the car and crossed the pavement to the sandy path.
Sun glinted off the gulf, making it sparkle and look less like the dangerous beast it was. I found a spot near a family that was sitting on their towels eating lunch. Seagulls waited nearby, hoping for crumbs the tourists stupidly threw to them sometimes.
I spread my towel out and lowered myself to it, removing the cover-up. It wouldn’t hurt to bask in the warmth of the sun today.
A familiar figure caught my eye out in the water. I’d notice him surfing anywhere. Johnny had such a distinct style, a combination of strength and grace. I wouldn’t pretend he was as good as some of those he surfed with, but still, he drew my eye with every snap of his board, the way he lifted his arms in victory when he conquered a wave.
So much joy. I’d only seen it in him out on the water, and I’d forgotten just what it did to me, what it had always done to me. As charming and ornery as Johnny was, no one would ever call him completely carefree. He guarded his secrets, kept his mind shut to anyone and everyone. Except me. There was a time he’d let me in.
But when he surfed, the rest of the world got to see right into his soul.
He dove into the water before coming up and paddling back out. I closed my eyes, lifting my face to the sun as I remembered how insistent he was that I learn to surf so we could do it together. We were fourteen when he started teaching me, his patience warring with his desire for me to be as good as him.
I never really got it. We had fun, but I didn’t fall in love with it. Instead, I eventually fell in love with him.
We spent many mornings sneaking out early to hit the waves before school. I’d have followed him anywhere. But that was a different version of him, a softer one. I didn’t know if he was still in there.
Pulling out my notebook, I made notes on questions I wanted to ask him. They couldn’t be gender specific so they didn’t reveal the truth. But I also didn’t want him to have to lie, not to me. I refused to write the interview as if speaking to a woman.
Johnny ran from the water, and I mentally prepared myself for another confrontation. This time, I’d tell him what I really wanted from him. Just an interview. We could handle that without killing each other, without bringing up old wounds.
Right?
I pushed to my feet and was about to approach him when a redhead stepped into his line of sight. He gave her his patented charming smile, and she touched his arm, throwing her head back in laughter.
So much for my interview. That was what I told myself had my teeth clenching as she stepped closer. Disappointment, not jealousy. I turned to gather my things. Being in my father’s stifling house was better than watching this. When I straightened, she was still there, but Johnny’s focus had shifted over her shoulder.
To me.
11
JOHNNY
I felt Talia’s eyes on me the moment I left the water. It was as if I could sense her closeness, like old times. Rae said something else, but I barely heard her.
“Johnny, are you even listening to me?” She pinched my arm, getting way too much enjoyment out of this big sister thing. I’d known the woman most of my life, and she’d always been somewhat of a sibling, but now that she’d married my brother Shane, it was official.
As an only child, she said she had a lot of time to make up picking on her new siblings, but I noticed Tanner somehow escaped it.
“Of course I am.” I told myself not to look Talia’s way, to ignore her presence altogether, but it was no use. Her anger burned into me, and I had to admit it felt good. Not because she hated me, I’d never enjoy that, but because she felt anything toward me at all.
For ten years, she’d disappeared, not even taking a moment to send me a simple text to let me know I was on her mind. Hatred was better than indifference.
Rae glanced over her shoulder, a low chuckle emanating from her. “Oh. Mari told me Talia was in town. Guess I should have known we’d lose you.”
I averted my eyes from the goddess in the yellow bikini, focusing once again on Rae. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Just that we all knew how you felt about that girl back when you two were friends. Now that she’s returned…” She wiggled her eyebrows.
