Page 24 of Meet You in the Waves
“And you are the absolutebest, Ajay,” Nick returned with a sincerity to his words that had me pausing. “You deserve way better than her, you know that, right?”
I sighed heavily as Nick finally dropped his hold on my arm. I felt the absence of his warm touch all over me.
“Yeah, I know,” I said quietly.
“I’m sorry,” Nick added. “I wasn’t sure if I should tell you but I knew if it was me, I’d want to know.”
“Yeah. Course,” I replied. My mind was still in a bit of a spin over Nick’s news but as the shock started filtering out of mysystem it was slowly but surely replaced with something else. Something that should not have been such a surprise.
Relief.
Nick watched me closely as we made our way back to the house after our surf. I felt his eyes on me the whole time as I washed off the board with the hose and then jumped under the cold shower, rinsing off the salt and the sand. The cold water helped me clear my head and come to a slow resolution.
“You okay?” Nick asked, blue eyes full of concern for me.
“I’m okay,” I assured him. “Thank you for telling me.”
“Any time,” he said with a short nod. I held his eye for a heartbeat and then turned to make my way up the stairs to the deck.
“Ajay?” Nick called. I stopped and turned to face him, his body dripping with cold water from the shower. “I’ve got your back, okay?”
I nodded, a feeling of some kind of rightness and relief settling in me at his words as I made my way into the house.
Kira was already up, lounging on the sofa with her legs planted across Dee’s lap as Dane stood in the kitchen, preparing breakfast.
“Ajay,” Kira said the minute I stepped inside. “Be a love and get me a coffee.”
“In a minute,” I replied, needing to have a moment before I spoke to her again. I felt Nick at my back, saw the dismissive look pass over Kira’s face as she glanced his way before she decided to really test out my limits.
“Now, Ajay,” she whined. “Ineeda coffee.”
“Machine’s in the kitchen,” I said calmly, nodding in its general direction. I took a small amount of relish in the way her mouth dropped at my audacity along with the warmth at my back as Nick stepped even closer. I felt the brush of his hand on my lower back, gone before I could even register it, and it bolstered me in ways he could never imagine.
“Better get in the shower before Rob or Mateo claim it,” he said behind me. Giving me an out. Giving me the time I needed.
“Yeah,” I replied, suddenly a little tongue tied as I glanced back at him, realising how close he had been standing. He nodded at me and I turned and headed upstairs.
Mateo was coming out of the bathroom just as I arrived, a tiny little towel wrapped around his waist as my eyes dipped to his incredibly carved chest. Just something about looking at all that perfection hurt my heart a little though I couldn’t really say why. Mateo hardly even gave me a passing glance before he stepped around me, heading back to Nick’s room where he had spent the night. With Nick. Did they sleep together still in the same bed? With clothes on? Or off? And how was that not weird for them?
The bathroom was steamy as I stepped inside and closed the door behind me, feeling weird and itchy all over. I took a long, hot shower, eking out as many seconds and minutes away from Kira as I could. I’d never been all that good at confrontation, more of a go with the flow kind of guy. Which kind of explained why I was still in this relationship with someone I no longer had any feelings for. But even I knew I couldn’t stand for this behaviour from her.
By the time I made my way downstairs again it was just Kira still on the lounge. Dee and Dane were nowhere to be found and I was pretty sure Rob and Mateo had left while I had my extra long shower.
“Still waiting on that coffee,” Kira said to me, one perfectly shaped eyebrow raised. Clearly displeased that I had dismissed her earlier in front of the others.
I came to a stop at the edge of the lounge, just behind the long sofa that faced the water, using it as a buffer. Kira looked up at me as I stood there, an expectant expression on her face.
“Did you come on to Nick last night?” I asked, deciding to go with the rip-the-Band-Aid off approach.
“What? No,” she instantly denied. But I hadn’t missed the colour drain from her face, nor the fact that Nick had just entered the room, stopping in the kitchen as Kira’s eyes bounced between him and me.
“So you didn’t proposition him last night?” I pressed, making it clear I didn’t believe her. “Maybe tell him I didn’t have to know?”
Kira’s eyes continued to bounce between me and Nick, her mouth dropped open. “No, Ajay,” she replied, playing up the innocence. “I love you. Why would I come on to Nick?”
I heard Nick scoff in the kitchen and Kira’s eyes zoned in on him, narrowing spitefully. I could almost see the moment she decided to change tack. “Anyway, it wasn’tmewho propositionedhim. It was Nick who came onto me.”
I shared a quick glance with Nick, seeing him roll his eyes at the ludicrous suggestion. “That’s not the story I heard.”
