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“You should be.” Dane put his car into drive and headed toward the water.
“You’re not going to give me a single hint as to what it is, are you?”
“Nope, because that would ruin the surprise.” Dane smiled.
“Ugh, I love and hate surprises.” Alissa sighed. “Can you give me a –”
“No hints. Being near the water is enough of one.”
Alissa playfully glared at him. “Okay, fine, I’ll play along. Is it another boat ride?”
Dane snorted. “You just said you were going to play along with the surprise, then you ask what it is?”
Alissa waved her hand and looked out the window, her grin widening. “I’m just trying to keep you on your toes.”
“You do that anyway.”
Dane held Alissa’s hand over the car console the rest of the drive and parked in the lot next to the beach. It was filled with cars, so they were farther away. But that was perfect—it built up more and more anticipation. He took Alissa’s hand and guided her down toward the water.
When Alissa finally realized where they were going, she gasped and clasped his arm.
“You’re kidding,” Alissa said. “Dane…”
“I’m not.” Dane pulled her closer. “We’re going to learn how to surf.”
Alissa stopped, pulling Dane into a huge hug. Dane wrapped his arms around her and held her close.
“I can’t believe you set this up. I’m so excited.” She released him. “You’re doing it with me?”
“Yep, I am.”
Alissa’s grin was worth whatever embarrassing or potentially uncomfortable things he was about to experience.
The class was gathered near the edge of the water, where two instructors were starting to help people put on wet suits and pick out boards. One was a young man with a buzz cut and a dimpled smile, who noticed them first.
“Hey there!” he said. “Here for the surfing lesson?”
“Yes, we are,” Dane replied, hoping his nerves didn’t show as much as he felt them. “We’re Dane and Alissa.”
“Awesome. My name is Tyler and that’s Bee. We’re your instructors today. Let’s get you guys set up with some wet suits and boards.”
Dane went with Tyler and Bee went with Alissa. Alissa was right—the wetsuit did cover most of his skin, though he’d slathered on a bunch of sunscreen before he left. Next came the board, which was a simple foam one, and holding onto it made his stomach flip upside down.
They lined up in front of Bee and Tyler once the other four people in the class had been outfitted too.
“Okay, we’re ready to start!” Bee clapped her hands together. Her brown hair was already damp, as if she’d caught some waves before teaching class. “We’re going to start on land before we even think about getting in the water.”
Dane’s shoulders relaxed. The land he could handle. And maybe it would help him be less worried about getting into the water. He glanced over at Alissa as Bee and Tyler explained the basics of safety and the rules they had to follow during the lessons. She was listening intently, her eyes bright.
Seeing how much she was into it calmed his nerves a bit. As long as she was by his side, it would be okay.
Tyler and Bee demonstrated the proper paddling technique, which Dane and Alissa got the hang of, but the technique of hopping up on the board was another story. Dane considered himself in decent shape, but the simple act of going from his stomach to his feet had him huffing and puffing.
But it was exhilarating at the same time—the sand, the water, the feeling of the ocean air coming into his lungs. Most of his worries were starting to fade away as he took in the moment. Well, in between hopping up and down on his board.
“At least we’ll be getting in the water soon,” Alissa said, trying to catch her breath after yet another drill. “To cool down.”
“True, but then we’ll be doing all this while wet.” Dane rested his hands on his hips, trying to slow his breathing.
