Rough Waters (22 page)

It’s funny how dreams change, like how I came
here last summer hoping to escape a corporate life and be a free
spirit like my grandmother. I still want to frame Shark’s photos in
driftwood, but I could totally do that for my bedroom instead.
Being part of Drenaline Surf and Shark’s legacy is so much bigger
than any dream I ever had before.

“Yes,” I say immediately. “Completely
yes.”

“Thank God,” A.J. says. “I wasn’t going to
let you turn it down anyway. Can you guys all come to Joe’s
tomorrow night? He’s calling the Hooligans. He wanted us to all
have a say in Drenaline Surf’s future.”

Reed says he’ll be there no matter what.
Alston and I are bums, so of course we’ll be there. We have nowhere
else to be…ever. At least now I’ll have a full-time job doing
something I truly want to do. I just have to break the whole
no-college news to my parents. College will always be there later.
Drenaline Surf may not.

Back in my bedroom, I dig through my purse
for Topher’s envelope. A.J. got in the car too quickly for me to
have a chance to really read it. I lock the door before I settle in
to examine it. When I pull the contract out, another paper falls to
the floor.

The contract on top is dated last week with
Vin’s signature. I reach for the fallen paper, retrieve it, and see
that it’s also a Drenaline Surf contract – undated, with Jake
McAllister’s signature. The terms of the sponsorship read exactly
the same – the promotions, the payments, the little extras that
none of the other contracts have.

I’ve never seen a Drenaline Surf contract
that was longer than one year. Drenaline Surf isn’t Hurley or
Quiksilver. “We don’t sign on to sponsor a surfer long-term. You
never know what can happen.” That was Vin’s motto. He always played
it safe.

But Vin didn’t set these terms. It wasn’t his
decision to sign Topher for five years or to pay him more than any
other Drenaline Surf surfer. This was Shark’s doing – and this is
Vin honoring those wishes.

I flip to the second page of the contract,
which Topher hasn’t signed. A string of lime green sticky notes is
plastered to it. Vin’s handwriting is one of a kind.

Topher – I know you think I always tried to
hold you back. Maybe I did. Who knows. This was never my decision
to make. You were always meant to be Drenaline Surf’s first signed
surfer. You were just too young. Taylor was a test run for you.
That was Jake’s plan all along. This was his plan for you. It’s not
mine to decide. It’s not mine to hold back either. I think he
always knew that you’d be the next Shark McAllister. I was just
afraid you’d end up where he is. So just be careful. And please buy
a new truck with your sign-on money. Yours won’t hold out another
year. Trust me – I know these things. I’m proud of you, even if you
don’t believe it. Love you, Vin

My heart softens for just a moment. I put
aside all the anger, neglect, and hurt that I felt this summer from
Vin and try to remember him as he was before – when he was excited
about expanding Drenaline Surf and doing big things, when he’d lie
down and die for his brother, when he did all he could to keep
Shark’s dream alive and A.J. out of jail. Maybe the pressure of
Drenaline Surf and Shark’s legacy really did wear him down. And
maybe I can forgive him for all he did to me.

But I can’t let it go that he abandoned
Topher. That’s where all the anger and sadness stems from for me.
He left Topher, and that’s unforgivable.

Stone consumes my heart again, refusing to
let me feel another moment of weakness for Vin. He’s gone. The only
people I’ll focus on now are the ones who are still here, whether
that’s on land or in the Pacific Ocean. Right now, the only thing
that should be on my mind is Topher Brooks, and more importantly,
why he didn’t sign this contract.

My cell phone wakes me up the next morning.
The sunshine pours into the room and casts a blue glow through
Solomon. Topher waited until after the sun was up…barely.

“Good morning,” he says when I answer.

“Hey you,” I say, refusing to get out of my
bed. I turn over to avoid the sunlight. “I have a question. You
didn’t sign your contract.”

“Um, I know it’s early, but that’s not a
question,” Topher says through the earpiece. “And yeah, I know I
haven’t. I, um…don’t…I don’t know if I’m ready.”

Did he seriously just say he doesn’t know if
he’s ready? He’s been ready since the first time Shark put him on a
surfboard! This is his life. This is his dream. He was literally
handed everything he ever wanted. Miles says something in the
background about ‘better get fucking ready.’ I agree with
Miles.

“So, uh, you are coming to Joe’s tonight,
right? For the Drenaline Surf meeting thing?” Topher asks, his
words rushing together.

“Way to change the subject and avoid
conversation, Topher,” I say. I pull the blankets up because the
sun is still too bright. It’s also too early to argue with him.
I’ll let him have this one.

He laughs through the phone. “So that means
I’ll see you tonight?”

“See you tonight,” I say.

I toss the phone aside and force myself to
get up. I’m not a morning person, but once this PR job gets
underway, I’ll be following surfers around at the crack of dawn,
just like the day of the Sunrise Valley Tournament. It wasn’t so
bad then, though. It’s definitely better than I imagine any other
job being. And even if it’s not official, I’m starting my job right
now.

Dexter runs from the shoreline toward the
house when I step onto the back patio. The lights are off inside,
which means Colby is still out there amongst the waves. I let
myself in with A.J.’s key and entertain myself with SurfTube on
Colby’s flat screen for the next hour while I wait for his
return.

When he comes home, he lingers on the back
patio for a few minutes, taking off wet clothes and motioning
through the glass door for me to turn around and not look. I wonder
if he strips down on his back patio every morning. It’s a miracle
the surf paparazzi haven’t snapped it yet.

“What are you doing creeping in my house?” he
asks as he walks inside, a towel around his waist.

“I expected to see boxes and moving trucks,”
I say.

“Well, you can’t just sell a house and get it
out of your name overnight,” he says. “Some things are going to
take a little time. I’m not a miracle worker.”

He tells me he’s going to go put some clothes
on and disappears into the back bedroom. He comes back out wearing
board shorts and a Drenaline Surf T-shirt. Seriously? This guy was
meant for Drenaline Surf. He sits next to me.

“Did you hear about Vin?” I ask.

He nods. “A.J. told me about it. I know we
never really saw eye-to-eye, and he thought I was a fuck up, but I
didn’t want him to bail on the place. Or his brother, for that
matter. I never thought Vin would leave. Horn Island is in his
blood.”

“I know,” I say. “Drenaline Surf is going to
go through some major changes. You should come to the meeting at
Joe’s house tonight. In fact, you should talk to Joe about what’s
going on. He’s going to need all the help he can get with the
store, and he knows your intentions are honest.”

Colby hesitates for a moment, almost like
he’s considering it, but then he shakes his head. “I can’t, Haley.
I’ve ruined Drenaline Surf. I wanted to make Shark proud,” he says.
“I wanted him to have a store that had a solid reputation and a
surfer to back it up. I wish I was the same guy I was when I walked
into his store. I still had hope back then.”

I wish he could see that he
is
the
same guy who walked into Drenaline Surf three years ago. He has the
same heart, drive, and motivation that he had when he was eighteen,
homeless, and broke. I know Shark gave him a chance, and Shark’s
reputation helped build Colby’s career, but Colby earned everything
he has with his talent and his passion.

“You still have a chance to fix things,” I
tell him. “Come to the meeting tonight.”

He looks at me with sad eyes. “Haley, I have
to turn over a check before five o’clock today. My deadline is
before that meeting. I’m sorry, but this is honestly the best thing
I can do for Drenaline Surf at this point. If I show up, it’ll be
to hand over a resignation letter.”

With that, the Drenaline Surf family loses
another member, and my heart shatters. I don’t care what anyone
says. I’ll be Team Colby always.

The usual suspects are all at Joe’s house
when I arrive. I park next to Jace’s truck and peer through the
windows from a distance before getting out of my car. I feel a bit
awkward about having us all in one room since Reed said he and
Topher never really talked again after Shark’s death until that
party last summer. Then again, we were all there in the hospital
waiting room when Topher nearly drowned. Maybe it won’t be so
bad.

Reed parks behind me, so I wait for him and
Alston before going inside. I never thought I’d be so dependent on
my roommates, but Reed and Alston feel safe. A.J. feels safe. The
rest of my world? It’s in shambles.

My legs actually shake with nerves as we
ascend Joe’s steps to the front porch. The screen door is shut, but
the front door stands wide open. For this to be such a solemn
situation, everyone seems to be in good spirits. Topher, Miles, and
Kale stand in a huddle discussing what I’m sure is something to do
with Hurley. Their backs are turned to me, so I assume they don’t
notice our arrival.

A tiny brunette pops up over Miles’s
shoulder, facing us, and waves all too happily. I can’t help
cracking a smile. I wonder if Emily is even aware that Vin is gone.
She has to be. She dates Miles, and Miles knows everything in
Topher’s life. She should not be that happy, especially standing
with the oh-so-abandoned Topher.

I follow Reed and wedge myself between him
and Alston on a couch. Jace and Theo sit on two barstools close by.
Reed makes small talk with Jace about Strickland’s Boating and the
music store where Jace works. I wish A.J. was here already, but Mr.
Manager had to shut the store down.

I scan the room to see who we’re lacking.
Colby is a no-show. I don’t know why I thought he might be here.
He’s probably in a meeting with his parents and their lawyer or
filling out paperwork to change his name again. I just truly
believed, deep down in my lungs or somewhere, that he’d have this
moment of realization and speed toward Horn Island. It was a fool’s
hope to think it’d happen.

A tanned brunette stands off to the side
talking to Joe. I can’t quite place him just from seeing his
silhouette. I lean in toward Alston, hoping only he will hear
me.

“Who’s the guy talking to Joe?” I
whisper.

Alston looks at me. “Seriously? That’s
Logan,” he whispers back.

Idiotic is an understatement for how I feel.
Aside from the day I met him, I haven’t seen him so up close and
personal. I kept a distance from him at Drenaline Surf’s
celebration sale, for Topher’s sake, and I completely avoided him
at the Sunrise Valley Tournament. Honestly, I don’t even know Logan
Riley, and I’m about to start managing his career. That’s one hell
of a note.

Once A.J. arrives, everyone gathers around,
and we play musical chairs because Miles has to be in the middle of
Emily and Topher, and A.J. demanded that I sit by him. We’re worse
than preschoolers. Joe asks if everyone is here, and aside from
Colby, we are. I almost ask him to wait a little longer, but I know
Colby Taylor isn’t going to show.

“Well, we all know why we’re here,” Joe
begins. “I don’t want us to dwell on what we’ve lost, though.
Tonight, I want us to look ahead and see where we want to go. We’re
all a part of this, which is why you’re here tonight.”

I don’t know how he does it. His only son is
ashes in the ocean, his son’s best friend just abandoned us, and
his son’s protégé doesn’t know if he’s ready to sign a Drenaline
Surf contract. Yet Joe stands before us, speaking wisely and with
motivation. It’s like he’s been here before.

“Let’s just dive into this,” Joe says. “We
were looking at opening a second location between the store and
Sunrise Valley. This will require a lot of training, hiring new
employees, and a lot more paperwork. I want to know what you guys
think – should we move forward or hold off for now?”

As much as I want to glance around and read
everyone’s faces, I don’t move. Instead, I wait for someone else to
speak up first. I’m relieved when someone does.

“Let’s do it,” Jace says. “The music store is
going under, and I’m about to be out of a job. I’ll take it on. If
you think about it, A.J., Topher, and Haley could run a store on
their own. We have a training team. I can step into Vin’s
position.”

I almost laugh because that night at Toledo’s
Bistro and Lounge, I entertained the idea of Jace running the
store. And here he is, standing in Joe’s living room in ripped
jeans and a Sebastian’s Shadow T-shirt, offering to run two
stores.

“A.J. can train me, and I can manage the
other store,” Alston says, catching me and my other two roommates
off guard. He turns to A.J. “No offense, dude, but if you can do
it, then I know I can.”

A.J. flips him off but laughs. I hope this
doesn’t mean Alston will move out. Yeah, the silences with him are
awkward, and he’s an outright diva, but he’s my fashion consultant
who breaks down guy code and deciphers messages for me. I sort of
need him to stay in our household.

As Joe talks about plans for the second
store, lights sweep across the room. I don’t even look outside. I
know whose truck that is. Colby is here. It takes everything me in
to stay planted like an anchor and not run to him with open arms,
thanking him for showing up. He slips in the door, motions for Joe
not to stop his meeting, and sits away from us at the dining room
table.