“Can you give him the phone, please?”
I grit my teeth. “Yeah. Hold on.” I shove my phone at Ry. “She wants to talk with you.”
He takes it and walks down the hallway to his bedroom. “Hey, I’m here,” is all I catch before he shuts his bedroom door.
“Motherfucker,” I growl.
“Jay, let it go,” Julien tells me.
“Easy for you to say. You’ve gotten to spend time with her already. That’s all I want, Jules - to spend some time with her. I don’t care where or when or how. I just miss her so goddamn much.”
“I know. You know I know, and I get it. Time and patience, brother.”
Ryder walks back in and hands me my phone. “What’s the verdict?”
“She suggested we all meet up for lunch later.”
“What the fuck, Ry?”
“Like I said, not my call. You don’t like it, take it up with her.” He knows I won’t do that.
“Fine. Where and what time?”
“Around noon at Seaside Grille on Pier 3.” Ry grabs his bag and cooler. “Jay, I know this sucks, but if all of us are going to be part of her life right now, we can’t push, and we have to defer to what she wants, not what we want. It’ll get better,” he promises and cuffs me on the shoulder before walking out.
Elizabeth
If anyone dares to tell you that standing up on a board in water is easy, they need to have some sense smacked into them. I think I’ve fallen off every single time I’ve gotten on this stupid thing. Ryder had me first practice with the surfboard on the dry beach. I had to go from lying on my stomach to popping up on two legs over and over again before he would let me take it into the water. I understand why now because this shit is hard to do.
“You’re doing fine, Elizabeth. You’re trying too hard. Just relax and let it happen.”
“Easy for you to say,” I grumble back. “I think I need a break.”
I belly flop onto the board and splay my arms out wide. Ryder pulls me out a little further where the swells aren’t so high, and we bob gently up and down in a gentle rocking motion.
“Sit up for me and straddle the board,” he instructs, and I do as he says. I don’t know how he accomplishes it, but he gets on the board facing me so our knees touch. I become mesmerized by how the sun glints off the water dripping from his hair and face. He’s wearing a swim shirt that fits his chest like a glove and makes me drool a little. I’m not so sure that all the sun I’ve gotten today is the reason I’m feeling hot and flustered right now.
“We’ll need to head on in soon to meet the guys for lunch.”
“It’s that time already? I feel like we just got here.” I also want to spend more time with him. Just the two of us.
“I thought you might want to take a walk down the beach before we meet up with them.”
“How do you know me so well? Wait, that was a stupid question. Of course, you know me well,” I laugh causing Ryder’s eyes to sparkle like smoky quartz crystals.
“I hope this wasn’t too bad for you.”
“I may have grumbled through most of it, but like yesterday, I have fun with you no matter what we’re doing.”
“Good to know. I’ll take you to a monster truck show one day.”
“I insist on a greased pig race,” I counter.
“Sumo wrestling.”
“Golf.”
“What’s wrong with golf?” he asks. “You played putt-putt yesterday, did you not?”
