Page 20 of Sweet Chaos
“Turns out he’d rather sell it to a punk like me than let it fall into the wrong hands.”
“I own that entire strip of beachfront.”
ExceptThe Surf Lodge. “Your point?”
“My point is that I could buy and sell you ten times over, you little shit. I still hold the power and you’d be smart to remember that. I’ve heard about your plans for it. The last thing this town needs is to attract more beach bums and degenerates. If you think you’ve won this battle, you’ll be sorely disappointed.”
“I didn’t realize we were at war. Appreciate the heads up. I’ll be sure to stock up on ammunition. Nice chat.” I cut the call and looked over at Cruz.
“Is that why you bought The Surf Lodge? To piss him off?”
“No. But it’s an added bonus.”
Cruz’s eyes narrowed. “What exactly are your plans for it?”
“I’m turning it into a surf hostel. I’m refurbishing, not bulldozing which was what Woods wanted to do. He was going to build a boutique hotel.”
“That would turn a higher profit. It’s the savvier business decision,” he said, playing devil’s advocate.
“It’s not all about money. This is a surfing community. It’s one of the best parts about this town and that property is within walking or cycling distance of fourteen breaks. One of which is world-class. This town doesn’t need another overpriced boutique hotel or fancy shop that sells their shit at ten times what it’s worth.”
He held up his hands. “You don’t have to sell it to me. You know how I feel about this snooty town. But you have an enemy now and he won’t make things easy.” He was right about that. Simon Woods had never made anything easy on me, had hated me from day one, and even now that Sienna and I weren’t together he’d still find reasons to hate me. Now, whether I liked it or not, I’d started a turf war. Which was ridiculous. The Surf Lodge was nothing to Simon Woods. A mere drop in the ocean compared to all the property he owned in this town.
We were interrupted by a knock on the door. Three knocks, to be precise. Melanie poked her head in. “There’s a delivery for you. Six boxes. Where do you want them?”
I stood up from my desk. “I’ll take care of it.”
Speaking of mistakes, I might have gone overboard on Starlet’s birthday present. But if her dickhead father was too much of a pompous ass to recognize how talented she was, I felt it was almost my duty to help her out. Yeah, that was me. Mr. Do-Good. It had absolutely nothing to do with wanting to get into her pants.
Jesus. I really was an asshole.
9
Scarlett
As far as winter beach parties went, this one was awesome. Bonfires blazed up and down the beach, protected from the wind by the bluffs. The red-orange flames danced across the dark sky and heated my skin. I felt all warm and fuzzy inside, the edges all blurred. Our mellow, chilled-out party of a dozen friends had grown bigger as word spread and friends of friends, half of whom I’d never met, turned up with six-packs and good vibes.
Nic and I were lost in the music blasting from portable speakers, our hair flying around us, bodies gyrating to the beat, arms akimbo.
“I love you,” Nic shouted over the music and the sound of the waves crashing against the shore.
“I love you too.” We launched ourselves into each other’s arms and hugged each other tight, holding on to keep our balance.
“Woo hoo,” I shouted.
We punched the sky and leaped into the air, body slamming into each other.
“Oh shit, that hurt.”
We doubled over and laughed like loons before we recovered and went back to dancing like nobody was watching. We were twenty-one, young and free, buzzed on tequila shots and beer. It didn’t get much better than this.
Ollie’s laughter reached my ears and it put a smile on my face. He was sitting in a circle of friends farther down the beach, his arm slung around a blonde’s shoulders, a beer in his hand. I felt no jealousy, I only wanted him to be happy. Beck, the lead singer, had a girl in his lap and his arm around another one. And Gavin, their bass player, was gesticulating with his hands, his face animated, most likely telling one of his outrageous stories that had the group howling with laughter.
Life was good, Ollie and I were finding our way back to normal, and tonight I didn’t have a care in the world.
Nic’s eyes widened then her lips curved into a mischievous grin. I didn’t need to turn around to confirm who she was looking at. I swear, the air around me shifted and the particles rearranged themselves. I knew it was him, and only a moment later he made his presence known. Arms wrapped around me from behind, and he pulled my body flush against his as if we’d done this song and dance a million times and it was perfectly natural for him to greet me this way. His heat enveloped me, and I melted into him, my hips swaying to the beat of Parra For Cuva’s “Wicked Games.” The perfect song for the way I felt about him. Hadalwaysfelt about him.
His lips found the sensitive spot on my neck—brushing, not kissing—and my heart galloped, my breath seized in my lungs. “Happy Birthday, Starlet.”
