Page 7 of Below the Barrel

Even though I’m not.

Her lips part slightly, and I let my eyes drop down to them as I gently pull away from her hand. The pink plumpness drawing me in almost as much as her eyes. What I would do to be able to feel them against mine one more time.

I look down at our hands, my eyes snagging on her arms covered in goosebumps. I lift my eyes back to hers and see the moment she realizes she’s been staring too long. Her back snaps straight before she walks past me and introduces herself to everyone else in the group.

“She’s your girl?” Charles asks.

I clench my jaw before turning to face him with a forced smirk.

“Wouldn’t you like to know.” I wink before walking towards the others and introducing myself after Maliah.

“The resultsof this competition will determine your partner for the remainder of your time here. So, if I were you, I’d surf with absolutely everything I have,” the Surf Sports Official shouts over the sound of the roaring waves.

I stand in between Charles and Reese as we face the ocean. It’s been a long day of waiting for my turn but it’s finally here. I plan to surf the best I can today, even though I know I’ll be assigned to Maliah regardless, to put some fear into Charles.

I just met the guy, but I don’t like him. He’s more invested in the girls here than he is about the tour itself. The Official holds a small BB gun into the air and begins to count down, so I position myself better and wait for the sound of the gunshot before I sprint towards the ocean, surfboard tucked under my arm.

The coolness of the water sends a chill up my spine, but as soon as the water reaches my knees, I throw down my board and hop on, using all my strength to paddle further out. I reach the lineup first and face the horizon, waiting for the perfect wave to swell, and it doesn’t take long for me to spot one.

I turn my board, facing the shore, and begin paddling again so that I’m just ahead of the breaking lip, but Charles has the same idea as he begins to desperately paddle beside me. I don’t let him distract me.

We both stand on our boards just as the wave lifts us up and shoots us forward, allowing us to drop in with the nose of our boards facing downwards at an angle. To my surprise, the wave splits right in between Charles and I, and he takes off in the opposite direction. I return my focus to my own wave and bend my knees so that I can get more momentum as I begin to carve through it.

Once I’ve reached the right amount of speed, I complete a bottom turn at the base of the wave to begin executing as many maneuvers as I’m able to, before jumping off next to my board as the wave falls away.

“Dude,” Reese exclaims, his eyes wide and his hands holding his head as he stares at me, “that was crazy. I’ve never seen anyone do that much in a single wave.”

I chuckle to myself as I come up next to him on the lineup just as another wave begins to swell.

“You should catch that if you want a decent partner.” I nod in the wave’s direction.

“Fingers crossed it’s Maliah.” He winks at me playfully before paddling off to surf his wave.

“That little shit,” I mumble to myself as I watch him pull off a decent aerial.

I glance toward the beach and search with my eyes until I find Maliah next to Gabriel. She’s stretching with her headset on, intently watching each surfer’s performance as if she’s taking mental notes.

She probably is.

I’ve never met anyone as dedicated to winning as Maliah is, and that dedication comes paired with an obsession to learn her opponents’ weaknesses and strengths from the inside and out. Her eyes move to mine and she holds my gaze momentarily, my heart ricocheting in my chest, before she turns to Gabriel to say something.

This year I plan to win her back, even if it’s just as a friend. I can’t imagine a life without Maliah in it, in any capacity, and because of that I know that if we both get kicked off The Saltwater Shredders team, she’ll disappear for good.

I catch a few more waves before our heat finishes, and I paddle back to the shore with the rest of the surfers. We were the last group to surf for the males and now the last female group is next, Maliah’s group.

When the water is shallow enough, I slide from my board and walk the rest of the way, tucking it under my arm. When my feet touch dry sand, I shake out my wet hair before sliding a hand through it and slicking it backward.

A chorus of wistful sighs catches my attention, and I look up to find a large group of the female surfers watching me with glazed eyes. I swear one of the girls is even drooling. Just behind them I spot my camera crew recording the girls and my reaction and I can’t help but roll my eyes and make my way to where Maliah and Gabriel stand.

“Looks like you’ve got yourself a fan club,” Maliah says, holding my towel out for me to take.

I smirk and lean forward so that we’re eye level, watching as her eyes slowly peruse my face and pause on my lips before rising back to my eyes.

“Jealous?” My smirk grows into a grin when she rolls her eyes instead of answering me.

Is she jealous?

It doesn’t matter, you’re not enough.

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