Page 9 of Submit

Perhaps my lack of attention from Will is really impacting me and I’m so wound up because of this morning’s rejection. Something to work through later.

I take Casper’s response as my opening to start a conversation. If we’re going to be working together for the next two hours, an awkward silence filled with sexual tension - at least on my end - and kitesurfing terms just won’t do. “So, how long have you lived here?” I ask, figuring that’s a harmless question without being too personal.

“Longer than you. Here, put this on.” Casper fits me with a life jacket, helmet, and goggles as he shuts down my attempt at small talk. He hands each of the items to me from at least three feet away and is careful not to brush my fingers during the handoff which makes me cringe. I’m the creepy perv. I should apologize but as I get suited up, my nerves fire up and for the first time I’m really thinking about getting up on this board. I open my mouth, but nothing comes out.

I follow Casper into the water, determined to be a good student. I sit back, floating because of my lifejacket, and slide my feet into the straps, the wind at my back as instructed. I look down and make sure that I have my board, the bar, and the kite all parallel.

Casper moves to stand behind me. I hear him take a deep breath just before I feel one hand on my back and one hand over top of mine on the bar that controls the kite. Despite dressing me in this ridiculous outfit, it’s the first time his skin has made contact with mine and I can’t stop the shiver that runs through me as the hand at my back splays below where the lifejacket stops.

Forget butterflies, I have a full, swarming bee hive at work in my stomach.

“What are you doing?” I feel myself tense as the shiver abates.

“Relax,” he growls. “I’m going to make sure you don’t pull down too hard and send yourself over the front of the board.” He sounds annoyed at having to explain himself. “Ready?” he asks.

No.

“I think so.”

I feel pressure from his right hand on my back, helping me stand up while his left hand is guiding my speed. Before I know it, the contact is gone and I’m on my own. It’s a similar feeling to wake boarding, except you’re basically driving the boat and surfing the wake at the same time. I make it about twenty yards and then let up on the bar and fall back into the water.

Casper wades over to me, water hitting him mid-thigh, looking mildly impressed. It’s enough to bolster my new-found confidence.

“That was easier than I expected,” I admit as I struggle to right myself in the water and get my feet under me to stand.

“Then why’d you stop?” He’s not angry, just seeking an answer, but still, I should have known there would be no praise coming out of his beautiful mouth.

I shrug. “I forgot how to turn, and I figured a controlled landing was better than looking like an idiot.”

“Looking like an idiot comes with the territory for the first several rides,” he says and then pauses, finally deciding to throw me a bone as he nods his approval. “But that was good. Most people can’t get up on their first try.”

To my absolute horror, my stupid mouth opens and a giggling thirteen-year-old-boy comes out. “I bet you don’t have trouble getting up any time.”

Ohmigod.

Did I just reference his dick?

To his face?

I immediately wish I could stuff the words back in my mouth and drown in this three feet of water, but since I can’t, I just drag a hand down my face and groan. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

Aruba Libby, you’re in the doghouse.

This time, a full smirk makes an actual appearance before he shakes his head and schools his features. “Let’s do that a couple more times to make sure it wasn’t a fluke and then we’ll go over changing directions.”

His praise makes me beam with pride. I’m thankful for my athletic ability and my love of the gym because after a few more attempts to get up on the board, my legs are dead and I can only imagine how hard this would have been if I was any weaker.

Fifteen minutes later he catches the front of my board. “That’s good. Let’s take a twenty-minute break and refuel before we start up again.”

Disappointment stabs when he disappears and I realize that I’ll be spending the break alone. I’m already craving Casper’s contact and attention far more than I have any right to.

Five minutes after sitting down, a girl with a golden-blonde ponytail and eyes almost too large for her heart-shaped face comes over to my picnic table on the porch of the hut.

“Hey, great job out there. This is your first time?”

“Thanks,” I say hesitantly. Being approached by strangers randomly is something us introverts struggle with.But, I need friends, so I offer her a smile. “Yeah, I just recently moved to the island and thought I’d get out and try something new.”

She holds out her hand and smiles. “Johanna.”

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