by Erin Trejo
Wiley huffs and stands, dragging me to my feet. He stands in front of me, his hands on his hips. We stare at each other when he shoves against my shoulders.
“Push yourself!” He shoves me back a few steps as I watch him, stunned that he’s doing this to me.
“Stop, Wiley.”
“Put some fucking muscle and faith into yourself, Saylor!”
Another shove and I stumble slightly.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” I scream at him, taking a step away. Wiley grabs my shoulders, shaking me roughly.
“You’re being a coward! You’re letting them get to your head, and that isn’t you, Saylor. That water, everything about it is you!” The harder he shakes me, the more I become pissed. My hands clench at my sides as memories of what they did to me rush behind my eyes. The hits, the kicks, the stomps. I shove Wiley back a step before he’s back on me again.
“Enough!”
I hear the bark of Triton’s voice before I look over my shoulder and see him stalking toward us. His eyes blaze with fire and his hands clench at his sides. Surprisingly he’s not dressed in his usual jeans and cut. He’s wearing swim shorts and a wife beater that shows off every bulging muscle. My eyes trace every curve and swell as he stalks toward us. He steps between Wiley and me, and I gasp.
“You’ve done enough. Take a walk, asshole, and if I ever see you touch her like that again, I will rip your fuckin’ hands off,” Triton warns him.
Wiley huffs out a laugh before looking at me. “Don’t waste your life, Saylor. You could be more,” he says before walking away.
Triton turns to look at me, his eyes wild. “He’s right and you’re gonna fuckin’ start trainin’ again. I’m sick of you sulkin’ around and feelin’ sorry for yourself.”
“I don’t feel sorry for myself, Triton. I’m trying but my shoulder isn’t letting me.”
“You’re full of shit.” Without a chance to say another word, Triton grabs me, lifting me in the air and carrying me toward the water.
“What are you doing?” I scream as I try to break away from his grasp. Kicking and flailing get me nowhere. Triton stomps through the water, never breaking his stride.
“You’re gonna fuckin’ swim and regain your strength,” he says before tossing me into the water. As soon as I resurface, I glare at him.
“What the hell is your problem?” I scream loudly while he looks at me.
“You’re my goddamn problem!”
“Then leave me alone!”
“No,” he growls, staring me down as the waves slam into us.
“What do you want from me, Triton?” I yell, staring him in the eyes.
“You have come too far, Say. You’ve done too much in your life to throw it away,” he says, softening his tone.
“I’m not throwing it away. I can’t do it, Triton. What if I place? What if I win? Then what? Huh? I’m fucked! Do you think Marshall won’t come after me again?” Tears form, clouding in my vision.
“I told you I will handle him! I’m fuckin’ tired of you doubtin’ me too, Say. When I say I got you, I mean it.”
“You kill, Triton! That’s what you’re going to do, isn’t it?” Something slams into my chest. Realization. His reality is nothing like mine and I’ve danced in his darkness since the day I met him, but he’s never let me down. And the truth is he is a killer.
“You figurin’ it out, Saylor? Why we don’t work?” This is what he’s been trying to tell me since the day we met. Every time he says he’s no good for me, he meant it.
“I love you, Triton.” The tears fall as everything slams into me. I can’t believe that I’m actually saying it, but I love him. I don’t want to lose him. Surfing isn’t worth losing love.
“I love you too, Saylor, and that’s why I push you. I know what you’re destined for. I always have, but the more I see you lookin’ defeated the more I know you have to do this. You have to train, Say. You have to get on that goddamn surf board and show them what you’re made of.”
Tears slip down my cheeks as Triton moves closer. He lifts me in his arms, wrapping me in his embrace, his lips hovering near my ear. “This is your life. This water, fuck, Say. You were meant to be a part of it. You were born to do this. Promise me that you’ll train. Even through the pain. That shit is temporary. Your success is permanent. You have a future ahead of you that you’ve always dreamt of. Don’t fuckin’ throw that away because of fear.” His words sing to me. They wrap me up and protect me.
“You know what happens if I win,” I cry softly on his shoulder. He holds me tighter.
“I know, but I’d rather watch you fly than watch you fall, Say. Don’t you get that?” His lips move over my skin as the water slams into us. Triton holds us steady with his massive body, his warmth seeping into my pores.
“Tell me you’ll do this, Say,” he practically begs me.
“Triton, I don’t want to lose you. And Piper? God, I love that girl.” I cry harder.
“You aren’t losin’ anyone. We’ll still be here. Piper loves you too, Say, and I know she wants what’s best for you. She’s proud of you and it would give her somethin’ else to look forward to seein’ you go pro. She idolizes you.”
My heart pounds in my chest. The tears never stop falling but he’s right. This isn’t me. I’m not a quitter and I never have been.
“Okay.”
“Okay?”
“I’ll do it. I’ll surf the competition.”
Chapter 24
Triton
Saylor and I played in the ocean, laughing and having fun for a little while. She laughed and we talked. We kissed and I held her. I hate that things have to end this way. But is it really the end?
“You are so goddamn sexy when you’re soakin’ wet,” I growl, slapping her ass as we walk toward the beach. Hearing Saylor laugh, that is the best feeling in the world.
“You make me that way,” she teases back.
Fuck! That girl.
“Saylor.”
Both of us snap our heads in the direction of the voice, my jaw clenching when I see him.
“What do you want?”
“I heard you were hurt. I tried calling you.”
She watches him wearily knowing this day would come sooner or later. My arm stays around Say’s shoulder, holding her into my side.
“I didn’t want to talk.”
“What’s happening between us, Saylor?” Hearing her dad ask her that pisses me off. He knows exactly what the problem is.
“Why did mom think someone was after her?” She blurts it out, surprising all of us. I squeeze her tighter but she pulls out of my arms, holding her head high. There she is. There’s my girl.
“What do you mean?”
“The night Trinity’s dad died. The night mom died, the night I died!” she screams a little louder, needing to get the words out. I see the look on his face. He’s shocked and maybe a little sick.
“Let’s go somewhere and talk privately.”
Say shakes her head laughing before stepping back into me. “Did you know it would be him? That killed Trin’s dad?” Shock registers on her dad’s face before it falls quickly.
“No.”
“Did you hate mom so much that you wanted her dead?” Her voice breaks and so does my heart.
He looks down, rubbing his eyes before looking back up at her.
“I was never after your mom, Saylor. I loved her. I knew she cheated and I wanted him dead for touching her. She had it in her head that I hated her for what she did, for cheating.”
I can see the pain in his eyes but I hate him. I hate him for hiring us. I hate him for being a part of the pain that Saylor feels on an everyday basis and I hate him for the wedge that he’s driven between Say and Trin.
“You had him killed, Dad. What kind of person does that? Why didn’t you just leave it alone?” Saylor’s tears slide down her cheeks as she watches the man who raised her and hurt her all the same.
“Are you really asking me that aft
er you slept with him?” he accuses, pointing at me. I growl low in my throat taking a step toward him, but Say pulls me back next to her.
“He is who he is. I can’t change him, and frankly, I wouldn’t want to. He did what he did because of who his family is. We all grow up in a different way, different family, but you. God, you had him killed! Trinity never got to know her dad because of you!”
“How can you throw stones when you are with him? Huh? Didn’t I raise Trinity the best way I could?”
Saylor belts out a laugh that isn’t real. “Raised her the best you could? You made her feel like trash! You hated her as much as you hated her dad! How could you be so heartless? You know what? I don’t need you. I don’t want you. You killed a piece of my sister and she is the best person I know. If she forgives you, that’s fine, but I never will.”
“Saylor, come on,” he pleads.
“No. My mom died that night. I died that night. I still have nightmares about waking up drowning. I can’t do this. I don’t want to do this anymore. I need to move on with my life and you are not a part of it,” she tells him ignoring the look that he’s giving her and looking up at me. “Take me home, Triton.”
Nodding my head, I grab her hand in mine and pull her away from the beach.
“Saylor! Don’t do this,” her dad yells but she just keeps walking. I can’t help the smirk that crosses my face as we step onto the sidewalk.
“I’m proud of you,” I tell her softly. She squeezes my hand tighter before looking up at me with a grin.
“I never thought I could do it. I’ve thought about it since you told me, but I never knew how to walk away from him. He was the last thing holding me to my mom, you know?” I shake my head because she’s wrong about that.
“No, the water is what holds you to your mom. The waves, the surf, not him. You are who you are because of her, Say. He means nothin’ in that picture.” Saylor stops walking and wraps her arms around my neck, pulling my lips to hers. She kisses me hard and deep, and it takes everything in me to not fuck her on the sidewalk. When she pulls back, her lips are swollen from my kiss and the spark is back in her eyes. My Saylor is back.
“You walk here?” she asks when she glances around and doesn’t see my bike.
“Yeah. Needed to clear my head. You want me to call for a ride back?”
Say shakes her head with a smile on her face. “No, let’s walk. I want to thank you, Triton. You’ve been there for me even when I didn’t deserve it and that’s kinda a lot.”
“You always deserved it, you’re just stubborn as hell, but I think that’s what draws me to you. You challenge me and don’t just give in to me.”
Saylor smiles and holds tightly to my hand as we walk back toward the clubhouse lost in each other’s words. She’s going for her dream and I’m going to have to figure out how to live without her. I did it before but the fact of the matter is I don’t know how I’m going to do it again. Saylor has become more to me than I originally thought she’d be. She’s grabbed a piece of my heart and held on tight, and I don’t see her letting go anytime soon.
“You wouldn’t consider leaving, would you?” she asks shyly, already knowing the answer to that.
“This is who I am and where I belong, Say. I wouldn’t be anything without them and we both know that. As much as I wished I could say yes, I can’t.” She nods silently as we keep walking.
“It’s not the end, is it? I mean, I will see you again, right?” I can hear the fear in her voice and I’d love nothing more than to wipe it away but I can’t do that either.
“I’m always in your heart, Say. You’ll never have to be without me.”
Our words linger as we step into the clubhouse. Say breaks away to go talk to Trin and I head to the bar to drink away my sorrow.
“What the fuck are you wearin’?” Rebel asks when he walks up next to me laughing.
“Fuck off, brother.”
“Really? You come in here lookin’ like a surf chick and tell me to fuck off? You goin’ in a new direction?” he teases and laughs.
“Had to make a point to Say.”
“Did it work?” I glance over and catch his eyes before I nod.
“She’s goin’ for it. She’s gonna push through the pain and train.”
“She’s one tough chick.”
Nodding my head, I agree. She’s more than that. She’s fierce. “She is.”
Chapter 25
Saylor
I take a deep breath, inhaling the salty air as Trin rubs my shoulders. I crack my neck from side to side, readying myself. It was a grueling two months of training and prep to get back in shape for the contest, but I did it. It’s time. I know all the guys are out there watching me and that alone makes me nervous. I’ve surfed in front of Triton but all of them?
“Relax,” Trin says, shifting to stand in front of me.
“I’m trying.”
“Try harder,” his voice booms behind me, sending a chill down my spine.
Trinity and I talked a lot about what happened and everything with my dad. We’ve come to terms with all of it and Trin has decided to move on, too. She forgave Triton for his role in things, knowing it wasn’t totally his fault to begin with. Me? I’ve dealt with the ache in my chest, the void where my dad should be. It just didn’t seem fair to me that I should have him around knowing his actions were the reason my mom was gone from my life.
“I am.”
Trinity grins and presses a kiss to my cheek before leaving the tent. I’ve trained and I’ve trained hard. My shoulder still gives me shit but I push through it and do what I need to. Triton was right. This, surfing and the ocean, it’s my home, my place in this world. I turn to face him and he grins that sexy grin that melts me every time.
“Maybe I need to fuck you before you go out there, loosen you up,” he says, his tone lust-filled and hot. Fuck, if I had time, I would. He reaches for me, pulling me into his arms and kissing me with passion and need.
“You are going to mess with my head.”
“I haven’t done that already? I’m losin’ my touch.” He steps back and I smirk.
“I can’t thank you enough, Triton. I mean it. Without you I wouldn’t be able to do any of this.”
“I didn’t do anything but challenge you, Say. You accepted and proved me wrong, yeah?”
God, that smile. I want him like I’ve never wanted anyone before. His fingers glide over my skin as everything in me sparks to life. Triton knows exactly what he’s doing to me. His lips land on my neck and my body relaxes into him when someone else comes in the tent.
“Got a prize for you, Triton.” He pulls away and we both turn to look at Neo. The smirk is welcomed but the darkness in his eyes scares the shit out of me.
“He show up?” Triton asks. Neo nods his head. Just when I’m about to speak, the announcer calls my name. My stomach trembles but Triton grabs my shoulders and forces me to look at him.
“You can do this, Say. You were born for this,” he reminds me. I take a deep breath and nod.
“Just watch my first heat? Please?” He chuckles and kisses me before he nods.
“You got it. Now get that sexy ass on the board,” he says, slapping my ass and following me out of the tent.
I grab my board and jog toward the water. I stop right at the edge and look at him over my shoulder. He nods his head and smiles and that’s all I need. I take a deep breath and run into the water as the heat begins, moving onto my stomach on the board as I paddle out. The crowd roars and the announcer keeps talking but as soon as I’m out far enough, I sit on my board.
“I’ve come to terms with all of it, Mom. I didn’t think I would but I have. Triton has shown me what I am and what I can do. He never judges me and I think you’d like him if you were here. I hate that you’re not.” A single tear slides down my cheek but I quickly wipe it away. “We’re going to do this together. Me and you.” I ready myself and look around watching as one of the other girls gets a wave. She kills it like I kn
ew she would, she’s good. Triton’s words ring over and over in my head though. You were born for this.
He’s right. I was. I watch the next setup, and when I see the perfect opportunity I take it. I paddle until I’m in perfect formation. Climbing up, I ready myself. I open my eyes wide, feeling the droplets of water as they splash against my heated skin. Sweat trickles down my spine as I ride the wave perfectly in to shore. Before I paddle back out and get ready for another, I glance up near the tent where I left Triton and Neo. I can see his grin from here. He kisses two fingers and throws them in the air at me. Grinning, I get myself ready for my next ride knowing what he’s about to go do. But I can’t focus on that right now. I can only focus on this.
“As many of you know, it’s a miracle that our girl Saylor is still with us. She was attacked a few months back and no one knew if she would be able to surf again. It was a shock to the community, but to see her out there doing what she loves brings us joy.” One of the announcers shares with the crowd but I drown them out, I have to. I need to win this competition.
Chapter 26
Triton
Sweat trickles down my temples. I quickly wipe it away with my hand. Neo had Marshall and two of his guys tied up and ready for me. I run my hand through my hair before looking at Ransom and Rebel. Each of them stands with a baseball bat in their hands ready to make them feel just like she did.
“You came back, huh?” I ask with humor in my tone. I knew he would, the little fuck.
“This changes nothing!”
“I think it changes a lot. You fucked up goin’ after somethin’ that belonged to me.”
Marshall laughs but his little soldiers remain silent. They must be able to sense the tension and see the death that’s about to come to them.
“She’s always been too stubborn for her own good. I should have fucked the little bitch-”