A Week at the Beach (22 page)

            I rolled my eyes at him and he splashed me. 

            “This is going to sound corny, and I freely admit that,” he put his hand up to cover his eyes in shame, “but, I kind of admire you for keeping your number so low.”

            “You’re right, that was corny.” I splashed him and laughed.  “What you don’t know is that I wasn’t exactly beating them off with a stick during my teenage years.  I had glasses, braces, and a lot of very bad haircuts.  Trust me, there weren’t many desirable offers coming my way for a long time!”

            “You certainly grew out of all that awkwardness,” he said as he gave me a once over.

            “Believe it or not, Chrissy helped make me what I am today.  When we met freshman year, I was still a mess.  She took me in and made me her little project.  A new haircut, some make up tips, and help picking out clothes and she’d transformed me into a normal looking human being.”  I laughed and added, “Thankfully, I am a fast learner and was able to complete my transformation before Chrissy turned me into what I can only describe as a high society escort.  You should see some of the things that girl goes out in!”

            Nick smiled, “I’m sure she’s quite the scene stealer.”

            I nodded vigorously.

            “Do you go out with her often?”  He shifted on his board so that he was lying on his back.  He turned his head towards me and waited for my answer. 

            I stared at him for a few seconds, transfixed by his body.  It wasn’t like I hadn’t noticed it before, but when he stretched out on his board like that it was as if something in my head clicked.  Beads of water glistened on his tanned, and toned, chest.  His abs flexed as he turned to look at me.  When my eyes reached his belly button, I forced myself to stop looking, not sure if I could handle seeing how his abdominal muscles angled down into his trunks. I shook my head, trying to bring myself back to reality.

            Feeling hot and flustered, I tipped myself into the water on the other side of my board.  When I came up, he was staring at me with a huge smile on his face.

            “You did do that on purpose, right?” he asked with the grin still in place.

            I nodded, “I was just starting to get a little warm, so I thought I’d hang out in the water for a while.”

            He gave me a strange look then rolled his head back over to look straight up.  “You never answered my question.”

            “Oh yeah,” I suddenly remembered that he had been talking to me before I got distracted by his body.  “We go out sometimes, but I’m really not into it.  It used to be clubs that she wanted to go to, and I hated that.  All those people standing around, drinking, doing drugs, and pretending like they don’t care about anyone else but secretly hoping that everyone is watching them.  It was exhausting.”

            Nick chuckled, “That sounds a lot like LA.  What does she do now?”

            I made a face and said, “It’s actually worse now!  She’s constantly going to these dinner parties and cocktail parties. Half the people there are older than my parents. The other half are their twenty-something wives!  It’s gross, actually.  After a long day at school, I’d much rather just pick up some take out, put on my pajamas, and curl up in front of the tiny television in my bedroom.  Who cares if I never meet a man that way?  At least I won’t be married to someone who has wrinkles older than I am!”

            Nick smiled again, “In LA, it’s the same.  Except that, all the girls are trying to break into the business by sleeping with producers and movie execs.”

            “Disgusting,” I said with a shake of my head.  “That’s why I’m in no hurry to put myself out there again.  Dating as an adult is a lot trickier than it was in college.  There are too many questions and expectations now.”

            Nick turned his head towards me, “So, you haven’t dated since you broke up with Jack?”

            “No,” I shook my head.  “I haven’t been on a real date in six years.”

            “What’s a real date?” Nick asked with a grin.

            I blushed, “You know, the kind where a guy picks you up, takes you to a nice restaurant or to the movies, then brings you back home at the end.”  I shrugged it off, but it wasn’t until that moment that I realized exactly how out of the loop I was.  A strange thought occurred to me then.  “Wait!  Is that how it’s still done?  Do guys still pick you up for a date or is that too risky with all the freaks out there?  Do people still go to dinner and a movie?  I am so out of it!”

            Nick grinned, “Some people still follow that pattern.  Although, if you don’t actually know the guy then you would probably be safer just meeting him somewhere.  That way if he does turn out to be a freak, at least he won’t know where you live.  Unless, of course, he’s already looked you up on the internet and has all your information before you tell him anything.”

            My eyes widened, “It all seems so complicated and scary now.  I don’t want to have to go through all of that.  I’m hoping to be one of those lucky girls who happens to bump into some man on the subway, or in line to get coffee, and things just click.  I don’t think I’m equipped for the fast-paced dating scene that is going on out there today.”

            Nick grinned, “Maybe you’ll meet him on the beach and you’ll fall in love with him while he shows you how to play volleyball.”

            I dipped my head under the water, swam under my board and came up beside him.  He had his eyes closed, so he didn’t see me coming.  I lifted his board, tipping him into the water.  I grabbed ahold of my board and tried to pull myself onto it before he emerged from the water.  Graceful as always, my wet hands slipped against the board and I couldn’t get myself up out of the water.  I felt his hands on my waist, pulling me down from what little progress I’d made getting onto my board.  I squealed as he pulled me closer to him then pushed my head down into the water. 

            I came up from the water, still smiling, but gulping for air.  He waited long enough for me to catch my breath before he pounced on me again, pushing my head under the water again.  Thinking I’d outsmart him, I started swimming away from him.  I felt his hands on my feet pulling me back towards him.  My hands groped at the water in front of me, but I could feel myself moving backwards. 

            “Stop fighting me!” Nick laughed and moved his hands up my legs to my waist. 

            “Promise me that you won’t push me under the water again!” I shouted back through laughter of my own.  My hands were still struggling in the water, but I wasn’t really putting any effort into getting away from him.

            Suddenly, we were facing each other as we bobbed in the water.  His hands were still on my waist and he was still pulling me towards him.  Our feet bumped against each other under the water and the skin contact sent a wave of pleasure through me.  I watched his mouth getting closer to mine and felt my body fighting with my head over what to do next.  His arms wrapped around my waist and I felt my body melt against his in the water.

            Just before our mouths touched, my head took over.

            “This is a bad idea,” I whispered against his lips.

            He inhaled sharply and closed his eyes.  A few seconds later I felt his grip on my waist loosen and his body pull away from mine. 

            I swam away from him and back towards my board.  He stayed in place for another minute before turning around and coming back to his board.  I watched him out of the corner of my eye as he pulled himself onto his board. 

            “Sorry,” I said quietly.

            He took a deep breath, “For tipping me into the water or for teasing me with a kiss?”

            I blushed, “Both, I guess.”

            He lay back on his board and grinned, “Don’t be.  I enjoyed every minute of it.”

12.

Nick and I stayed out on the water for several hours.  We talked and laughed the entire time.  We also kept a safe distance from each other.  Eventually, the horizon darkened as the sun got lower in the sky.

            “We should probably go in now,” Nick said with a sigh. 

            “Do we have to?  I’m kind of afraid of what might be happening in the house.”  I looked towards the house, but couldn’t tell if there was anything going on there.

            Nick laughed, “Come on.  I’m starving.”

            I followed him towards the shore, paddling as best as I could to keep up with him.  When we got close, and the water got too shallow to paddle any longer, we both stood up and picked up the boards.  Nick shifted his board to his other side and motioned for me to give him my board.  Suddenly feeling too tired to fight him I stepped closer and let him take my board.  When he did, our hands brushed against each other and a shock of electricity shot through me.  I pulled my hand away and took a step away from him as we walked onto the shore.  Neither of us spoke as we headed back to the house.

            When we reached the house, Nick headed for the storage closet and I went for the stairs. 

            “Do you want me to make something for dinner?” I asked before going any further.

            “Sure, whatever sounds good to me,” he gave me a smile and walked on.

            The house was eerily quiet and dark.  I called out to see if anyone was home, but received no response.  Now that I was out of the water, I started to feel the effects of spending the day in the sun.  I headed for the kitchen, hoping to find something easy to fix for dinner.  The refrigerator was stuffed with leftovers from the party a few days earlier, so I pulled a few things out and set them on the counter. 

            “What have we got?” Nick asked when he walked into the kitchen.

            “There is an entire tray of leftover cheese.  I found some fruit left, too.  There’s also some lunch meat in there, though I don’t think there is any bread left.”  I surveyed the kitchen and the assorted trays I’d set out on the counter.

            “We’ll just pick off of these trays all night.  How does that sound?”

            I shrugged, “Sounds okay by me.  I think I’m going to go take a shower first, though.” I didn’t wait for a response.  When I left the kitchen, Nick was busy picking off one of the trays.

            After my shower, I felt better.  When I went to the mirror to comb my hair I realized that I’d gotten a little more sun than I’d intended to.  My nose was bright red, so were my cheeks and the skin under my eyes.  I searched through my stuff looking for something with aloe in it, but couldn’t find anything.  My hair was still dripping wet as I walked out of the bathroom. 

            “Nick?” I called out over the banister of the stairs.  I thought he’d be in the kitchen still, so I’d screamed as loud as I could.  But when he responded, it was a lot closer than I’d expected.

            “Yes?” he said from behind a door across the hall from where I was standing.

            “Where are you?” I asked in a much quieter voice.

            “I’m in my room.  What do you want?” he said in an amused tone.

            “What are you doing in there?” I asked and walked towards the door.

            “I’m getting dressed!”

            I stopped.  I’d just spent the day with him, marveling at his toned and half-naked body, and I’d even slept on his bare chest the day before, but suddenly the thought of him naked just on the other side of the door made me blush. 

            “Did you need something?” he asked and I heard footsteps in his room.  He opened the door and stood there looking at me.  He still wasn’t wearing a shirt, but he had traded his board shorts for a pair of faded jeans.  The waistband of his briefs peeked out as he buttoned the jeans.