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We carry our boards into the shallow water. I watch Sierra stop to tighten the ponytail at the top of her head, then push her board further into the water, squealing when the cold ocean water hits her legs. She kneels in the center of her board, wrapping the leash around her ankle. I can’t take my eyes off her.
Sierra looks over her shoulder at me with a grin and I reach to give her board a little push. She pushes off the board effortlessly until she’s standing tall, her stance easy but solid. She’s completely in her element.
Wading into the water, I hop up onto my board and quickly find my balance, eager to catch up to her. I follow her out towards the horizon and away from the lights of Haven Harbor. We spend the next half hour paddling side by side, a comfortable silence between us. Eventually we both drop down so we’re straddling our boards and then we just float, the breeze a few degrees cooler now. Sierra wraps her arms around her middle for warmth.
The orange ball in the sky is inches away from disappearing, but despite the darkening sky Sierra seems in no rush to head back.
“Ever paddle this late?” I ask, my feet gliding back and forth underneath me, my body acclimatising to the cold water.
“When I was younger, but I haven’t been out at night for a while,” she says, turning to face me, smiling as she brushes a strand of golden hair from her face. She takes my breath away when she smiles. It’s fucking contagious when her face lights up, and I can’t help but mirror it. Whenever I make Sierra happy, it feels like my heart physically swells in my chest making me want to do it as often as I can.
“Jake and I used to drive Gran to drink when we paddled at night. She would stand in the front window, arms crossed over her chest, and watch us the whole time we were out. Her rule always was she needed to be able to see us and if we couldn’t see her, we had gone too far.”
“Did you do it? I mean, stick to her rules?”
She shakes her head. “I did, but not Jake. He would paddle behind the bluff and Gran used to get so mad at him,” she says gazing out at the steep bank to the right of us, a flash of sadness in her eyes.
A knot forms in my throat, and I swallow it down as I watch Sierra get lost in the memory. I hate that she carries so much pain after losing both of her parents. I hate that she has trouble sleeping, that she’s haunted by the memories of that horrible night. I would do anything to be able to fix it, to help her, but instead it is all out of my control. But I feel a deep urge inside of me to protect her, to be someone she can turn to.
Sierra lifts her chin and when her eyes land on me, I am frozen where I sit. Mesmerized.
Her hair is windblown, strands falling loose from the ponytail she’d twisted on top of her head. Her cheeks are tinted pink, her skin luminous with the splatter of freckles across her nose under the twilight sky.
“It’s so peaceful at night,” she says, her stomach muscles flexing and straining as she glides her leg through the water. “I’m really happy you asked me to come out here with you. I needed this.”
“I’m glad I did too,” I tell her, opting for an easy response instead of telling her how I really feel in this moment. Instead of telling her that I want to be consumed by her. I’m feral for this girl.
Fuck it, a voice in my head urges. So, I try again, this time telling her the truth. “You know, Sierra… I meant what I said back at your house tonight.”
A crease forms between her brows. “Meant what?”
“That I missed you.” I swallow. “I had to see you tonight.”
I’m close enough to her to see the shiver that rolls over her skin. I’m not sure if it’s from the breeze or my words, but her nipples are stiff under her white sports bra and fuck, I want to rip off her top, suck each peak into my mouth and then worship the rest of her body. Then her chocolate eyes lock with mine and it’s devastating. The way she’s looking at me with such curiosity and wonder awakens a need inside of me, a craving that roars to life. I need to feel her.
“Come sit with me. I’ll keep you warm,” I tell her, patting the board between my parted thighs.
She doesn’t question it. She doesn’t worry how she’s going to make it from her board to mine, she just moves, sliding her paddle under one of the straps of her board so it doesn’t float away, un-Velcroing the leash from her ankle, then carefully moving to her knees. Taking the leash, I tether her board to my own to prevent it from floating away and then spread my legs as wide as I can. My hands grip both of her thighs to keep her steady as she crosses over to my board and then she slowly sits down in front of me, her back to my front, legs straddling my board. Exactly where I want her.
Sierra lets out a long breath, then leans back into me as my hands snake around her waist. Holding her tight, I inhale her scent, appreciating the way her body feels molded to mine. I inhale the scent of her hair, enjoying the feel of the soft strands against my neck. With her ass so close to my groin, my cock starts to respond. I silently tell my dick to take it easy.
“This feels good, Sierra,” I say, tightening my arms around her waist. “You feel good.”
“I like being in your arms too, Gray. I like it a lot.” She nestles further back into me, resting her arms on top of mine.
I kiss the top of her head, closing my eyes for just a moment, wanting to freeze this moment in time. The hesitancy I’ve felt from Sierra since I ran into her in front of her grandma’s house that first day is gone. Maybe it was our kiss the other night that finally broke down the walls she’d built up. Maybe she’s just decided to stop fighting this pull between us.
Over the past week I’ve given Sierra some time and space to wrap her head around the kiss on her front porch, hoping she would accept that it’s impossible to ignore this thing simmering between us. Tonight, it feels like she’s ready for me to push a little further.
“Have you thought about that kiss the other night as much as I have?” I ask.
She hesitates before answering. “Grayson, can I ask you a question?”
“Anything,” I say into her hair.
“Was the kiss a big mistake?” she asks softly. “I mean… I don’t want to ruin your friendship with my brother. And what about—”
“I don’t want to talk about Jake. I only want to talk about us,” I say, my voice firm. “You felt that kiss, Sierra. I know you did. I know it was just as incredible for you as it was for me. So why the hell are we fighting this?”
