The Calling

by Ashley Lynn Willis

  “Good weather,” he said.

  She nodded. “I haven’t been to the beach in a year.”

  “Cancer and lazy days lounging in the sun probably don’t mix well.”

  “Not so much.”

  After he closed her door, she slung her bag over her shoulder and followed him to his SUV. He opened the hatch. Inside were two boogie boards, a surfboard, a tent, and a cooler the size of her compact car.

  She cocked an eyebrow. “Are you planning on staying long?”

  “All night.”

  She pursed her lips. Since when had camping become part of the plan?

  As if reading her mind, he said, “I don’t expect you to join me.” He threw her a twisted smile. “Unless you want to.”

  Was he flirting with her or teasing? “I’m just here because I’m tired of being so pasty white.”

  He grabbed the boogie boards and slammed the trunk shut. “You might change your mind.”

  Definitely teasing. She slugged his arm. “Don’t hold your breath.”

  They headed down the trail through the fifteen-foot dunes. Tufts of sea oats poked out of the sandy mounds and swayed in the wind. The warm breeze ruffled her hair, and the rushing waves capped with frothy white tips filled her vision.

  She glanced across the beach, wondering why more people weren’t milling about on the sand. Not that she minded, the fewer beachgoers who saw her in a swimsuit, the better. Though, thanks to Lori, she was wearing a cute tankini that even showed a little cleavage without revealing her scars. Tomorrow, she’d buy that girl flowers for her Herculean efforts.

  He led her to a quiet, flat spot and laid out a beach towel big enough for four. “I figured we’d share.”

  Mandy chuckled as she plopped her bag down on the blue terrycloth. Slipping off her sandals, she stared at Justin. Something about him seemed different. She’d noticed the change yesterday at the hospital, but hadn’t been able to put her finger on it until this moment. The three years she’d known him, he’d always looked sleep deprived, with bloodshot eyes ringed by dark circles. Now, his eyes were crystal clear and sparkling brown. “You seem well rested.”

  Justin tilted his head. “You noticed?”

  She nodded. “Sleeping pills?”

  He sat down on the blanket and tucked his long legs beneath him. “Busy summer. I always rest better after a rescue.” He held out a bottle of sunscreen. “Do you mind?” As soon as she took it from him, he slipped off his shirt.

  She’d seen him bare-chested more times than she could count, but she’d been so in love with Ty she’d never paid attention to his attributes. Turned out, he had plenty. His shoulder muscles curved in smooth ridges under his golden skin, and his chest tapered to a trim, flat stomach, cut with washboard abs. His swimming trunks hung low on his hips.

  As she stared at his perfection, a tingly feeling traveled down her spine, then lodged in her stomach. Attraction? The prickling sensation turned into a brick that sat heavy in her gut. She hadn’t taken notice of a handsome man in so long, she’d forgotten how it made her feel.

  Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. No tingles allowed.

  She kneeled behind him, squirted a large dollop of sunscreen on her hand, and rubbed the lotion onto his smooth skin. Reminding herself that he was Justin, Ty’s best friend, she squashed her lustful thoughts. But the reminder didn’t stop her from noticing every hard muscle as her fingers glided across his back.

  Trying to distract herself from the tingles that refused to go away, she allowed her palm to linger on the sea serpent tattoo wrapped around his bicep. In the black scales of the reptile, she spotted hidden profiles of sharks, corals, sea turtles, and even a barracuda. She’d never considered tattoos as artwork, but his was a masterpiece.

  She traced the head of the snake, lingering on the slithering tongue. “Have I ever told you I love this?”

  He turned his head and, suddenly, their faces were inches apart. “No. I would’ve remembered.”

  She felt his dark eyes gazing straight into her, and her heart pounded uncontrollably. She rocked back on her knees to put some distance between them and picked up the pace, quickly covering every inch of his back with lotion. “There. Not even a gamma ray would burn you.”

  “I’ve got a spray in my bag if you want me to douse you.”

  “I already put on my sunscreen at home.” Thank goodness for her foresight. If he so much as touched her right now, she’d turn into a giggling puddle of female hormones. She cleared her throat. “You’re supposed to apply lotion thirty minutes before you go in the sun, you know. It’s more effective that way.”

  “You’re the nurse,” he said.

  She screwed the lid back on the sunscreen and handed it to him. Time to get in the water, she thought as she sat next to him. Reluctantly, she fidgeted with the hem of her white cover-up, twisting the cotton fabric between tense fingers. The scars aren’t visible, she reminded herself. She’d made sure by contorting her body like a Cirque du Soleil performer in front of the dressing room mirror. Even though she had no reason to be self-conscious, her nerves were firing up like bullets without a target, bouncing around in her stomach and wreaking havoc.

  “Ready to get in?” he asked.

  She nodded. Swallowing hard, she grabbed the bottom of her cover-up, lifted it over her head, and tucked it in her beach bag. As she adjusted the straps to make sure everything remained covered, she looked up to see Justin’s gaze resting on her chest. After a second of staring, his brow furrowed.

  Mandy cringed, wanting to wrap her arms around her breasts. “Is there a problem?”

  Justin’s widened eyes darted to her face, then to the crashing waves pounding the beach. “Wow. I’m being rude.” He blushed bright red. “I just… I didn’t…”

  She knew exactly what he meant. After her surgery, she’d caught most of her friends staring at her missing breast, even though she wore a falsie. A woman without a boob, especially a young one, was a subject of fascination. Justin must have thought she’d still be deflated on one side. “You expected me to be lopsided?”

  He nodded, his gaze locked on the surf.

  “Reconstructive surgery.” Had he thought she’d be flat forever?

  He blew out a noisy breath, grabbed both the boogie boards, and stood. The smile that spread across his face didn’t reach his eyes. “Still remember how to use these?”

  Thankful for the change of subject, she jumped to her feet. “It’s been a while, but I think I can manage.” She took a board from Justin, surprised by its light weight given the size. Had it really been so long that she’d forgotten how a bodyboard felt in her arms? Good thing she was getting back in the saddle before she forgot how to swim altogether.

  “The last time I surfed, I was with you,” she said.

  “You were a fast learner.”

  “I’ve probably forgotten everything you taught me.”

  His smile came with the crinkles around his eyes that marked it as genuine. “Then, I’ll teach you again.”

  Justin had been so patient with her back then, she had no doubt she’d be an expert by the time she left for home. After she fastened the Velcro bracelet to her wrist, she scanned the water. “I don’t think the waves are big enough.” They seemed no more than a foot or two, not exactly high enough for a riveting ride.

  He winked. “They’ll get bigger.” With that, he dashed into the sea. Water sprayed around his legs and body as he plunged into the surf. Sure enough, the waves seemed to follow him, cresting higher and ebbing lower. Was a storm moving in, kicking up larger swells? She glanced at the sky. Fluffy white clouds floated lazily toward the east, and the blue surrounding them was endless. She shrugged, then hurried after him.

  The sand and sea tickled her legs as she waded into the surf. The warm ocean tugged her deeper, inviting her to play. God, how she’d missed the sensations of the ocean. She dipped her hands into a cresting wave and, feeling the water swirling around her fingertips, vowed never to stay away again, even i
f she was on her deathbed.

  With a smile stretching her lips taut, she waded deeper, the water splashing higher and higher on her body. When the waves reached her ribcage, she turned her back to the sea, pushed the board under her torso, and waited for a swell to pick her up and drive her forward. The roaring water behind her was a sure sign she was on her way. She braced for the ride.

  The wave rushed below, collecting and pushing her toward the beach. Her heart pounded excitedly, anticipating the rush.

  And then a wall of water crashed over her head.

  The swell buried her under its crest, driving her to the sandy bottom. She flailed about furiously as salt water burned her nostrils. When she finally oriented herself, she pushed off the sea bottom with a thrust of her legs and surfaced, clearing her nose as soon as the cool breeze brushed her cheeks.

  Justin chuckled behind her.

  “I need help,” she whimpered.

  He waded toward her. “They come in sets of three or four. All we gotta do is wait for a big set to head in. Then, when you feel the ebb of the wave, get on your board and start paddling like mad.”

  “You make it sound easy.”

  Justin dove under the water and popped up next to her. “It is.”

  He wrapped an arm around her waist and pushed her into deeper water. At six foot two, Justin had half a foot on her, and suddenly, her toes didn’t touch the sandy bottom anymore.

  A wave slapped her in the face. She swallowed a mouthful of briny water and coughed it up. “Can’t breathe,” she protested, treading water.

  He turned to face the open ocean, his back to her. “Wrap your arms around my neck, shorty.”

  With a wave swelling underneath them, she grabbed his shoulders first, to keep from swallowing more ocean, then clung to his neck.

  Pressing her chest against his warm back sent a tingle sprinting up her spine as it had on the beach. Instead of chastising herself, she wondered how she’d been blind to Justin all those years. Sure, they’d been good friends, talking about his woman woes, or who served the best cheese fries in Corpus Christi, but she’d never considered him as anything more than a pal. The way her body vibrated where their skin touched made her question why. She shook her head at her overstimulated hormones. She was here to catch a ride, not ogle the teacher. Trying to be a good girl, she looked back toward the beach where the waves broke on the sand. “We’ll never snag a wave out here.”

  “I know, but deep water gives me an excuse to get close to you.”

  She flushed. He wasn’t making her good-girl status easy.

  He grabbed her hands and unwrapped her arms from his neck. “You can touch now.” She pushed her legs down and, sure enough, they’d reached a sandbar. Waves broke on the other side, leading toward the sea. “Now, we can hit two waves with one ride.”

  Twice the fun for the effort of one. The man was a genius.

  He pushed her to just past where the waves broke. “Remember what I told you?”

  She nodded.

  “Start paddling.”

  The water ebbed. She thrust off the bottom with all her strength, jumped on top of her board, and paddled until her arms sizzled. Just when she wanted to give up, the wave caught her and zipped her through the water as if she were riding a roller coaster. The air whipped against her face, the salty ocean sprayed her neck and chest, and the sea whizzed by as if from a flowing spigot. For a joyous moment, she was a part of the sea, harnessing its energy, pulling from its endless supply of motion.

  Reaching deeper water, the wave turned into a swell. She paddled forward, following the rising crest. She couldn’t keep up and soon landed in a small trough. But she didn’t give up. If Justin was right, there should be a second wave coming behind the first. She watched her first wave crash on the beach ahead. The water ebbed as the second wave gained on her. She paddled, harder and harder, determined to feel the freedom again.

  The wave caught her, enveloping her feet and lifting her body on its crest. She propelled forward, faster and faster, freer and freer, the beach coming closer and closer. In an abrupt release, the wave crashed on the beach, and her knees dug into the silky sand.

  She giggled like a preschooler on a playground as she stood. “That was amazing!” Smiling so wide her face hurt, she glanced over her shoulder. Justin had just caught his second wave and was quickly gaining on her. When the wave crashed, he went under but popped back up with a grin as huge as hers. The water seemed to swirl around him in opposition to the waves and currents tugging at her, as if the surf sensed his presence and parted to make room for him out of respect.

  “Sure you don’t want to stay longer than an hour?” he asked.

  “I could do this all day.”

  “Then, why don’t we?”

  In response, she dove under the water with her boogie board attached to her wrist and headed for the sandbar.

  * * *

  Justin lugged the cooler to their towel on the beach. His stomach growled as he set it down. After four hours of using his powers to create larger waves for Mandy, he had been ready to start gnawing on seashells when he forced her out of the water for sustenance.

  “Glad you thought ahead,” Mandy said, as she lunged forward. “What’d you bring?”

  He blocked her attack on the cooler with his body and opened the lid. “Hungry?” He reached inside, fiddled around until he found an apple, and handed it to her.

  Mandy stared at the piece of fruit as if she held a rotting flounder. “Are you kidding me?” She glared at him. “This ain’t gonna cut it.”

  He chuckled and pulled out something he knew she’d enjoy—a pastrami sub.

  Her expression lit up. She didn’t look like the same woman he’d seen at the hospital the day before. Her cheeks were a rosy pink from the sun and water, and her smile hadn’t budged since she’d caught her first wave. The way she glowed, he couldn’t take his eyes off of her.

  She unwrapped the sandwich. “That’s more like it! Got any chips?”

  “Weren’t you the girl who always ordered a salad at Moe’s?”

  “And cheese fries, can’t forget those.”

  He pulled open a small bag of potato chips and handed them to her. “Ah, yes. I still think Sally’s Crab Shack has the best.”

  “No way. Moe’s puts more bacon on theirs.” She chomped down on a big bite of her sandwich. “Mmmm. Black olives,” she mumbled through her mouthful. “You’re a man after my own heart.”

  He mentally patted himself on the back for remembering her favorite food. “I’ve got beer if you want one.”

  “I don’t do alcohol, except for red wine. Polyphenols are supposed to lower the risk of cancer.”

  Justin reached into the cooler and pulled out what looked like a juice box. “Merlot.” He winked. “It’s even got a straw.”

  Mandy stared at him with awe shining in her sparkling blue eyes. “I’ve never seen you drink wine.”

  He pulled out a beer can and popped the tab. “That’s ‘cause I don’t.”

  Her eyes widened. “You brought these for me?”

  “Yep.”

  “How are you still single?”

  He shrugged, though he knew exactly how. He compared every girl he dated to Mandy. None of them ignited a spark in him the way she did. The entire time she’d been with Ty, he’d denied having a thing for her. Now that Ty was out of the way, he was surprised how easy it was to admit his feelings—to himself, of course, not to her, because Mandy overanalyzed everything.

  If he came right out and told her he had the hots for her, she’d find some way to convince herself that dating him was a mistake. He needed to get into her head before making a move. With her emotions in play, she’d have a tougher time turning him down.

  He scooted closer to her. “So what’ve you been up to the last year, besides being sick?” He bit into his sub. The jalapeños he’d loaded on his sandwich burned his tongue, and he savored the sensation.

  Mandy’s brow furrowed as if she had
to think hard about what her life entailed besides cancer. “Working.” Her face lit up with a soft smile. “I’ve been babysitting for my niece a lot. And when I find time, I hang out with Lori and Kirsten.”

  Justin flinched at Kirsten’s name. He took a big swig of beer to tame his hatred of that girl. “What’s Lori up to?” he asked, hoping Mandy blamed his grimace on the jalapeños.

  She still smiled, but her shoulders lowered, and she sighed. “She’s signed up for a nursing stint in Colorado.”

  Well damn, that just left Mandy with Kirsten. “When’s she leaving?”

  “In a couple of months, but it’s only for a year while she trains for neo-natal. She’s always wanted to work with preemies.”

  He wished all of Mandy’s friends were as straight and narrow as Lori, and he wondered if she’d have anyone else to hang out with besides Kirsten the tramp. “You still hang out with that redhead… what was her name?”

  Mandy’s shoulders sagged even further. “Addie?”

  “Yeah, that one. I ran into her last week and called her Abby. She looked pissed.”

  Mandy shook her head. “I set you up with her. You dated for a month. How can you not remember her name?”

  “She didn’t make much of an impression.”

  Her gaze dimmed while she stared toward the breaking waves. “Figures. No, we’re not friends anymore. She was more of a goodtime girl, and when things got… not so good for me, she bailed, along with other people.”

  A knot formed in his stomach. If she thought he and Ty were still friends, she probably didn’t want to offend him by lumping Ty in with the people who’d bailed. But he had a feeling she was referring to him.

  Though he knew she’d rather not discuss her ex, he figured Ty would come up in the conversation eventually, so he might as well get it over with. “You ever talk to Ty?”

  She placed her sandwich on her empty potato chip bag as if she weren’t hungry anymore and stared at her hands. “No. We run into each other occasionally, but only say hi.”

  Justin mentally chastised himself. He should have kept his mouth shut. The chemo had stolen a good fifteen pounds from her frame and, though she was still smokin’ hot, some of her curves had disappeared. He looked forward to seeing them again soon, but they weren’t going to reappear if he made her lose her appetite.