Which is why I nearly fell off my board when Jamie paddled out beside me.
“Fancy meeting you here,” he mused, voice low and throaty. He chuckled at my lost balance and I narrowed my eyes, but smiled nonetheless. Everything I thought I knew about his body was erased in that moment and I swallowed, following the cut lines along his arms that led me straight to his abdomen. There was a scar there, just above his right hip, and I stared at it just a second too long before clearing my throat and turning back toward the water.
“Thought you had plans with Jenna.”
He shrugged. “I did. But there was a cheerleading crisis, apparently.”
We met eyes then, both stifling laughs before letting them tumble out.
“I’ll never understand organized sports,” I said, shaking my head.
Jamie squinted against the sun as we rode over a small wave, our legs dangling on either side of our boards. “What? You’ll never understand having a team who works toward the same goal?”
I scoffed. “Don’t be annoying. You know what I meant.”
“Oh, so you hate fun?”
“No, but I hate organized fun.” I glanced sideways at him then, offering a small smirk, and I grinned a little wider when the right side of his mouth quirked up in return. “I didn’t know you surfed.”
“Yeah,” he answered easily. “Believe it or not, us organized-fun people enjoy solo sports, too.”
“You’re really not going to let this go, are you?”
He laughed, and I relaxed a bit. So what Jamie was impossibly gorgeous and had the abs of the young Brad Pitt? I could do this, be friends, ignore the little zing in my stomach when he smiled at me. It was nice to have a friend other than Jenna. Where she made friends easily, I tended to push people away — whether by choice or accident. Maybe the Jamie-B-Jenna tricycle wouldn’t be so bad, after all.
But when I truly thought about that possibility, of having a guy as a friend, my stomach dropped for a completely different reason. A flash of Mom bent over our toilet hit me quickly, her eyes blood-shot and her truthful words like ice picks in my throat. I swallowed, closing my eyes just a moment before checking the waterproof watch on my wrist.
“We should try to catch this next wave.”
I didn’t wait for him to answer before I paddled out.
We surfed what we could, but the waves were sad that day, barely offering enough to push our boards back to shore. So eventually, we ended up right back where we started, legs swinging in the salt water beneath us as we stared out at the water. The sun was slowly sinking behind us, setting on the West coast and casting the beach in a hazy yellow glow.
“Where do you go when you do that?”
“Do what?” I asked.
“You have this look, this faraway stare sometimes. It’s like you’re here, but not really.”
He was watching me then, the same way he had the first day we met. I smoothed my thumb over one of the black designs on my board and shrugged.
“Just thinking, I guess.”
“Sounds dangerous.”
He grinned, and I felt my cheeks heat, though no one would know but me. My skin didn’t reveal a blush the way Jenna’s did. “Probably is. You should steer clear.”
Jamie chewed the inside of his lip, still staring at me, and opened his mouth to say something else, but didn’t. He turned, staring in the same direction as me for a few moments before speaking again.
“So what are you thinking right now?”
I let out a long, slow breath. “Thinking I can’t wait to get out of here, move to California, and finally surf a real wave.”
“You’re moving?”
“Not yet. But hopefully for college.”
“Ah,” he mused. “I take it you have no interest in going to Palm South University, then?”
I shook my head. “Nah, too much drama. I want a laid-back west coast school. Somewhere with waves that don’t suck.”
Jamie dipped his hand into the water and lifted it again, letting the water drip from his fingertips to the hot skin on his shoulders. “Me too, Brecks. Me too.”
I cringed at the use of my name. “It’s just B.”
“Just B, huh?”
I nodded. “You want to go to school in California, too?”
“That’s the plan. I have an uncle out there who has some connections at a few schools. You have a specific one in mind yet?”
“Not yet. Just somewhere far from here.”
He nodded once, thankfully not pushing me to expand on that little dramatic statement. We sat in silence a while longer before paddling back in and hiking our boards up under our arms as we made the trek back to the cars. The sand was a bit course under our feet, but I loved the way it felt. I loved everything about the beach, especially surfing, and I glanced over at Jamie, more thankful than I thought I would have been running into him.
He helped me load up after we rinsed off, strapping my old lime green board to the top of Old Not-So Faithful. And just like the reliable Betty that she was, the 1998 Kia Sportage failed to turn over when I tried to start her up.
“Great,” I murmured, my head hitting the top of the steering wheel. Jamie had just finished loading his own board a few cars away, and he made his way back over.
“Not starting?”
“Seems to be my lucky day.”
He smiled, tugging the handle on my door to pull it open. “Come on, I’ll drive you home.”
I didn’t know it then, but that one small gesture, those six small words, they would be what changed everything between me and Jamie Shaw.
This has been the first chapter from A Love Letter to Whiskey. Continue reading by picking up your copy here (free with Kindle Unlimited).
On the Way to You
It was only supposed to be a road trip, but when Cooper discovers the journal of the boy driving the getaway car, everything changes. An emotional, angsty road trip romance.
A Love Letter to Whiskey
An angsty, emotional romance between two lovers fighting the curse of bad timing.
Weightless
Young Natalie finds self-love and romance with her personal trainer, along with a slew of secrets that tie them together in ways she never thought possible.
Revelry
Recently divorced, Wren searches for clarity in a summer cabin outside of Seattle, where she makes an unforgettable connection with the broody, small town recluse next door.
Black Number Four
A college, Greek-life romance of a hot young poker star and the boy sent to take her down.
The Palm South University Serial
Written like your favorite drama television show, PSU has been called “a mix of Greek meets Gossip Girl with a dash of Friends.” Follow six college students as they maneuver the heartbreaks and triumphs of love, life, and friendship.
PSU Season 1
PSU Season 2
PSU Season 3
The Chaser Series
Tag Chaser
She made a bet that she could stop chasing military men, which seemed easy — until her knight in shining armor and latest client at work showed up in Army ACUs.
Song Chaser
Tanner and Kellee are perfect for each other. They frequent the same bars, love the same music, and have the same desire to rip each other’s clothes off. Only problem? Tanner is still in love with his best friend.
Straight, No Chaser
Tag Catcher
A bachelor party gone wrong and a “meet the parents” nightmare. Two short stories bringing you more shenanigans from the characters you fell in love with in Tag Chaser and Song Chaser.
Kandi Steiner is a bestselling author and whiskey connoisseur living in Tampa, FL. Best known for writing “emotional rollercoaster” stories, she loves bringing flawed characters to life and writing about real, raw romance — in all its forms. No two Kandi Steiner books are the same, and if you’re a lover of angsty, emotional, and inspirational reads, she’s your gal.
&n
bsp; An alumna of the University of Central Florida, Kandi graduated with a double major in Creative Writing and Advertising/PR with a minor in Women’s Studies. She started writing back in the 4th grade after reading the first Harry Potter installment. In 6th grade, she wrote and edited her own newspaper and distributed to her classmates. Eventually, the principal caught on and the newspaper was quickly halted, though Kandi tried fighting for her “freedom of press.” She took particular interest in writing romance after college, as she has always been a die hard hopeless romantic, and likes to highlight all the challenges of love as well as the triumphs.
When Kandi isn’t writing, you can find her reading books of all kinds, talking with her extremely vocal cat, and spending time with her friends and family. She enjoys live music, traveling, anything heavy in carbs, beach days, movie marathons, craft beer and sweet wine — not necessarily in that order.
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What He Always Knew (What He Doesn't Know Duet Book 2) Page 27