“Well, agree then. I’m not talkin' about it.”
“You’re safe, though? This coven isn’t dangerous?”
“I’m fine. I promise.”
I only nod in response.
“What’re you doin’ today?” he asks, not remotely subtle in his attempt to change the subject.
“I have a surf lesson.” My cheeks heat for no good fucking reason at all. Noah clocks it immediately and smirks.
“Hot instructor?”
I almost deny it, but what’s the point? “Ugh. So hot.” We both burst out laughing before returning to scarfing down breakfast.
Ethan is outside the shop prepping two boards when I approach. He looks completely in his element. The wind is blowing my scent away from him, and it awards me a few moments to gather myself.
Nobody should look that good in a wetsuit. It clings to every firm muscle on his body, the black neoprene making him appear panther-like. I have to shake my head to remind myself to stop ogling my wet-dream-worthy surf instructor.
“Mornin’,” I say as I step closer. He whips his head around and gives me a huge, toothy smile. Once again, my hand betrays me, and I wave at him like I’m the fucking queen or something. This is not a good start.
“Morning! We’ve got a perfect day for it. I got out a wetsuit for you to borrow; it’s hanging over the counter inside. There’s a changing room in the back if you want to meet me back out here when you’re ready?”
“Great. Thanks.” I smile back at him before heading inside the little surf shack.
Grabbing the wetsuit Ethan left out for me, I locate the changing rooms. It’s dry, thankfully; one of the perks of fitting the largest size is that it appears to be scarcely worn. I put it on over my swim shorts, hopping on one leg to get my foot through the small hole. I’m fairly certain there is no graceful way to put one of these things on.
Once I’ve finally squeezed into it like a sausage squished into its casing, I turn in the little cubicle, facing the full-length mirror. It's… tight. Like, really tight. Like leaves very little to the imagination, tight. I try to tug the crotch down a bit, but it’s not making much difference.
I may have no game whatsoever, but I have a pretty big dick. Going out in public like this feels like public indecency. I rearrange things as best as I can before sighing in defeat and going to find Ethan before he comes looking for me.
When I step outside, Ethan greets me once more with a big smile before he lets his gaze wander. His eyes widen, and his smile falters before a blush creeps along his cheekbones, and he swiftly averts his gaze. At least that's over with.
“Ready?” he asks, recovering from the awkwardness quickly.
“Yep.”
He hands me a surfboard and leads the way further down the beach, but not into the water. He explains that, to begin with; we’ll practice lying down and standing up on the board on dry land before giving it a go in the water.
“You’ll probably pick it up quicker than a human; we tend to find equilibrium more easily.”
Twenty minutes or so later, Ethan deems me capable of attempting the same thing on the waves.
We swim the boards out, lying on our fronts, until Ethan tells me we’ve gone far enough.
“And now we wait,” he explains. We straddle our boards and bob around in the water in comfortable silence. The sea is cold and refreshing where it wraps around my legs under the surface. Rays of sunlight barely penetrate the thick blanket of white clouds overhead. I take a deep breath, letting the cold, crisp air fill and expand my lungs before letting it out in a whoosh.
“Peaceful out here, huh?” Ethan says.
“Yeah. It’s so quiet. Like I can finally hear myself think.”
He makes a noise of agreement but doesn’t say anything more. Further down the beach, a few more surfers are waxing their boards, preparing to hit the water for the afternoon.
“Okay, here we go. Like we practised,” Ethan says.
We get back on our fronts and swim towards the shore, and when Ethan gives me the go-ahead, I try to catch the wave and stand on my board. I’m utterly unsuccessful, fall into the sea and get bashed by my board. It’s harder than it looks.
“Nobody gets it the first time, Sam. Let’s try again.”
