Page 58 of Meet You in the Waves
“You’re right. It’s plenty big enough for the two of us already, huh?” Nick grinned, shifting his hips forward to make sure I was in no doubt of his meaning.
“How about that surf then?” I said instead, ignoring his smirk as it turned into a laugh.
“Let’s put a pin in the stroking,” he agreed. “Surf first.”
I noticed that Nick’s and my dawn surf sessions had wound up a little earlier the last two days. I was also pretty sure it was because we both wanted to rush back for a sneaky kiss under the cold outdoor shower. Funny how I hadn’t even noticed how cold the water was the last few mornings.
I also had to admit there was something a little heady about kissing Nick while knowing the other three were somewhere in the house, completely ignorant of the fact that Nick’s tongue was down my throat and his hand down the front of my shorts.
I was feeling a little floaty and light when Nick and I finally returned to the house, relishing in the little knowing glances we kept sending each other.
I was so focused on Nick that I didn’t even notice when Kira planted herself in my path.
“Where were you last night?” she asked, hands on hips and eyebrows raised. My nice post-orgasmic floaty feeling evaporated in a quick flash as my pulse suddenly kicked into gear. I somehow avoided sneaking a look at Nick, knowing that would not aid my case. I decided to take inspiration from Kira and deflect.
“Asleep on the sofa seeing as you were in my bed,” I returned, adding a touch of indignation.
“No you weren’t,” she replied. I could see the truth in her eyes, a truth which I couldn’t exactly deny since as I had been anywhere but the sofa last night.
“Yeah, I was,” I said instead. I could gaslight too if I wanted.
“You weren’t on the sofa when I came downstairs,” she returned triumphantly.
“I don’t know, Kira,” I deflected, glancing up to see Dane and Dee coming down the stairs. I could hear Nick in the kitchen but I couldn’t bring myself to look at him. “Maybe I was in the bathroom.”
“Nope,” she returned. “I checked there too.”
I sighed exasperatedly. “I don’t know what you want me to say. Apart from the fact that whether or not I was on the sofa is really none of your concern.”
“Who were you with?” Kira pressed, certain she was onto the scent now. Dane and Dee stopped at the foot of the stairs, eyes moving between me and Kira in our ridiculous little standoff.
“I was not with any other girls if that’s what you’re getting at,” I said, deciding to fight with a sprinkling of truth.
“Was it Kat?”
“Kat?” I asked. “Who’s Kat?”
“Kat. From the beach party. The pretty one.”
“Rob’s Kat? Why would I be with Rob’s Kat? Unlike you, I don’t make passes at my friend’s love interests.”
“Who was it then?” Kira shrieked, on the verge of hysteria. I glanced up to see Dane’s eyes narrowing, a shrewd look on his face as he glanced between me and his brother where he stood in the kitchen. It didn’t take a genius to work out he was connecting the dots.
“Kira, there is no other girl,” I reiterated. “And I owe you no further explanation than that. You don’t get to come downstairs to see me at night and you don’t get to demand to know my whereabouts. I don’t want to go all Taylor Swift on you but please believe me when I say we are never getting back together.”
“And I told you I don’t consent,” she all but screamed at me. Dee stepped up to her best friend then, hand on her shoulder, trying to calm her down as Kira dissolved into loud tears.
Dane had yet to say anything but I had a growing suspicion that he knew, that he’d somehow worked out that those looks shared between me and his brother were a little friendlier than he might have realised.
I also knew better than to think I could rely on either of my friends to stand up for me. This entire discussion was ridiculous anyway. Why Kira thought she had any stake in what I did was beyond me, especially given that she had been the one to cheat repeatedly through our relationship. At least I had waited until we had broken up before moving on with someone new.
And no, I did not feel bad. Quite the opposite, in fact.
I sighed and stepped around Kira, making my way upstairs for the bathroom where I locked the door and breathed. I could hear heated voices downstairs and could only assume that Nick had finally stepped in to say his piece, just like the way I knew he would always go into bat for me.
I took ages in the shower, in absolutely no hurry to step back out into the house for another round of confrontations. I really hated confrontation. I could already feel all that stress I had managed to shed since being down here in Esperance creeping back up to claim my shoulders.
I ducked into my bedroom, relieved to find it vacant, and quickly pulled on a pair of black shorts and a green t-shirt. The kitchen was mercifully empty when I made my way downstairs, making myself a coffee before I ducked outside.
