“This place is special.”
A bitter laugh escaped me before I could stop it. “Crescent Cove? Special?”
He popped his head up, and ran his thumb over my cheek, then my lower lip. “It made you, didn’t it?”
I inhaled softly, and he planted a gentle kiss on mylips before rolling onto his back, hands behind his head. “Well, surf season isn’t year-round. I’ll be here in the off-season, and maybe I can tempt you out to me. I know I’m not quite as delicious as Lupe’s mole, but I bet I could get you out of here at least a few times a year. Hell, maybe we could get you into some open tournaments. The AVP and WSL share a lot of facilities—we could shack up during the season.” He was grinning again.
“What, like it’s just that easy? You surf, I’ll just magically break into volleyball as a nobody, and?—”
“Hey, cut that out.” He gripped my chin. “You are Selena fucking Torres, recent TikTok star and small business owner. You are not nobody. You’re a comeback story waiting to happen, and I have it on good authority people love those.”
“Chase, nothing in my life has been that easy.”
“Have you ever let it?”
He gazed down at me, then swooped his arm around me and pulled me in so I had no choice but to cuddle against his chest.
“You’re a fighter, Selena. You’ve fought for this beach, this town, even those damn turtles. And god, I love that fight in you, baby. But don’t forget to fight for what you want too. To let good things happen to you. You deserve them.”
He really did see me, didn’t he?
“And if I don’t know how to do that?”
“Have you ever tried?”
No. I always chosen the difficult path, some sort of inborn martyr complex. But maybe, just maybe, I could choose what I wanted this time. Maybe I could stop seeking approval from someone who had clearly never cared and take what I wanted.
“Besides, I’m in your life, and I’m extremely easy.” That stupid, fucking gorgeous grin.
“Pendejo.” I kissed him and rolled into his side, letting his warmth lull me into a deep,satisfied sleep.
I wokethe next morning in a warm haze. No alarm, no regrets, no ache between my ribs reminding me of everything I was failing to be. Just a deeper, more pleasant ache.
Chase was still there.
That undid me a little.
He was on his stomach with one arm thrown across me, dead asleep. His guard was down, the carefully arranged El Tiburón face nowhere to be seen. Just the man, his bleached hair mussed, a healing split lip, and a tattoo I now knew every detail of.
He’d stayed.
He’d stayed, like it was easy, like it was obvious, and the morning light made everything in my apartment look better than it was, including the situation I was very much in.
I let myself have it.
Five whole minutes of being happy without fighting it.
I lay there and listened to him breathe, watched his eyelashes flutter, and didn’t think about anything else.
Then I got up, because I had a shack to open and a seagull pecking at my window.
“Pervert,” I whispered at El Soldado, and he squawked.
Chase groaned, and I leaned over him, kissing his cheek.
“Sleep. I have to open the shack.”
He grunted but grabbed my face with his eyes still closed, kissed me once, then rolled over and immediately fell back asleep.
