A Love Like Ours
Page 8
Ollie smiles over at me, his blue eyes reflecting happiness back at me as the last of the sun begins to go down over the horizon.
I swim over to him and he splashes at me playfully.
I splash back a little more forcefully, drenching the side of his face, and break out into laughter.
“Oh, you’ve done it now.” He laughs and grabs me, pushing my head below the water for a mere second before letting me up.
I laugh, wiping the salty water from my eyes, and swim around to climb on his back.
He kicks, keeping us above water.
I bite at his neck like a vampire and he chuckles, swimming to a shallower area so he can stand.
I get down and swim away, but not too far.
He treads water and then floats on his back so that only his face is exposed above the dark water.
“We’re going to do something tomorrow,” he says. “I don’t know what,” he adds. “But we’re going to do something crazy.”
“I like the sound of crazy,” I say softly.
“Yeah?” he echoes. “Me too.”
We have a lazy morning the next day, making our own breakfast and lying in bed where we can watch the ocean, until Ollie suddenly announces it’s time to go.
I nearly forgot he said we were going to do something today, and I wonder what he thought up.
I put on a pair of shorts and a loose top over my bikini. Ollie dresses in a pair of board shorts and a sleeveless shirt.
A taxi waits for us at the front of the resort—since it can’t reach the bungalow—and Ollie must’ve told the driver where to take us on the phone because he doesn’t tell him anything once we are in the car.
I look out the window at the passing scenery, racking my brain for anything I thought Ollie might’ve chosen to do.
Knowing him, the options could range from hanging out with dolphins to a crab-eating contest.
On the bright side, Costa Rica is stunning. It isn’t a place I’ve ever considered visiting before, but now I am kicking myself for never researching such a beautiful place. There are lush green trees everywhere, volcanoes, and the ocean is the most beautiful color of turquoise. I’ve never seen a body of water that color before.
The taxi bumps along the road, around the city, and through back roads.
Eventually, we reach a small shack of a building with an airstrip behind it.
Something to do with planes then?
Ollie thanks the driver and pays him before sliding out of the car and holding his hand out to me.
My legs stick to the leather as I try to slide out and make a gross sucking sound. I finally manage to step out of the taxi and Ollie closes the door.
The taxi driver takes off, and dust flies up behind his tires making me cough.
“Are we going on an air tour?” I ask, pointing at the building.
“Something like that.” Ollie winks and heads for the door. He opens it and ushers me inside first.
The window unit air conditioner whirls, making a choking sound like it’s about to die. In this heat, that’s the last thing anyone wants.
A man emerges from a back room and smiles brightly. His eyes crinkle at the corners and his dark hair hangs past his ears. He looks older, but not old, like maybe in his thirties.
“You must be Ollie and Talia,” he says. “I’m Javier.” He steps around the counter and holds his hand out to Ollie to shake, and then me.
“That would be us,” Ollie answers.
He claps his hands together. “You said you’re both experienced sky divers?”
“Yes, sir, we are.”
Skydiving? We haven’t done that in a long time. We used to do it a lot, though.
“Unfortunately, I still have to go over the safety measures, but I’ll try to go quickly.”
He leads us into the backroom where he goes over the gear and what to do in case of an emergency. He gives us each a quick quiz to make sure Ollie wasn’t lying about being experienced, but we must pass because he tells us to change and then we’re ready to head to outside through a back door.
Nerves and excitement flood my body.
We haven’t done this in forever. We haven’t had the time or the funds. But I suddenly remember how much I loved it.
There’s nothing like free-falling toward Earth to remind you how great life is.
In those few seconds where you’re falling, there is no time to think or worry, there’s just you and the sensation of flying.
Javier is waiting for us outside the plane with a dark pair of sunglasses perched on his nose.
“Let’s go.” He taps his hand against the side of the small plane and climbs inside.
Ollie and I follow him.
The pilot is already sitting in the cockpit, waiting for us. Javier makes sure Ollie and I are secured and ready to go before he takes his seat in the copilot chair.
“We’ll take a quick spin around the island, show you the sights, before you jump,” Javier explains. “Costa Rica is too beautiful from the air for you to miss the experience.”
Ollie smiles over at me as the plane takes off.
“Is this good?” he asks, his voice slightly shaky with nerves, like he’s scared I might not like this idea.
I smile from ear to ear. “This is perfect,” I tell him honestly.
Javier begins telling us about the different things we see and I’m surprised by the number of volcanoes. I don’t know why, but volcanoes are one of those things I never really think about being there. I mean, I know they are, but I guess since I’ve never seen one until coming here I just never really gave them all that much thought.
But I find that they’re actually quite beautiful.
Although, a bit frightening when you think about the fact that if one erupted it could obliterate so much life. Not just human life but plant and animal life as well.
Javier tells us to look in the water and if I squint I can just make out the dark form of a shark hunting for its next meal. It swims dangerously close to where people are swimming but it’s obvious it’s not interested in them.
Javier gives us a warning that we’re coming up on our jump zone and that his partner will be waiting for us to drive us back.
“Ready?” Ollie asks me.
I grin. “Yes.”
I’m shaking with excitement. I haven’t felt this way about something in a long time. It feels good to be this happy.
Ollie slides the door of the plane open.
“You want to go first or me?”
“I want to go first.”
He smiles widely, clearly pleased with that answer.
I move around him and say a quick, “Thanks, Javier,” before I jump.
A scream tears out of my throat as I start to free-fall. The first few seconds are always the scariest, that moment when the ground starts plunging toward you … or technically you toward it.
I hear Ollie cry out behind me and farther up above us the plane whirs away.
I go through the necessary steps and my parachute comes out above me, guiding me safely to the ground.
When my feet touch the ground, I run a few steps from the momentum and the fabric of the chute collapses behind me.
Ollie lands a few seconds later several feet in front of me.
I disconnect from everything and spin in circles, shrieking in excitement.
Ollie’s arms wind around me and then he’s the one spinning me around. I wrap my arms around his neck. My giggles fill the air and the fluttering in my stomach has yet to go away.
“That was a great idea,” I tell him as he sets me down.
He kisses me and pulls away with a grin. “Really?”
I nod eagerly. “I forgot how much I loved that.”
Ollie tucks a piece of hair behind my ear and grins. “I love it when you’re this happy about something.”
A red truck comes driving toward us and stops. A man leans out the window and calls our names.
“I think that’s our ride.”
Ollie already took care of the payment when he set this up so Alejandro drops us off at the resort since it’s easier than taking us back to the skydiving place where we’d then have to get a taxi.
We thank him and hop out then walk hand in hand back to our bungalow.
“Are you up for a swim?” I ask Ollie.
He nods eagerly, his curls bouncing.
His eyes glimmer with mischief and he grins. “Race you back?”
Before I can answer, he takes off running, leaving me behind and the imprint of his hand still echoing against my skin.
“You’re such an asshole!” I call after him jokingly and he only laughs harder. I shake my head and then mutter, “Fuck it.”
I take off after him, my flip-flops slapping against the ground.
I don’t win, since the jerk started out so long before me.
He’s already in the water when I get there, his shirt tossed on the ground beside the pool.
He leans his elbows back on the pool wall, completely at ease. He grins crookedly and his dimple dents his cheek.
“What took you so long? Did you fall? Get attacked by a bird?”
I kick off my shoes and lift my shirt off. “No,” I say in a serious tone. “My jerk-wad boyfriend took off without me.”
I try to sound mad, and when I drop my shirt on the ground and look at him, he appears worried. I break out in a smile.
“The only reason he had to do that is because he knows otherwise I would’ve won.” I shrug nonchalantly.
His grin reappears. “That’s what you think. I was trained by the best.”
“The best, huh? And who would that be?”
“The Flash, obviously.”
“The Flash isn’t real.”
He gasps, grabbing his heart. “Take that back.”
“Never.”
I take my shirt off and drop it on the nearby lounge chair. Kicking off my flip-flops, I take off my shorts, and that’s when I see the surfboards.
A pang pierces my chest and I stop what I’m doing, standing up straight.
I bite my lip, and I can feel Ollie’s gaze on me as I move slowly toward the boards.
I reach out, touching my fingers to the surface. The board is warm from the sun and I glide my fingers down it, stroking it like you would if you were petting an animal.
I swallow thickly and my heart speeds up.
The itch to grab the board and run out into the waiting ocean is strong, but I’m scared.
It’s silly, really. Surfing didn’t do anything to me that day, but yet, since that moment, I haven’t been able to get back in the water.
“Talia?” Ollie questions, and I hear the water slosh as he gets out. A moment later, his fingers touch my shoulder. “Talia?” he says again. “Are you okay?”
I close my eyes, visualizing myself out in the water on my board. The breeze and the high I feel when I catch a wave.
I miss it.
“I think I’m ready,” I whisper, opening my eyes and turning around to face Ollie.
He looks surprised, excited, and maybe a little worried. “Are you sure?”
I look back at the board and then him, nodding. “Yeah, I am.”
He touches his fingers to my cheek and then tucks a piece of hair behind my ear.
“You have no idea how happy this makes me.” He grins. Sobering, he adds, “But if you start to paddle out and decide you don’t want to do it, it’s okay.”
“No.” I shake my head. “I’m ready.”
Maybe it was the skydiving thing, or maybe it was our fight, or maybe I am just ready, but whatever the reason, when I wrap my fingers around the board and carry it to the ocean, I feel like I’m home.
A smile touches my lips as I remember a time, several years ago, when things were bad for Ollie and me and we talked about what we wanted to be doing one day.
We lay side by side facing each other on the hard, dirty motel bed. Most people would probably cut off their legs before they’d stay in a place as run down as this, but for Ollie and me, any bed was a luxury we couldn’t normally afford, but the place was cheap for the night and we were in desperate need of running water for showers.
Ollie grabbed my hand, lacing our fingers together.
“Things are going to get better, Tal. I promise you.”
I squeezed his hand slightly. “I know. Five years from now, where do you see us?”
He grinned, his blue eyes lightening with happiness as he imagined a better future than the fucked up present we lived in. “In our own house, with a big screen TV, a car, and the beach just outside our door so we can surf every day.”
I smiled. “That sounds like heaven.”
He sighed. “Yeah, it does.”
We don’t have the big screen TV, but we have the other stuff, and I’ll take that over a TV any day.
My feet touch the water and I run out as far as I can before hopping on the board. Ollie is a little farther back, but he quickly catches up. We paddle out and sit up.
His smile causes my stomach to do excited flips. His wet hair drips onto his wide shoulders and when he sits back his abs flex.
His grin widens. “Are you checking me out?”
I smile back and shrug, looking away and toward the water. “Maybe.” Water splashes me. “Hey,” I cry defensively, stifling a laugh.
“I can’t blame you for wanting all of this.” He starts to shake his arms and whole torso in some sort of awkward dance.
“Ollie,” I laugh, splashing at his legs. “You’re such a goof.”
He stops suddenly, grabbing his face and striking a pose. “Someone call Vogue.”
I can’t seem to stop laughing, and my stomach begins to hurt.
A wave starts to form, and I paddle toward it. Ollie hangs back, letting me take this first one.
I feel slightly queasy with nerves since I haven’t surfed in nearly a year, but I’m convinced surfing is like riding a bicycle and isn’t something you’re likely to forget.
When I come up on the board there’s a moment where I’m scared I’m going to fall, but then my body takes over and my brain shuts down and I simply exist in the moment.
I ride the wave until it disappears. The feeling that comes over me is unlike anything I’ve ever felt before. I plunge into the water and when I surface I hear Ollie whistling and clapping. I break out into a smile as I climb back on my board, and that’s when I feel the tears leaking from my eyes.
Happy tears—because I just reclaimed something else I thought I lost that day.
When I look over at Ollie, and the infectious smile on his face, a feeling of love and calm steals over me and I know that things might get tough, but it’s always going to be okay in the end.
I shiver, feeling a light tickle on my arm. Sleep weighs heavily on me, but awareness leaches in around the edges. I slowly open my eyes and find Ollie trailing his fingers lazily down my arm. His lips quirk at the corners when he sees that I’m awake.
“Morning,” he says.
I blink around me, looking outside at the still dark sky. “It’s not morning.”
“It will be soon. Something tells me the sunrise here will be amazing.”
I groan, crooking my arm over my eyes and stifling a yawn. “I want to sleep.”
He pulls my arm away from my face. “Stay up with me, please. You can go back to sleep after.”
He gives me those adorable puppy dog eyes that I can’t resist and I sigh.
“Fine,” I agree reluctantly. “But you owe me a delicious breakfast of Mickey Mouse pancakes,” I joke.
“I can do that.”
He hops from the bed and comes around to my side, grabbing both my hands and pulling me from the comfy bed. I swear it’s the softest bed I’ve ever slept on and I wish there was some way I could stash it in my purse and bring it home with me, but unfortunately, they ha
ven’t invented a shrink ray yet.
When I’m out of the bed, I drag my feet on the hardwood floor and Ollie pulls me along easily. He slides open the doors and I grip onto the frame, pretending to not want to go outside.
He releases my hand and picks me up easily, pulling me away from the door and tossing me over his shoulder.
“Ollie!” I giggle, beating his back. “Put me down!”
He doesn’t listen. Instead, he ignores my pleas until he finds the perfect spot on the sandy beach to sit down and wait for the sunrise.
He drops me onto the ground and the sand cushions my butt. Ollie drops down beside me and lies down on his back, looking up at the still starry sky.
I lie down too and he spreads his arm, making a space for me to curl into his body. He’s shirtless, and I lay my head on his chest, over his heart, listening to the steady thumping sound beneath my ear. He curls his fingers into my hair, slowly dragging them through the strands. I kiss his chest and he makes a rumbling sound low in his throat.
I rise up and press my lips to his. His hand tightens around my neck, holding me there. I move so I’m straddling him and glide my hands down his chest. He nips at my bottom lip and I gasp in surprise. His tongue brushes mine and he tilts my head back, deepening the kiss.
I roll my hips against his and he growls lowly.
I lower my head to his neck, skimming my lips up to his ear.
“I want you,” I whisper, trailing a finger down his chest.
He shivers, heated blue eyes meeting mine. His teeth dig into his bottom lip and he curves his hand around his cheek.
“Sand in unmentionable places? Sounds fun.”
Before I can respond, his lips crash against mine. He kisses me with bruising force, skimming his hands under my loose sleep shirt.
He pushes it up and off my body, dropping it onto the sand beside us.
I can feel his growing length against me and I moan, clutching at his shoulders and pushing my breasts into his chest.
He guides my head back with a gentle hand and rakes his lips down my neck, his tongue leaving a wet trail against my neck that creates a cooling sensation when the ocean breeze touches it.
He drags his lips lower, to my breast, swirling his tongue around my nipple.