CAYMAN SUMMER (Taken by Storm) (10 page)

As the boat makes the dash through the break in the reef, I notice somebody lying on the beach. Nobody much uses this beach. It’s kind of there for show. Everybody who comes to this resort dives all day long. We get closer, and I recognize Leesie.

I hustle, heaving up gear bins and empty tanks. The other boat got in before us, so there are lots of hands to help. Alex is strong as a guy. She hands up tanks and gear almost as fast as I do.

I climb out of the boat, pick up my gear bag, and dump it in the soak tank. I’ll deal with it after I check in with Leese. She hasn’t moved since I first saw her.

“Hey, mate.” Brock calls after me. “When do we get to meet your fiancé?”

I stop, turn back. “Now’s good. She’s down on the beach.”

“I’ll gather the mates, and we’ll present ourselves to your lady. See you in ten.”

“Cool.” I hustle down to the beach to warn her.

She’s sleeping in the sand wearing only that ugly T-shirt I bought her and the bikini bottoms. She looks way too sexy like that to meet her new apartment-mates.

“Hey, babe.” I nudge her with my toe.

She doesn’t stir.

I drop onto the sand on all fours hanging over her. “Babe.”

She opens one eye. “Hey.”

I sit next to her and speak low. “What’s with the wet T-shirt contest?”

She yawns and opens both eyes. “I couldn’t tie those stupid strings.”

“You could have left your bra on.”

“My sling covers everything.”

“Not everything. Here.” I hold out my towel. “Use this. The guys will be here in a few minutes. They want to meet you.”

“You don’t want them”—she glances down at what’s showing through her damp T-shirt—“to see that?”

“No.”

“You’re jealous?” She sits up and takes the towel.

“Protective. These guys seem nice—divers and all—but did you see the bathroom? Animals.”

“I can clean it up for you.”

“Don’t go near it. It’s toxic. You’ll end up back in the hospital.”

“I’ve cleaned up after guys back—” She closes her eyes tight and puts her hand over her mouth to hide her trembling lips.

I sit next to her, wrap my towel around both of us, loop my arms around her shoulders and pull her in tight. “It’s okay, babe. You can tell me.”

She shivers and puts her head on my shoulder. “I found his T-shirt mixed in with my stuff.” Her whisper is so quiet I can barely hear her.

I chafe her shoulders. “That’s why you’re down here half-naked?”

“I guess.” Her voice quivers. “I dropped it. Couldn’t pick it up. Isn’t that stupid? It’s still on the floor.”

I squeeze her. “Not stupid at all. I’ll go up and take care of it.”

A shudder runs through her body.

“Do you want to meet these guys later?”

“I already met one. Why didn’t you tell me there was a guy asleep in the other bedroom?”

“I had no idea. Was he nice?”

“Hardly.”

“Must be Seth. I guess he has a right to be grumpy. I heard Ethan and Cooper had to pull him out of some bar late last night. He must’ve been sleeping it off.” I start to get up. “I’ll go tell the others you’ll meet them later.”

She holds me next to her. “Too late. They’re here.”

I stand up, leave Leesie the towel. “Hey guys—this is Leesie.”

She stays sitting in the sand, waves and even manages a smile. “Sorry I can’t get up. Both ankles are sprained.” She tips her head towards her blue post-op boots cast off beside her.

Brock squats down in front of her. “I’m Brock. These goons are Gabriel, and my Commonwealth brothers, Ethan and Cooper.”

Gabriel acknowledges her with a nod and a flashy smile and trudges through the sand toward the condo building, but Ethan and Cooper sit down beside her. I take up a proprietary station behind her, slip a possessive arm around her waist.

She glances from side to side at Ethan and Cooper. “Where are you guys from?”

Cooper, who has bleached blonde hair and a perpetual burn, smiles and says, “Guess.”

Leesie squints her eyes. “You don’t have an accent.”

Ethan tips his head close to hers. “Aye, he does lass. Get him to say ‘eh.’”

“Canadian?”

Cooper’s face gets a little pinker. “Guilty. And Ethan’s a loud mouth Scot.”

He leans forward so he can glare at Cooper. “She was supposed to guess.”

Brock settles cross-legged in the wet sand in front of her. “That leaves me. I’ll give you a hint. I’m not here to get out of the gloom and cold like these other two blokes are.”

“Braggart.” Ethan flicks sand at him.

I lean forward and whisper in Leesie’s ear. “He called me ‘mate’ like a thousand times today on the boat.”

“That could be English? No. Australian.”

Brock laughs. “No fair, mate. You gave it away.”

“Sorry, dude.” My arms tighten around Leesie’s waist. “I don’t like to see my damsel in distress.”

Brock takes the hint. “Well,” he stands, “we’ll leave you two to it.” He drags Ethan and Cooper off their butts. “Let’s give the lovers some peace.

“See you upstairs, eh?” Cooper exaggerates his accent.

“Glad to have you aboard.” Ethan puts out his hand, and Leesie takes it. “Alex is that pleased to have another lass in the place.”

Leesie smiles and let’s go of his hand. “Thanks. We’ll be up soon.”

She watches them out of sight. I watch her. She plays with my fingers clasped around her waist.

I notice she put my ring on her finger. Cool, babe. That’s where it belongs. “What do you think?”

“I like the Commonwealth Brothers.”

I nod. “Divers.”

“What’s with Gabriel?”

“He’s a Latin playboy who will inherit half the known universe.”

“He is gorgeous.”

“I heard that.” I kiss the soft spot where her neck and shoulder meet.

She relaxes against me. “They are all a lot nicer than that guy upstairs.”

“Seth.”

“He’s gross.”

“All guys are gross after they’ve drunk themselves numb.”

She cranes her neck so she can see my face. “You’ll never do that will you?”

“I can only think of one thing that would make me do that.” I tip my forehead so it touches her head.

“What?”

“What do you think?” I release her waist and rub her shoulders.

“Me?” She shifts so she lying in my arms across my lap. “In Thailand”—she touches my face and her voice drops low—“when I accused you”—she turns her head and stares at the ocean like she’s trying to see me on the other side of the world—“what happened?”

I follow her gaze. “I became a work-a-holic.”

“I’m glad you had that job.”

“I should have blown it off—come right home and set you straight.”

She turns her face back to mine. “I should have believed you. Trusted you.”

I should never have stormed off in the first place. But freak, girl, you should have taken my ring. I feel echoes of how angry I was even now.

She kisses my neck. “I’m sorry.” She finds my lips. “Things would be so different if I’d believed you.”

“What do you mean?” I murmur against her mouth.

“Nothing.” Her lips are on mine for a long time. “Why didn’t I trust you?”

“I don’t know, babe.” I scoop her closer so I can kiss her better. “It doesn’t matter now.”

I’m starving, and I’ve got all those tanks to fill, but I can’t let go of her. I forget about why we’re here, her secrets about the accident, needing to take her back to her parents. All that matters are her lips. We make out with the ocean lapping at our feet and the sun setting behind us.

Alex interrupts us. “Sorry.” She holds out a paper plate with two sandwiches on it. “I’m not much of a cook.”

I grab a sandwich and take a big bite. “Leesie is.”

“Bonus.” Alex sits down by Leesie. “I knew I liked you.”

They start to jabber about clothes and stuff. I slip away, leaving the girls to get to know each other. I’ve got a date with forty empty scuba tanks and a big fat compressor.

As I walk down to the dock, I’m engulfed by a wave of intense emotion. It takes me a moment to figure out what it is.

Freak, I’m happy. It’s tinged with ache for Leesie and her grief and pain. But we’re together. She’s mine.

And nothing can change that.

Ever again.

Chapter 10

HOME

LEESIE HUNT / CHATSPOT LOG / 05/10 10 AM

Kimbo69 says:
Report. Report. How did the big move in go?

Leesie327 says:
I’m like Frankenstein living in The Bachelorette Mansion.

Kimbo69 says:
You mean his monster.

Leesie327 says:
Everybody’s a critic.

Kimbo69 says:
Your roomies are that hot?

Leesie327 says:
Alex isn’t hot—just like Michael said. But the guys? Droolworthy in the extreme.

Kimbo69 says:
Stuck up?

Leesie327 says:
Not really. Gabriel is a bit too good for the rest of the world, but when he walks by with no shirt on you don’t care.

Kimbo69 says:
You’re typing way faster than last time we chatted.

Leesie327 says:
Using two hands. Don’t tell my doctor.

Kimbo69 says:
Is Michael regretting moving you in with all those hunks?

Leesie327 says:
Did you actually use the world “hunk”? I thought we banned that word when we were Juniors.

Kimbo69 says:
If you’d give me more details, maybe I’d be more inspired.

Leesie327 says:
The guys didn’t look twice at me. Well, they took in the mess and looked away fast. Michael did seem kind of jealous. It’s cute. He got all romantic.

Kimbo69 says:
Mark would be dragging me out of there by my ponytail.

Leesie327 says:
Ouch. Don’t talk to me about ponytails.

Kimbo69 says:
Sorry. Lame one. How’s your head?

Leesie327 says:
Itchy. Prickly. I guess that’s a good sign. I’ve got five o’clock shadow all over it.

Kimbo69 says:
Back to the men folk…

Leesie327 says:
Alex is cool.

Kimbo69 says:
I don’t care about Alex.

Leesie327 says:
She helped me unpack then we stayed up until two in the morning talking.

Kimbo69 says:
You haven’t described in breathtaking detail the rest of the guys.

Leesie327 says:
You’ll never believe what I found on the bottom of my second suitcase.

Kimbo69 says:
A digital camera so you can send me pictures?

Leesie327 says:
Rough drafts of all the poems I wrote last year.

Kimbo69 says:
I don’t get it.

Leesie327 says:
Michael. He saved them from the wreck. Even scraps. Scribbled envelopes. There’s mud smudges and water stains on every page, but it’s dry. I think he ironed them. I would have lost it all, but he saved them.

Kimbo69 says:
I can’t believe it.

Leesie327 says:
I don’t deserve him. I should be alone, miserable, locked up somewhere banging my head on a wall, instead I’m with this beautiful boy who kisses me when I cry and saves my life every day.

Kimbo69 says:
Maybe he finally deserves you.

Leesie327 says:
I’d be so lost without him.

Kimbo69 says:
Your computer got smashed?

Leesie327 says:
Everything I took to school was in the back of the pickup.

Kimbo69 says:
Even your hideous desktop?

Leesie327 says:
I don’t know. It’s all gone.

Kimbo69 says:
I’ve got all the poems you sent me. Do you want me to email them?

Leesie327 says:
No. Maybe later. Keep them, okay? I’m not up to email. I’ve got three hundred unopened messages. All my mom screaming at me, probably. I don’t know who else.

Kimbo69 says:
Did you leave your chapbook from high school at home?

Leesie327 says:
Yeah. And the dive log Michael gave me. That’s safe.

Kimbo69 says:
Let me know if you change your mind. You should write. You can’t do anything else.

Leesie327 says:
I can’t focus. The pain pills they gave me aren’t helping much. Wears me out.

Kimbo69 says:
What are your plans?