Page 82 of Healer's Call

“I’m done,” I manage to say breathlessly.

“Come on. Let’s go catch some waves,” he says quickly, pulling away from me.

I don’t need any further encouragement. I tug off my flip flops and shirt and shorts and toss them in the sand and walk right into the water. The water feels amazing and cools me down. Now that I know what it feels like, I don’t want to waste another minute. The water splashes all around me, and I can’t help the delighted laugh that escapes me. I whirl around to find Maverick. “Aren’t you coming in? This is amazing!” When he doesn’t say anything, I start toward him. “Mav?”

“I’m coming.” His voice is gruff.

I turn around and head right back into the water before a thought hits me. “Hey, I don’t have to worry about sharks or anything here, right?”

“You mean like that one over there?” he asks.

I shriek and run through the water back to the shallow area where Mav is standing. Maverick makes a sound, and I turn to him and stop. “Are you laughing at me?”

He grins widely and puts his sunglasses on top his head. With eyes dancing, he says, “I’ve never seen you move so fast, Healer.” I’m still dealing with how heartbreakingly handsome he is when he smiles to be able to come up with a reply. “I didn’t even know you could move that fast.”

That does it. I run after him and shove him backwards, trying to push him down into the deeper water. Well, I try; but he has lightning quick reflexes. He catches me and turns and catapults me into the water instead. The water surrounds me as momentum drags me under, and I resurface a moment later. “I can’t believe you just did that,” I say as I push my hair out of my face.

“Sure, you can,” he says with a smirk. I stand all the way up, and I swear his gaze runs the length of me for a moment before his eyes snap to mine. Before he can move, I grab his arm. “Wait. Were you serious about the sharks?”

“I don’t know, Healer. Was I?”

“Maverick,” I implore.

He smiles gently. “There’s no sharks here. I was just teasing you. Come on. Let me show you how to body surf.” He starts forward. When I don’t follow immediately, he turns back. “Coming?” It’s my turn to be silent a moment. He makes quite a picture, standing in the water with the sun behind him. “Keep staring at me like that, and we’re not going to get out to those waves,” he says in a low voice. I jerk my gaze to his and nearly melt at the heat in his eyes. A moment later, he goes underwater,and I lose sight of him. He surfaces soon after, and I follow him out to the waves. I try to get out to where he is, but it’s too deep. I can’t keep my head above the water. He comes towards me. “I forgot how short you are.” But his voice is almost tender. I shake my head; I must be water-logged because Maverick is not tender. “Okay, here’s what to do.”

We spend the next few hours in the waves until I absolutely can’t swim anymore. I lay a towel on the sand before collapsing on it. “My legs feel like jelly.” He drops down next to me, getting sand on me. “Watch it,” I say without much energy, mostly because I have none left.

Chapter39

Rose

“This place is amazing,” I breathe out after I finally catch my breath. “How come your pack doesn’t come here? Do they not know about it?”

“They know about it; they’re just not allowed to.”

His answer surprises me. “Why not?”

“It’s Cade and Amber’s getaway spot.”

I sit up. “Are we not supposed to be here?”

“Relax. It’s fine. Technically, since I’m beta, it’s for me too. I just don’t come here all that often.”

“You should. It’s amazing!” I close my eyes and let the sun warm my face.

“Only a few more minutes, and then you need to get into the shade,” he says, interrupting my quiet.

“I don’t want to go into the shade. This feels too good,” I say with somewhat slurred words. I feel close to dozing.

“Come on, Healer. You can’t fall asleep in the sun. You're probably going to be burned as it is.” I give a small sound of annoyance. “Up you go.” Suddenly, arms come around me and pull me to my feet.

“Maverick, I was resting,” I complain.

“You can rest in the shade where you won’t burn,” he says. I glare at him while I put my flip flops on and follow him. We settle in the shade under one of the trees. We’re not exactly on the sand anymore, so it’s not as comfortable but I don’t mind. “This is amazing, Mav. Thank you for bringing me here.” He doesn’t say anything, not that I expected him to. We lay there for a while. I’m in that happy place, dozing but not quite sleepingwhen he gives me a little shake. I open my eyes and use my hand to shield my face against the sun.

He gives me an apologetic look. “We have to go back. Sorry. Cade’s calling me back.”

“That’s okay. I can just stay here.”

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