And then suddenly, behind a pack of college-aged revelers, there she was. I skidded to a halt, panting and hardly believing my eyes. Time stopped for the briefest of moments as I gaped at the woman before me. In my memory she was still a girl – young, vulnerable, and mine. I could still see Sam in there, but the years had changed her. Not only did her beauty stop me in my tracks, but the way she held herself with such poise and conviction told me all I needed to know. Unlike me, Sam hadn’t wasted any time. The girl I’d left on the beach that day to fend for herself had moved forward with life, attacking it with the same commitment she’d invested in me all those years ago.
Would she be forgiving? Would she understand that my path to redemption had led me here? Or would she hold my past drug addiction against me? Sam had every reason to be angry with me. First I’d abandoned her, and then I’d never tried to find her. But if she knew the reason why, would she give me a second chance? I’d always intended to come for her, but I had to be a person she’d want back in her life. And now that I was, there was nothing to hold us back – as long as her heart had spent the years beating for me too.
Absorbing the gravity of our reunion, we were rendered speechless. The only sound penetrating our bubble was that of Shannon clapping her excitement. I would eventually acknowledge her, but right now I was a racehorse with blinders on and Sam was my finish line. I stepped forward, closing the gap between us. She swallowed hard, her lashes fluttering in that shy dance I remembered so well. And as she bit down on her lower lip, I was instantly reminded of that awkward girl from the library, the one I’d fallen hopelessly in love with. She might be an accomplished woman now, but my Sam – oh, yeah, she was still there.
“Look at you,” I marveled, my greedy eyes trailing every inch of her. If Sam had a guy in her life, he would definitely not appreciate what I was thinking, but I didn’t care. I wanted her, and I was done wasting time.
One more step was all it took to feel her warm breath on my skin. My fingers sank into her hair as I gripped the back of her neck and, so sure of our connection, pulled her into me. Lifting her gaze, she searched my eyes, and that’s when I saw it. Against all odds and after all this time, there was still love in Sam’s eyes. My lips parted. She shook. And I hovered, wanting the kiss but resisting only because once I took it, I could never have the second ‘first kiss’ with her ever again.
Surrounded by high-octane chaos, the world around us fell away as those precious seconds ticked by. Her trembling hands covered mine. There was no hesitation on her part. She didn’t care about the meaning behind the moment. Sam was all quaking lust and dizzying passion, and I would do anything to see this desire every day for the rest of our lives. She brought my lips to hers, tenderly at first, but as if a jolt of electricity went crackling through me, I awoke. Gripping her tighter, my mouth braced against hers, moving harder, deeper, and with the urgency our years apart required. Her fingers tangled into my hair, trapping me against her hot tongue, and as it slid into my mouth, not even the mega-watt speakers could drown out the crazy loud beating of our reunited hearts.
27
Samantha: Rediscovering Us
Everything fell away in that moment, as if time had sped in reverse and we were back in the Surfmobile, two kids – young, naïve, and in love – discovering each other for the first time. It felt so familiar and safe. Wild tremors surged through me, straight to the place between my legs that longed for his return. Oh, my god. How could I have forgotten what lust felt like? The yearning giddiness that swam around inside my belly like a ravenous vortex. All that time I’d wasted trying to convince myself that I felt something with other men, and I’d simply forgotten. It couldn’t be forced; lust just was.
Suddenly everything made perfect sense. My mind had been made up long ago. The reason I hadn’t bonded with other men wasn’t because I was cold and heartless, as Preston had suggested, but because my heart had already pledged its allegiance to another. Due to circumstances beyond our control, Keith and I had been put on pause. Only now, six years later, were we finally in a place where we could push play on our relationship once more.
Hooking my arm around his neck, I gripped the back of his head and dragged him deeper into the kiss. Primal, instinctive, possessive, our tongues made a play for dominance. I moaned as his arm tightened around my back, pulling me flush against his heated body, and I knew I’d follow him anywhere he was willing to take me.
I was the one to finally break the kiss, not because I’d had my fill but because I needed to see him, touch him, experience him. Still clinging to his body, I leaned back to take him in – all of him. And what I saw sent the second wave of desire to skipping through me. Keith, bless him, he was still a looker. My eyes skimmed over that heartthrob face and I was reminded of why I’d so eagerly given myself over to him. Handsome in a bohemian sort of way, Keith wasn’t classically gorgeous, like Preston, but he made up for it with a sexiness that reached up into another galaxy. I was squirming with desire for him. How stupid I’d been, thinking I could replicate him with other surfer dudes. It was like trying to pass margarine off as butter. A substitute could never measure up to the original – and Keith, with all his finger-licking goodness, was the real goddamn deal.
I allowed my fingers to wander over his tatted muscles that were showcased nicely in the form-fitting t-shirt that clung to him in all the right places. I felt like a kindergartener, finger painting on a living, breathing canvas. He was no longer the skinny guy I remembered. Adult Keith was taller and more strapping. The patches of haphazard scruff had been replaced with a closely trimmed stubble that looked downright sinful paired with the wavy hair tucked behind his ears. I noted its shorter length, hanging just past his jawline instead of all the way to his shoulders.
He was so familiar, yet at the same time, there was something different about him… something I couldn’t quite put a finger on until he bowed down and dipped his head into my shoulder. Seaweed! Why didn’t he smell like it? And for that matter, where were the telltale streaks of blond in his mane? There was no way to avoid the bleached hair that came with prolonged hours spent in the ocean. Could it be possible? Had the quintessential beach boy given up surfing?
Sensing the shift in my body language, Keith lifted his head and gave me a questioning look. I gently ran my hands through his hair, sad that whatever had happened in his life had taken him away from the one thing that made him feel alive. And as my fingers glided down his handsome face, they came to a stop at his collarbone where my agate necklace… was not hanging. Had he lost it? Or worse, had it meant so little to him that he’d thrown it in some drawer and forgotten about it? I had to swallow back the accusations threatening to put a damper on our reunion. Keith didn’t owe me anything. The necklace had been a gift, and whether he wore it or not was his choice, not mine. Still, it felt strangely like a betrayal.
My eyes drifted back up, connecting with Keith’s. He knew exactly what I was thinking, and his expression was nothing but apologetic. Whatever the reason for its absence, I felt certain Keith had been affected by the loss, and bringing it up would cast a somber cloud over this joyous moment.
“Sam, I…”
“Not now,” I whispered.
Hooking my arms around his waist, I tucked into his snug embrace, enjoying the feel of his hair grazing over my neck.
Keith’s low, contrite voice hummed for my ears only. “I promise it’s not what you think.”
“I don’t care,” I said, squeezing him tighter. And truly, I didn’t. As long as he was happy, that was all that mattered.
“I missed you so much, babe,” he whispered. “You have no idea.”
With Keith, no games were required, and I felt free to tell it like it was. “I have some idea.”
Tipping my chin up until we were staring into each other’s eyes, he shot off a volley of questions. “Where have you been?Howhave you been? Are you happy?”
“I’m happy, but even happier now that I’m with you. And I moved back to town last year after earning a degree in marine biology.”
Eyes widening, Keith took a step back. “You livehere?In town?”
“I do.”
“How… how haven’t we reconnected?”
“I don’t know, I surf at our spot all the time, but I’ve never seen you. I assumed you’d moved away.”
There was no mistaking the wince that crept across his face. What was he not saying? “I’m proud of you, Sam. I knew you’d make something of yourself. You were always destined for greatness.”
