Page 23 of F*ck You

9

Lee

Apiercing sound tore into my eardrums, ripping me from dreamland. I shot straight up so fast, I ended up crashing to the floor with a squeal. My mind was still groggy when I opened them, groaning as I rubbed my ass. That was going to bruise.

“What happened?” I looked around at the semi-familiar surroundings and it took me a moment to realize I wasn’t in my condo. I was in Larsen’s.

Memories from the night before came crashing back, and I gripped my head in my hands as I dipped it between my knees in an attempt to become invisible. If I had any luck, they wouldn’t see me and would go on with their morning without giving me a single thought.

“Lee?” Chase called out, as he shut off his blaring phone alarm.

Well, so much for that plan.

Note to self: better learn how to become invisible, because that was the worst plan I’d ever come up with.

“What are you doing on the floor?” Chase asked.

“Oh, you know, just counting the floorboards. Good news, they’re all still connected.”

A soft, sleep-filled chuckle was the giveaway that Larsen was now awake too. His eyes popped open, and he looked at me with a hint of amusement as he grinned. “You’re not one for mornings, are you?” he observed, and I nodded.

“Not really.” I glanced out the window at the dark sky. It had to be really early morning. “Nobody should be up before the sun.”

Chase stretched from his position on the couch and then stood up. “We should probably start getting ready.”

I blinked, trying to remember what the fuck kind of shit I’d agreed to at this hour of the morning. I was probably drunk when I did so. Past drunk Lee could be a real bitch at times. “Ready?” I questioned. “For…?”

Chase reached down, grabbed my hands, and pulled me up. “Surfing. You have your first lesson today. “Don’t tell me you forgot already.”

“Oh, uh, no, I didn’t forget. I was hoping you did though.”

He snickered and guided me toward the door, waving goodbye to Larsen. I wrapped my arms around my middle against the cool ocean breeze, and Chase walked on the side of the ocean, trying to block some of it from me. He dropped me off at my condo and, after making sure I was safely inside after I shuddered at the memories of the night before, he continued on toward his home to get ready with the promise he would be back soon.

I rushed through my morning routine as quickly as I could, washing my face and brushing my hair into a ponytail and doing my best to make myself look somewhat presentable. Grumbling at myself for not grabbing a swimsuit when I left Todd, I threw myself into a pair of booty shorts and a sports bra, then pulled a t-shirt over it. I made it downstairs just as Chase rapped his knuckles against the door.

“Well, that was some timing,” he commented. “Ready?”

“To embarrass myself and show my ass? Yeah, sure, why not.” Despite my blasé attitude, I was actually brimming with excitement. I locked the door behind us and followed him out to the water where there were two surfboards standing upright in the sand.

“First things first, safety.” He went through all the surfing safety rules until I could repeat each one back to him from memory. It didn’t help that his muscles were shimmering in the sun, distracting me. I had no idea surfing could create a body like that, and I bit the inside of my lip to keep from drooling.

His biceps rippled underneath his skin as he shifted about to show me the different moves. I barely managed to follow along enough to perform them myself.

He had me mimic moves with the board while on sand. Despite my early morning grogginess, it didn’t take me too long to go from lying on the board to getting to my knees and then jumping into a standing position.

My self-confidence was building, and I was beginning to grow more excited at the prospect of taking the board out on the water. The sun was already peeking above the horizon, and I paused to watch as it rose.

Chase took a couple steps closer to stand next to me and, leaning with my cheek against the surfboard that I had sticking up from the sand again, we watched the sunrise.

I only now noticed people were piling onto the beach on the other side where the line separated us from the tourists. Not a lot of people, maybe a dozen or so, enough to be noticeable, but not enough to overflow the beach. They stood in the sand and watched as the sun rose too.

“This is one of the tourists’ favorite things to do, watch the sunrise on the beach.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “I’ll admit, regardless of having been here my whole life, it’s still one of my favorite things to do as well. There isn’t anything quite like it.”

The newly illuminated sand exposed hundreds of shells that had washed up, and when some of the tourists began to sift through them with their plastic bags, I was now fully energized. I could feel the excitement buzzing beneath my skin.

“Alright, let’s get you out on the water.” After securing the cord from my board to my ankle, Chase picked up his own board, and I pulled mine from the sand and followed him out into the water.

The waves were low, and the water was cold as it lapped around my calves. I shivered, but then pressed on.

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