by Marika Ray
By the time I graduated high school, I'd lost my angry undertones thanks to Esa's parents and the volunteering, but I'd kept my signature sassiness. I'd also kept my love of flashy clothing and funky sense of style. I was accepted into the fashion design program at UC San Diego, where I'd room with Esa in the freshman dorms.
Life was the best I'd ever known those first two years of college. I was living with my best friend, attending a gorgeous university, and pursuing a career I loved and would keep me off the streets.
All that came to a screeching halt when Esa texted me one morning.
Esa: Rady Hall ASAP. I need you.
This was enough to cause my heart to race and a heavy sense of doom to take residence in my stomach. I acted tough, but Esa was the rock in this relationship. She didn't need me for anything, except for comic relief, perhaps. If she said ASAP and that she needed me? The world was ending.
I grabbed my backpack and ran out of my lecture hall right in the middle of a riveting discussion on verb usage. I was willing to ruin perfectly good high heel boots just to get to Esa in the shortest amount of time possible. My cardio training was seriously lacking on the best of days, so I thanked the Gods Rady Hall was only a few buildings away.
I whipped open the double doors, Wonder Woman style, and charged in to find Esa and two police officers in the main hallway. Esa was slumped against the wall, her hand covering her mouth. I didn't see any handcuffs, so I figured this was good news.
"Esa? What happened?" I reached her side and pulled her into a hug. She wouldn't look at me, so I looked to the police officers for an explanation. They looked at her first and she nodded her head.
Looking in my direction again, with somber expressions on their faces, they changed my world in a single sentence. "I'm sorry to tell you, Mr. & Mrs. Grant died in a car crash this morning."
Everything around me dimmed. The officers continued to talk, but there was no sound coming out of their mouths.
I blinked.
My heart beat once, then twice.
On the third beat everything came rushing back, the sounds around me drowning out my thoughts that made no sense anyway. Doors opened and closed in the long hallway, the officers were speaking over each other, and my labored breathing was echoing in my ears.
Then I felt Esa shudder in my arms and it was like a lightning bolt to my brain. She was sobbing, her face buried in my chest, her body curled up like she was protecting herself from attack.
I didn't have time to fall apart or to grieve. This wasn't about poor little charity case Bailey any longer. I needed to be Esa's rock now. So I took my first steps into adulthood by shaking off my shock, my grief, and my renewed anger. For now, I'd welcome in the numbness. I asked the police officers what had happened. I asked what we should do next. I got their business cards. I made a list in my head of who I needed to call. Family, friends, our professors for extensions on assignments and tests, the mortuary, the cemetery, the lawyers, the bank. The list was endless.
And all the while, I held Esa, whispering over and over that everything would be all right. The Grants had taught me how to love without limits and to sacrifice for others. In their honor, I'd continue to do that, starting with Esa.
3 Years Later - Bailey
Shattering glass woke me up from a delicious dream about a pool boy and his long stick. I rolled out of bed and glanced over to see the clock read three a.m. I threw on a robe out of habit before rushing out of my room. Now that Esa's boyfriend Ivan lived there in the house with us, I was used to covering up outside of my room.
I raced down the stairs and came up to Esa, huddled around a corner, peering into the front living room area. I peeked over her head and saw Ivan huddled in the middle of the shattered glass from the front window.
"It just says 'Bitch'," he growled. I assume he meant the red brick he held in his hand. He picked his way across the glass to us, then moved us into the kitchen where Esa called the detective she'd been working with.
She'd had a break-in at her hot chocolate shop, her car vandalized, and now this. Someone wasn't too happy with her.
Which was crazy. Esa was the nicest, most level-headed person I'd ever met. She was the peacekeeper in our group of friends, always looking to include everyone and make sure everyone was happy.
Hell, if anyone should have a stalker it should be me! I just said things like I saw them. Said what I felt and thought about the repercussions of my actions later. Flirting was second-nature. Esa affectionately called me 'sassy' or 'feisty'. The word most people would use was less kind.
The doorbell rang, and I went to get it, leaving Ivan in the kitchen comforting Esa. I'd always loved my short, red and black silk robe, but I'd never been happier to be wearing the sexy thing than when I opened the door to Mr. Tall and Handsome.
The man standing before me had to be the detective working with Esa. She'd told me earlier that he was cute, but damn, she'd massively undersold it. He had jet black hair, brown piercing eyes, and the kind of lips you wanted to taste over and over again. His lips threw me. He held his lean, muscular body in such a rigid posture, alpha male attitude coming off him in waves. And then there were those sensuous lips that just didn't match.
One dark eyebrow raised, clueing me in that I'd left him standing there, the silence stretching out.
"If you're here to rob Esa, please hit me up instead." I turned on the charm, the flirt I always had at the ready. I extended my hand, pulling him in the door and dangerously close to me when he took hold of it, expecting a handshake.
"While I appreciate the offer," he drawled, glancing appreciatively at the open collar of my robe, "I'm on the other side of the law. I'd use handcuffs, doll."
He winked, then marched off to the kitchen to find Esa.
I blinked a couple times, trying to come to terms with that much sexiness at three o'clock in the damn morning. He was clearly a match in the flirting department, and I was intrigued.
Very intrigued.
Naturally, I followed his fine ass, highlighted in worn denim. He spoke to Esa and Ivan, then moved around the front living room collecting evidence. I wouldn't say I was watching him like a total creeper, but I was highly observant in wanting to make sure he didn't make any mistakes. My close supervision was for Esa's benefit entirely.
He was efficient with his movements, sure and confident in everything he did. I was certain my flirting had caught his attention, but it wasn't enough to deter him from the job at hand. Considering the state of the butterflies in my stomach and the sexual desire pinging through my veins, I was impressed with his focus.
And irritated. What's a girl gotta do to get his attention?
When he was done, he told Ivan that Esa needed to have someone with her at all times. Between Ivan and I, we'd make sure that happened. As a side bonus, maybe being around Esa even more than I already was would put me in close proximity to my new detective crush.
As Jack was leaving, I muttered a bit too loudly, "How do I get myself a stalker? I'm thinkin' I'd like some police protection too." Esa and Ivan cracked up laughing. Jack pretended he didn't hear me, but when he reached the front door, he looked over his shoulder at me and lifted one side of his luscious mouth in the hot-guy version of a smirk.
Oh, he'd heard me all right. There was no mistaking the fire in those brown eyes.
He shut the door, instantly making my heart drop at the loss of potent eye candy. I cheered myself up by realizing I'd scored in this first round of the Flirting War. This thing with Jack was just beginning.
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The Beach Squad Series Reading Order:
Sweet Dreams
Beach B!tch
Barefoot Chaos
Handcuffed Hussy - Novella
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