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I shrug. “Just trying to show you I’m not the monster you think I am.” She continues to stare at it causing a chuckle to push past my lips, but it sounds hollow even to me. “Usually you drink coffee with your mouth, not your eyes.”
My lame attempt at a joke snaps her out of her trance. She finally accepts the drink and takes a sip. Her eyes close as she takes a mouthful and as she pulls the cup away her tongue swipes along her bottom lip.Fuck. I never knew drinking an iced coffee could be such a fucking turn on.
I clear my throat and turn away to stealthily adjust myself. “Come on, Princess. Let’s get set up for the day.”
The way her breath hitches at her nickname has my dick twitching yet again–but I don’t let her know that. I’m not going to be a rebound for her. Despite her prickly attitude, I can’t get Ivy Willis off my mind and for the first time in my life, I’m going to fight for what I want.
Today is much the same as yesterday, with Ivy demonstrating how to pop up on her board and me wandering in amongst the children. But with the way Ivy is so confident on her board, her body knowing each move before it’s made has me struggling to keep my eyes off her.
Once all the children seem to have nailed standing up smoothly, Ivy gets to her feet “Like yesterday, we’re going to head down to the water and we’ll take you in two at a time. Who’s ready to catch some waves?”
They all jump about whooping, unable to contain their excitement. It’s contagious. I grin, catching Ivy’s eye. My whole body heats up when she smiles back.
Turns out surfing on the sand is a lot easier than on the water. After an hour, only three of the eight juniors have managed to get to their feet on their boards. There’s a somber mood as we make our way back to the beach.
“It’s okay,” Ivy reassures them. “It just takes practise. I guarantee I’ll have all of you up on your boards by the end of the week.”
She’s greeted with a lot of doubtful looks and a couple of teary faces, but she just nods and makes a cross over her heart. I wait until all of the children are gone before walking over to her. “You’re really good with them.”
“Thanks,” she says. She pulls her hair tie out and shakes her long, blonde locks over her shoulders. My fingers twitch, wanting to comb through the strands, but I place them in the pockets of my board shorts before I can do anything stupid.
I clear my throat. “Do you maybe want to go grab a bite togeth–”
“Ivy!” I look up to find Wren making her way towards us.
“Sorry,” Ivy says, already walking away from me. “Got plans. See you in a bit.”
I stare after them like an idiot until someone shoulder checks me from behind hard enough to make me stumble. I barely catch my footing before spinning around to face who it is. Brady Willis–of course. “What the fuck, man?”
“Stay away from her,” he says, shrugging as if it’s just that simple. He backs towards the lifeguard tower.
“And if I don’t?”
My words stop him in his tracks, and he glares at me. “Is this some sort of joke to you, Foster? She’s my sister, and I don’t want her getting caught up in whatever fucked up game you’re playing. She doesn’t need you taking advantage of her.”
I scoff. If anyone’s been advantage of it was me, but I’m not about to tell her brother that. I’m not in the mood for a broken jaw.
“I’m serious, Foster.” Brady narrows his eyes at me. “Stay the fuck away from her, or we’re going to have a problem.”
“Seems to me, the only one with a problem here is you.” I hold my hands up in front of me as he takes a step forward. “Relax, Willis. Ivy’s a big girl. She can look after herself.”
I walk away before anything else can be said.
The surf club is busy, but I grab a salad roll from the kiosk and manage to snag a table. I scroll mindlessly through social media, but I’m too distracted. I spend my time wondering how the hell I’m going to convince Ivy to give me a fair chance. The thing that pisses me off the most about the situation is that her brother hates me for something I didn’t even do.
By the time my lunch break is over, I’m no closer to an answer and even more frustrated than before. I toss my rubbish in the bin and head back outside into the stifling heat, stopping short when I spot Ivy talking to some guy. My stomach twists when she laughs and tucks her hair behind her ears. He leans in, murmuring something in her ear that makes her smile and nod. A flash of red and yellow catches my peripheral. I lock eyes with a smirking Brady. I flip him off, unable to help myself. It just makes his grin bigger.
I square my shoulders and head over to my bag, which just happens to be next to Ivy. I grab my bottle of water, twist off the cap and guzzle half of it at once. It does nothing to dispel the rising heat in my body when I hear the guy ask Ivy out.
“Sorry, RJ. I can’t tonight,” she says, her smile fading a little. “I’m closing at The Scoop after I finish here.”
“No worries.” The douchebag grins. “I’m babysitting tomorrow night, but Thursday my mate’s band is playing at Patty’s. You keen on checking them out?”
I take another swig from my water, waiting for her to shut him down again. I only end up choking when she says, “It’s a date.”
They both turn looks on me: his brimming with concern, and Ivy’s filled with annoyance.
“You alright, man?”
