“It can be. Especially if we don’t fall in.”
I rock back on my heels. So far, this has been more of a fall-down kind of day. “I don’t know.”
“Okay, how about this, then? We divide the favors evenly. If I finish mine first, we paddleboard. If you finish yours first, you pick the activity.”
“Interesting.” I’m better than he is at assembling the favors. “But if I fall in, I’ll have to change and deal with my wet hair.”
“You think I won’t?” He points at his dark-brown curls.
“You know what you’re doing. You won’t fall in.”
“Okay, fine. If I win, we paddleboard, and you don’t have to stand up if you don’t want to. You can sit on the board.”
“Okay, fine,” I mimic. “But it doesn’t matter because I’m going to win. And the wedding favors have to look good. We can’t just throw them together.”
He puts out a hand. “It’s on.”
We shake, he retrieves the two boxes from the golf cart, and we sit down to begin.
“Don’t you want to know which activity I’ll pick if I win?”
“Nope. Moot point. I’m going to win.”
Sadly, he’s right.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
MORGAN
The paddleboard wobbles as I try to step onto it from the shallows near the beach. Below me, Lake Eufaula’s reddish water looks ready to swallow me up. I double-check the buckles on my life jacket.
“Just have a seat like you’re on a kayak.” Will hands me the two-sided paddle, and I flop down with all the grace of my uncle James, trying to climb up on his tanning mat in the pool.
Once I’m settled, Will shoves the board, and I float out onto the water. I’m expecting immediate capsize, but I feel steady. Very steady. How does a blow-up board feel this sturdy? I run my hand over the surface. It’s rigid and unyielding, not at all like a pool float.
Will must see my surprise because he says, “Told you it wasn’t that hard.”
He’s right—again—though I’m not about to tell him so. It’s almost like I’m sitting on the ground. Since the beach is nestled on a narrow stretch of lake—a jagged finger of the larger body of water—it’s well protected from the Oklahoma wind, and the water is still.
“Come on. Let’s go this way.” Will is already standing, paddle in hand, perfectly balanced. He makes it look as easy as walking down the street. Meanwhile, I’m sitting crisscross applesauce like a first grader.
As he glides away, I dip my paddle in, pulling myself along on one side and then the other back and forth until I’m keeping pace.
A smile crosses my lips as the breeze ruffles my hair. This is actually…fun.
I follow him along the shore beyond the beach. Turtles dive off rocks and fallen logs, tiny fish swim below the surface, and birds chirp from the trees. This is a whole new way of exploring the world. A laugh burst loose, and I whisper, “I love this.”
We point out bits of hidden nature as we float along until Will leads me away from the shore. He turns his board to face me, a challenge hardening his jaw. “You ready to stand up?”
“Um. I don’t know.” Am I? I mean, it doesn’t seem hard.
“You can always sit back down if you don’t like it.” He sits like me and then maneuvers onto his knees. “Start like this.”
“It’s hard to take you seriously when you’re wearing swim trunks covered with multicolored catfish.”
He smirks. “My options were limited. Stop stalling.”
“Okay.” Deep breath. I steady myself and move onto my knees.
