He hums. “Anyway, I got talking to some guys. They were working on a site and a man down. When they heard I was getting out of surfing, they asked if I wanted to help out, and I did, if only to afford to move out since I lost all my sponsorships. I learned on the job, and I liked the work. Then I met Elias, Knox, and Wyatt, and enjoyed doing the job with them so much we stuck together.”
“You don’t miss surfing?”
He shrugs. “Sometimes. When I miss the waves, I jump on a plane and head to Malibu for the weekend. I get to hang out with my family and surf my little heart out.”
I laugh.
With a grin, he continues, “Then I get back on the plane and come back to the guys who feel like family. Means I get to keep surfing for when I want to have fun, which is all I really wanted it to be. I’ll take you sometime. We usually all go for a week between jobs and make a vacation out of it.”
Wary of the deep sea and being eaten by a shark, I wrinkle my nose. “I don’t know. The open sea sounds kind of scary.”
“It’s not as terrifying as it sounds. Even Wyatt gets on a board, and he hates water. The best parts are sometimes just sitting on your board in the middle of the ocean, the beach miles away. You can talk shit or just think. It’s peaceful as hell.”
“I’ll think about it.”
With the kitchen clean and Hunter studying the contents of the refrigerator, deciding what we might need from the grocery store, I’m heading upstairs to bed when I pass the living room. Knox must still be out on his run, and Wyatt is in his workshop because Elias is alone, playing his game with the volume down low.
The moment I pause in the doorway, he switches the game off the big screen and gets to his feet, shooting me an apologetic glance. “Sorry. You want to watch TV or a movie?”
We’re all early-to-bed types since we’re all up around six most days, so at nine, it’s too late for a movie. I’m not interested in watching TV either.
When he starts putting his PlayStation 5 controller away, I ask, “What are you doing?”
He glances at me. “Putting these away for the night.”
I get the feeling it won’t be just for tonight. He scared me, Hunter let him know it, and I’ll be surprised if he plays his computer game in the living room again.
I didn’t come here for this, but I walk into the room, skirting the large green fabric couches to get to him. “Can I play?”
He stops putting the second of the white and black controllers away to gape up at me.
A smile tugs at my lips. “Can you teach me how to play?”
His expression turns wary. “It’s kind of violent.”
“I’m twenty-six.”
“It’s less about your age and more about…” He winces.
“My violent past?” I guess from his tortured expression.
He scratches the back of his neck, wrinkling his nose as he avoids my gaze. “Yeah, actually.”
Aware Hunter is quietly watching from the living room doorway, I hold my hand out for the controller. “You said it helped you decompress from work. It might be fun.”
He gives me a thoughtful look, then nods. From his frown, he’s not convinced this is a good idea. “Okay. Here.”
He hands me the controller and pulls the second from the black wood entertainment center, and turns the PlayStation back on. As he gets the game set up, I take a seat on the couch and study the controls I have no idea how to use.
“It’s graphic,” Elias warns, taking the seat beside me as the game loads. “And there’s lots of blood and occasional limbs flying.” He pauses. “Actually, more than the occasional limb flying around. We should play another?—”
I grab his arm when he moves to get up, recognizing why he’s so reluctant for me to play. “Thanks for wanting to protect me, but I’ll be okay.”
“I’ll play for a bit and show you what to do, then you can have a go, okay?” he says.
“Okay.”
Hunter is leaning on the couch behind me when the game starts.
