Page 12 of Wicked Waters

My shoes sank into the mix of mud and pebbles as my group headed down to the point on the river shore where we were launching the kayaks. Up ahead of me, Harriet nudged her friend and subtly indicated to our left. I followed the line of her gaze to see Roman and a group of guys—mostly his former teammates from the swimming and diving clubs—heading in the direction of the lake where the windsurfing activities were taking place. They were wearing wetsuits, but the top part hung from their waists so that their torsos were displayed, and they were clearly loving the attention they were getting, based on the expressions on their faces.

When they drew level with our group of kayakers, Roman’s disinterested gaze passed over us, then stopped and homed in on me. His eyes darkened, his brows lowering as he studied me. Just as I managed to tear my gaze away from his, his lips kicked up at the corners in what I could only describe as a malicious smile.

My stomach flipped, and not in a good way. Moving to the other side of the group, I picked up my pace. As I reached the area where the kayaks were stored, I couldn’t help glancing back. A guy from my group was handing Roman a life jacket…then he picked up Roman’s windsurfing board and crossed over to Roman’s group. Penelope and Freya were part of the other group, watching as Roman switched to my group, and although the sun was in my eyes, making me squint, I caught the savage glare Freya directed my way. As if this had anything to do with me.

I dived for my kayak, pulling it into the water. Gripping the paddle, I straddled the kayak and then lowered myself carefully. The need to get away from Roman was strong, but I’d learnt the hard way that rushing only ended up with the kayak tipping me out. Once I was seated, I used my paddle to propel the kayak out of the shallows towards our guide, who was waiting farther out in the wider part of the river.

Getting away from Roman was wishful thinking. I’d barely even made it to the guide before he drew alongside me, his paddle cutting through the water with smooth, powerful strokes.

“You didn’t think you could escape from me that easily, did you?”

“Leave me alone, Roman.” Shooting him a glare, I paddled around to the other side of the guide, and we were soon surrounded by the rest of our group. Roman kept his gaze on me as the guide reminded us of where we could and couldn’t paddle and the fact that we would stop for lunch in a small inlet farther down the river.

This is so hard. His presence was so magnetic, and it hurt to be so close to him and have to act like I was unaffected, like he meant nothing to me. At the same time, I was so angry with him that I couldn’t even breathe every time I remembered the way he’d thrown me in the lake and left me, stealing my hoodie, phone, and headphones.

Bastard. Of course, he’d roped someone innocent into his twisted scheme—Aria had given me my phone back, saying Blaine had given it to her. The way she’d described it, he was almost panicked. It was clear who was behind it all, especially because it had gone missing at the same time as my other items.

Thankfully, because we were kayaking and the guide was there making sure we kept enough space between the boats, Roman didn’t bother me again, and I almost managed to relax, enjoying the gentle swell of the water and the sun sparkling on the surface.

Everything changed when we stopped in the inlet.

We’d just finished pulling our kayaks up the muddy beach when the clouds rolled in, all deep, heavy greys, and then the first drops of rain began to fall. Everyone scrambled to shelter under the huge overhanging rocks at the back of the inlet, waiting for the rain clouds to pass.

“Scared of a bit of rain?”

The low voice in my ear made me shiver.

“Leave me alone, Roman,” I hissed.

“Hmm. I don’t think I can.” His body was hot next to mine, a contrast against the chill of the rain.

Spinning to face him, I let my annoyance come to the surface. It didn’t matter that we’d meant something to each other once. The fact was, he was an asshole now.

“Leave me alone,” I said again, pushing at his chest. “I mean it.”

Caught off guard, he staggered backwards across the muddy shoreline, his lips curving into a snarl. “Fuck you.”

I straightened my shoulders, determined to remain composed in front of him. “I want you to stay away from me.”

Glancing between me and the river, he seemed to come to a decision. His lips flattened, his jaw clenching, and then he deliberately turned his back to me.

“You got your wish,” he ground out, and then he was gone.

7

QUINN

My smile widened as I breathed in the sea air coming through the open doors that led onto the deck of Blaine’s family’s beach house. Solar-powered fairy lights sparkled in the night, wrapping around the wooden railing that ran around the edge of the deck. At the far end of the deck, steps led down to the beach, sinking into soft sand. I sipped my wine, listening to the sound of the waves lapping at the shore as the moon lit the horizon with a milky glow. It was so good to be here for the bank holiday weekend with my friends, sadly minus Aria, and to see the coast again. I hadn’t seen it in over two years. My parents liked to holiday at luxury beach resorts in the Caribbean and the Maldives, but there was something about the British coastline that I loved. The craggy cliffs, windswept beaches, the wildness of the sea in the winter, even the annoying seagulls that stole food from unsuspecting tourists… It felt like home to me. If I could, I’d live on the coast all year round. Maybe I would, one day. I’d already applied to Alstone College, an exclusive university on the coast that mostly specialised in business-related degrees but had an amazing history programme. It was fairly close to where we were staying this weekend—not that I was expecting to see it during the weekend, but if all went well, I’d be attending there once I left Hatherley Hall. The University of Brighton was my second choice if things didn’t pan out, but either way, I’d hopefully be close to the sea for the duration of my time at university.

Penelope lifted her wine glass. “Cheers to the weekend, for unseasonably sunny weather and hot boys at the beach.”

Elena and I laughed, clinking our glasses together with Penelope’s. “Cheers.”

“They’re here! Finally!” Freya’s voice came from behind us, and we spun around.

My stomach flipped.

A group of guys were strolling into the room, all popular, good-looking guys from our school, most of them from the lacrosse team. Heading them up were the three “gods”—Tristan, Knox, and the boy I’d been avoiding for most of the week.

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