Chapter Nine
The next morning wasnothing but blue sky and heat rising off the black rock cliffs.The island smelled of salt, hibiscus, and heat.Black Tide decided to take the morning off to do something none of them were exactly good at—teach Drew how to surf.Every one of them could paddle into a heavy set, drop in clean, stall deep in the barrel, and ride it all the way until the wave spat them out onto the sand, but teach agromhow to surf?Not really their strong suit.
Before they took to the water, they each viewed as their second home, Drew took a moment to look at the men who had somehow become his family.Kael, solid and commanding, his dark hair pulled back and those storm-colored eyes always scanning the horizon.Niko, the quiet one with the fighter’s body and a mind that never stopped calculating, tattoos running up his neck like pieces of art.Tane, broad-shouldered and calm, the team’s heart as much as its hammer, the kind of man who spoke more with a look than words.Keanu, all mischief and confidence, his grin as sharp as the shark inked on his skin, the spark that lit the group’s laughter.And Luca—the youngest, their tech genius, lean and fast, eyes always bright with too much caffeine and too many ideas.
Together, they looked less like assassins and more like brothers born of the same tide, bound by unspoken loyalty and the kind of affection only earned in the dark.
They’d driven down to a wide, sandy stretch where the reef broke the waves into long, gentle runs.Kael stood beside him, board under one arm, hair tied back, shoulders bronzed and slick with salt air.The rest of the team—Niko, Tane, Keanu, and Luca—looked like they’d stepped straight out of a tourist fantasy—sun-browned, muscle cut, and laughing like they owned the ocean.
Drew couldn’t help grinning.“You all realize you look like an ad for a protein powder company, right?”
Niko smirked, running a hand through his dark hair.“What can I say, bro?We’re genetically superior.”
Tane chuckled low in his chest.“Genetics has nothing to do with it.Ocean raises you different.”
Keanu flashed his shark-tooth grin, tattoos twisting over his biceps.“You gonna stand there talking,haole, or you gonna learn to surf?”
“Foreigner, huh?”Drew shot back.“Guess I deserve that.”
Kael laughed, clapping him on the back.“Come on,ipo.We’ll start you small.Promise not to drown you on your first day.”
They waded out through knee-deep surf, boards bumping against their legs.Drew tried to mimic their easy balance, but every step reminded him how landlocked his life had been.The first wave sent him sprawling.The second dumped him face-first into salt and foam.By the third, even Kael was laughing too hard to give him any direction whatsoever.
“Keep your feet under you, Hawkins!”Luca called out from his board, effortlessly coasting across the whitewash.“You’re supposed to ride the wave, not wrestle it!”
“Pretty sure the wave started it,” Drew coughed, pushing his hair out of his face.
Niko paddled past and slapped his board.“Try again.You’re overthinking it.You move with the water, not against it.”
“Easy for you to say,” Drew muttered.“You make it look as easy as breathing.”
Kael paddled back beside him, expression soft with amusement.“He’s right, though.Stop fighting it.You don’t have to control everything, Drew.”
Drew shot him a crooked smile.“You trying to make this a metaphor for life?”
Kael’s grin deepened.“If the board fits.”
By midday, Drew managed to stand for all of five glorious seconds before eating water again.The cheer that went up from the guys could’ve been heard halfway across the island.
