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Hunter stood ten feet back, near where the wild grass met the sand.
CHAPTER 14
God, an hour ago she’d felt guilty for being at the party with Hunter. Now she felt guilty for sitting here with Chris.
You weren’t sitting on the beach, idiot. He just pulled you out of the water and performed mouth-to-mouth.
Becca brushed sand off her cheek and looked up at Hunter. She could hear his breathing from here—just a little hard, like he’d been running or he was angry—but she couldn’t make out the expression on his face.
She had no idea what to say. “Hey,” she offered.
“Are you all right?”
“Ah ... mostly.” That was a loaded question. She pointed to the guy sitting next to her. “Found Chris.”
Chris snorted, but if it made Hunter smile, she didn’t see. Casper was sniffing at her hands, and she petted him again, glad for an excuse to look down. After Chris’s revelations, this whole moment felt surreal.
No, this whole moment felt awkward.
“How’d you find us?” said Chris.
His voice wasn’t friendly, and shadows cloaked his eyes. He still sat halfway in the water beside her, and she felt the tide crawl over her fingers again.
She snatched her hand out of the water. Chris smiled.
“Oh, I’m sorry.” Hunter was glaring back at him. “Was I interrupting?”
“Yeah.” The water climbed farther up the shore this time, warmth seeping into the space behind her knees.
For god’s sake. “Don’t be a jerk,” she muttered, then struggled to find her footing in the wet sand. Her head swam a little, like her ears were full of seawater. Hunter stepped forward to help—right when Chris found his feet to do the same thing.
They both held on to her for a long second, aggression flickering like lightning between them.
Then Chris let go and stepped back as if it was nothing.
Hunter’s hand remained on her forearm, steady and secure. His fingers were warm, and now that she wasn’t sitting in the water, she realized how cold the night air was.
But he was still staring at Chris.
She felt like she should send them to opposing corners or something. “How did you find us?” she said.
Hunter took a breath—then shook his head. “You’re soaked and it’s cold. Let’s walk.”
She started to follow him toward the grass, but Chris hung back. “We should stick to the beach,” he said.
Did he think they were still in danger? Her eyes flashed to his.
Chris pointed to her feet. “You don’t have shoes.”
Oh.
So they walked. Hunter hung near, his arm still supporting her, though she stayed close for warmth now rather than any need for assistance. Chris walked in the surf, splashing with every step. Casper bounded ahead of them, jumping in and out of the water, circling back every few feet.
“You didn’t meet me at the car,” said Hunter. “Yours was still there, so I knew you weren’t blowing me off. I came inside to find you—”
“You didn’t come in his car?” said Chris, and there was no ignoring the sudden interest in his voice.
Hunter ignored him. “I found Quinn. She said you’d taken your keys. Someone else said they’d seen you go out back. By the time I got there, I saw the wind knock the fire drums over—” He stopped short and glared out at Chris, who was walking in deeper water, splashing hard with each step. “For god’s sake, what are you, six? Could you walk on the beach?”
