Riptide (Limitless Book 1) (5 page)

“Ouch. Not sure what I did to deserve that.” She stopped the car at the end of a driveway. The waves could be seen along the beach, stretching out behind the large house, the roar of their clashing with the shore mimicked the anger they were both radiating with. She hopped out of the car and glared at him. “When you manage to remove that piece of driftwood that has lodged itself in your ass, I’ll have Aaron show you to the guest house.”

Great...and the hits kept on coming
. Colton sent along his personal assistant as a chaperone. Could this day get any better? The harder Hunter tried to put everything behind him, the more he felt as though he struggled to keep his head above water only to get pummeled by another wave and sucked back under all over again.

He climbed out of the jeep and grabbed his duffle bag. Since he had no intention on surfing, he left the board strapped to the top of the Jeep. The front door opened and Phoenix bounded up the stairs to meet Aaron. She hugged him, and though the man was older and more like family to Phoenix, Hunter felt a pang of jealousy. Somehow, he needed to find a way to make peace with her or the next two weeks were going to be pure unadulterated hell.

W
hen Hunter woke, the sun still hadn’t peaked over the horizon. He could hear the swell reports through the speakers of the radio. Sounded like good surf. He still felt the urge to get on a board. To immerse himself in the ebb and flow of the surf. But each time he did, the morning at Maverick’s haunted him. He hadn’t lied to Phoenix about that. They really didn’t have any business being out there. He and Slade both had known it. Two friends trying to recapture the love they had for the sport when they were just daredevils riding the waves for the pure joy of it. Not for money, girls, or glory. Macho bullshit outweighed common sense. They’d been lucky when they’d pulled that crap in the past, but that day, their luck ran out. Never again.

He got out of bed, ran his hands through his hair, and pulled on a pair of sweatpants. In the corner of the room, his board leaned against the wall, a note taped to it.

“Can’t ride this from the back of my Jeep, hotshot.”

Though he had no intentions of riding, the note from Phoenix gave him hope that things weren’t beyond repair between them. He needed to know exactly where he stood and what he wanted from her though. This urgency he felt to get to her this last time told him he may have ventured down an emotional path he vowed he would never go. Maybe a walk would clear his head. If he watched the waves roll in, walked the beach and felt the sand between his toes, perhaps he would find answers. He made his way through the lush plants bordering the property and down to the sand. What he found was Phoenix. Again. Just like he had two years ago, only this time she rode the surf instead of undressing on the beach. The sun was just rising, but he had no intention of paddling out there to surf. He sank down onto the warm sand and watched her.

The sets rolled in and Phoenix dropped in. Carving the face of the wave, she looked at peace. Just her and the ocean. It was stupid to be out there alone. Any number of things could go wrong. The leash could get caught on the reef. The surf, if strong enough, had the ability to hold her down and depending on any number of other factors, she might find herself getting pounded by the incoming sets, unable to catch a breath before being pushed back under. All it took was one moment of bad luck. Like Maverick’s.

Phoenix disappeared from view as she sank back into the tube. His chest constricted as his pulse raced. This could not be happening again. Not now. Not her. He pushed up from the sand and rushed down toward the water. Waves crashed on the beach and soaked the bottom of his pants as he tried to catch a glimpse of her. Every step, the sand and water sucked in around his ankles like quicksand. Phoenix reappeared, hitting the crest of the wave, catching air, and then back down into the face. She was safe.

Movement to his left drew his attention. Aaron stood on a small dock, jet skis and a small motorboat tied up nearby. He watched through binoculars, ready to jump in and go after her if she needed the help. For a moment, he wondered if she knew that the man was there, or if this was just another part of his job. He’d left shortly after their arrival last night. No doubt her father made sure Aaron stayed close by, taking every precaution where his daughter was concerned, whether she knew it or not. As the sets began to slow, and the swells held no promise of good surf, Phoenix paddled in. When she emerged from the water, Aaron disappeared, leading Hunter to the conclusion that she’d likely been kept in the dark about the man watching over her.

Phoenix jackknifed her board into the sand. “You riding or just watching?”

“Left my board in the room.” He was being difficult. Not surfing and giving Phoenix nothing to work with defeated the purpose of being there. Fighting with her made it all even less appealing. No matter what his heart said, he knew none of it would matter in the end. His agent called the shots. End of story.

“You can be a real selfish bastard; you know that? I get that Slade was your best friend, but you aren’t the only one who is suffering the loss of him.”

He never thought about the fact that she and Slade became friends over the years and she suffered right along with him. Even worse, that she hadn’t really been able to be there because she was out of the country. But it didn’t matter. She was right. He was a selfish bastard when it came to his feelings over losing his best friend and when it came to her. “This isn’t new. Only two people in my life I’ve ever been selfish with.”

She looked away from him. Funny how such a simple statement seemed to take the wind out of her sails a bit. He would need to ease up on her though. None of this was her fault. “You always ride alone? It’s not smart.”

“If you aren’t going to ride with me, then what choice do I have? We did come here to surf after all.”

“No. You came to surf. Not me.” He handed her a bottle of water and she took a long drink from it. The words tattooed on the inside of her forearm caught his eye. He’d seen the ink many times, but today it stood out to him.
Surf by faith
. Words she lived by. He envied her ability to put her ride into the hands of the unknown. The carefree nature in which she rode. Once upon a time, he’d approached the water the same way—until it turned on him.

“It’s your choice to get on a board again or not.” She handed the bottle of water back to him. “My dad wants you on track before the tournament. Honestly, I really don’t care. You want to punk out, give up on everything you’ve worked toward your entire life, and dishonor the memory of your best friend in the process, who am I to stop you?”

“Wow.” He stared up at her, shocked by the fire and brutal honesty in her tone. “Those are your words of encouragement? Hate to tell you this, but your falling a bit short. I wouldn’t take up any motivational speaking gigs in the near future.”

She shrugged. “You don’t want my help. That was made perfectly clear from the moment you got off the plane. I’m not your nursemaid or babysitter. You know where the airport is. Aaron can drive you or you can catch a cab. Me? Well there are supposed to be some sweet swells here over the next few days that will hopefully last into next week, and since my father went to all the trouble to clear my schedule, I intend to get a few more good rides in before I go home.”

Somewhere along the lines they’d become friends and she pulled no punches when she dealt with him. It stung at times. The lack of filter in her words when she talked to him had a tendency to cut through all his defenses and excuses. He’d brought it on himself. Not letting her in. Keeping her at a distance. Right now, he wanted to put that horrible day behind him. Forget it happened. The woman who could typically make his worst day on the water disappear, stood just feet in front of him and he couldn’t have her. Water ran down in rivulets over the smooth expanse of her stomach. He longed to lick the salt water from her skin. Reclaim the moments spent in her arms. He rose, leaned in close to her, and brushed his lips against her cheek. “Unfortunately, what I want from you right now, I can’t have.”

***

“W
hat do you mean it’s not going well? You’ve been there for two days. Aaron said that Hunter hasn’t even bothered to surf.”

She watched her father as he paced back and forth in front of the computer in his office. Her father’s impatience infuriated her as much as the fact he had Aaron checking up on them and reporting back on their progress. Between her father’s request for a daily status report by video chat and having an unofficial chaperone, she would never make progress with Hunter.

“Aaron needs to go back to Oahu.” She picked up the images that were delivered from her photographer from the Park City shoot. Marking out the ones she didn’t like, she set aside the ones she’d narrowed down. “And you need to stop demanding a daily update on my progress. The more time I spend talking to you or playing twenty questions with your assistant, the less time I get to spend trying to get through to your surfer.”

She watched as the unshakeable Colton Nash sank down into his chair. “Not such a good idea.”

Frustration ate at her. The more Hunter distanced himself from her, the more she realized that she was desperate to keep him. “Dad, you either trust me to do what is right by you, Limitless, and Hunter Sullivan, or you don’t. When you figure out where you stand, let me know. In the meantime, get some sleep because you look like hell.” Then she disconnected the call. No I love you’s, no goodbyes. The longer Hunter didn’t talk to her, or attempt to touch her, the more she hated her dad for putting her in this position. This whole thing turned into a cluster fuck and she didn’t like it one bit.

She moved out to the patio, ignoring the ringing from her laptop. Then the cell phone in her back pocket. She pulled it out and looked at it, tempted to chuck it over the railing and into the sand. Instead, she turned it off, dropped it on the lounge chair, and leaned against the railing. The ocean was still today. Smooth as glass. Surfing was out, but perhaps a ride in the boat or on the jet skis. Today she didn’t want to contemplate how to make her father happy because doing so made her miserable. There was a reason he’d pushed her into doing this. She couldn’t figure out why and he sure as hell wasn’t volunteering the information. Guess they all had secrets to keep. The conference line on her laptop started chiming again.

“I don’t think he’s going to give up.”

“Holy crap!” She turned and stared at Hunter, who sat on the top stair that led down to the sand. He looked good in his board shorts and no shirt. Like he was ready to hit the waves. Only she knew better. “How long have you been sitting here?”

“Long enough to hear you hang up on your dad.” He chuckled. “One thing I’ve learned about your father over the past couple years, he doesn’t quit. I’m sure he is hotter than hell right now.”

No, her father wasn’t a quitter, but he’d come close once. Phoenix thought she’d had it all figured out. Life was for fun, relationships were trouble, and you did what you had to in order to protect what was yours. Right now, she found herself questioning how much she really knew about life, because at the moment...she sure as shit wasn’t enjoying herself. Personal involvements came at a price, but she wondered if they were worth it, and she was losing sight on what she fought so hard to protect. The way she saw things, her heart would be at risk of breaking one way or the other. Just a matter of who did the breaking—Hunter or her father. “Yeah well, every last one of you are pissing me off, so I figure turnabout is fair play.”

“Take a walk with me?”

He stood and turned toward her, giving her an unobstructed view of his muscled chest and slight washboard stomach. When it came to bodies that made her want, his beat them all, and in her line of work, she saw a lot of half-naked bodies. Something about Hunter always made her want to take him however and wherever she could have him. She looked at him, wondering what he had up his sleeve.

He held his hands up in surrender. “Just want to talk.”

She wasn’t sure they were capable of doing something other than fall into bed together. Part of her feared what they shared would be diminished by the everyday crap that wore people down. “That’s not typically what we do.”

“I know. To be honest, I don’t think it’s been working out so well for us, even before your dad threw this ‘assignment’ in the mix. And I think we can admit we don’t have much choice at this point.” He held a hand out to her. “If we go one more day of not really talking, trying desperately to avoid the elephant in the room, I think we just might kill each other.”

The man had a point. The last couple of days when they did manage to exchange words; the conversations were laden with the expectations placed on them by her father. If they could clear the air, then maybe there was some chance things could get back to normal between them.

“All right.” Phoenix took his out stretched hand, enjoying the strength and solidness of his grip. He let go as they rounded the bottom of the stairs and she missed the contact.

“Hello, Aaron.” The clipped tone in Hunter’s voice told Phoenix that he resented the man’s presence nearly as much as she did. Information she could use to her advantage should her dad continue to fight her on her request.

“Morning, Mr. Sullivan.” He looked past him to Phoenix. “Your father’s been calling—”

“You can let my father know that I will call him later.” She grabbed the boat keys off the hook just inside the doorway. “We’ll be back.”

“I won’t be here. Your father has requested my return. I will make sure everything is fully stocked before I go.”

“Thanks.” Wow. Who’d have guessed that Mr. Take-No-Prisoners-Nash would make a concession? Phoenix expected more of a fight from dear old over-protective dad. She turned to Hunter, whose eyes had darkened and she was all too familiar with that look of lust and need swimming in their depths. Heat rose into her cheeks as she winked at him and jerked her head towards the dock. “Let’s go.”

Once they were out of sight of the house, Hunter took her hand in his. “Of all the people on his payroll, why did your dad have to choose you?”