Page 44 of Below the Barrel

“What’s going on with you?”

I ponder whether I should tell her the truth or make something up, but curiosity gets the better of me. “I’ve been thinking about what happened in Fiji.”

Her eyes flick up to mine, guarded but curious. “Is there something you want to say?”

I open my mouth to respond but close it again, the words getting stuck. “Not yet,” I say, keeping it simple.

She doesn’t push me on it, instead giving me a small nod before returning her attention out the window. I follow suit,wondering how long we can keep dancing around what’s been happening between us.

Once we get backto the tour house we’ve been assigned, Maliah barely spares me a glance before heading straight to her room, shutting me out like she’s always done. I watch her disappear down the narrow hallway, her door clicking shut behind her, and it hits me harder than I want to admit.

I stand there for a moment, still holding my board, staring at the closed door. Did I push her too far? Did I cross a line back in the forest that we can’t uncross?

The tension’s been building between us for weeks—hell, maybe longer than that. It’s like every time we’re together, the air gets heavier, thicker, charged with something neither of us can fully control. And then the kiss. The way her body felt pressed up against that tree, her breath warm and uneven against my lips, the sound of her moaning while she came for me…it’s all I can think about.

But now, she’s avoiding me, and I’m left here, wondering if I’ve completely messed this up.

I drag our boards to the back deck, the warm Rio air wrapping around me as I hang them on the board hooks out here. I pull my phone out of my pocket and call Griffin and Colton in a group video call, hoping for a distraction.

Griffin picks up first, his voice crackling through the speaker. “So you finally decided to call,” he says in mock annoyance. “How’s Brazil treating you?”

I lean against the railing, looking out at the pool as I talk. “Not bad. We placed first again today at Saquarema.”

Colton’s voice cuts in next. “Hell yeah! I knew you two would kill it.”

They start filling me in on what’s been going on back home, updates on the surf scene, parties, some new faces at our usual spots. I’m listening, kind of, but I keep my responses vague, not really wanting to dive into what’s been happening between me and Maliah. I’m not even sure what I’d say. Griffin and Colton are like my brothers—they can tell something’s up.

“You good, Koa?” Griffin asks after a beat, his tone softening. “You seem off.”

I open my mouth to respond, but then the sliding doors open, and out walks Maliah in a black bikini, her skin glowing in the soft light of the pool. My throat goes dry instantly. She’s all legs, hips swaying as she walks with a sort of quiet confidence, and I can’t take my eyes off her.

I hear Colton and Griffin whispering to each other, their voices distant now, but I’m not listening. My attention locked on her. She steps into the pool, the water lapping around her waist as she turns to look at me. The way her eyes find mine—like she’s daring me to follow her.

She leans back against the edge of the pool, water glistening on her skin, and gives me this look, her eyes filled with something that sends a jolt straight to my cock.

“Bro, is he drooling?” Colton’s voice cuts through the fog in my brain.

“Yup, definitely drooling,” Griffin agrees, his voice filled with humour.

I blink, realizing they’ve caught me staring at Maliah like an idiot, mouth half-open.

“I’ve got to go.” I hang up the call, not even bothering with a goodbye.

Maliah watches me, her lips curving into a small, knowing smile. “Are you coming in?” she asks, her voice low, almost teasing.

Hell. Yes.

I don’t waste a second, running inside to change out of my wetsuit and into my swimming trunks before running back out to the pool and diving in, the water cooling the heat that’s building inside me. When I surface, I swim right up to her, water dripping from my hair, and place my hands on either side of her head against the pool edge. I lower myself to her level, close enough to feel the warmth coming off her skin despite the cool water.

She stares at me for a moment, her eyes flickering with something I can’t quite put my finger on—lust, maybe curiosity or desire. Her breath hitches slightly, and I notice the way her chest rises and falls, like she’s trying to control it.

I’m so close, I can see the tiny flecks in her eyes, gorgeous shades of blue. She shifts slightly under my gaze before asking, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

I tilt my head, smirking. “Like what?”

“Like that,” she repeats, her voice a little breathless now.

I let my gaze travel over her face slowly before I meet her eyes again, my tone playful. “Your eyes are really pretty up close.”

---