Lorelie Brown - Riding the Wave

“Like?” He stood on a soft laugh. “They’re some of the best work we’ve seen in years.”

Johnny Carter, advertising guru, stood at his end of the table. “They’re going to give us the spin we’ve been looking for. A taste of the end of an era, the passing of a star.” He flushed slightly pink and bobbed his head toward Tanner. “No offense meant.”

“None taken.” His blue eyes were still boring into her. And she honestly didn’t really want to escape. “But if you all don’t mind, I’ve got something I want to discuss with Avalon.”

Then he did the most remarkable thing. He held his hand out.

Steady, calm . . . and waiting.

She put out her hand. For him. In front of an entire roomful of people. Her heart was tumbling around her throat, but that was good. More than that, it felt amazing.

They met at the head of the table, and her fingers slipped into his. The warmth of his hand folded around hers, shot up her arm in a reassuring zing.

They were silent as they walked out of the building and across the parking lot. As if by unspoken agreement, neither said a word even when they were at the edge of the sand.

Avalon held on to Tanner’s thick arm as she balanced on first one foot, then the other, to take her heels off. Then the sand’s warmth took the soles of her feet. This was home. This was reassurance.

She could have almost any conversation on the sand. Even one that made her think she might pop right out of her skin. She tried to take deep, steady breaths to calm herself. The far line of the horizon glittered with afternoon sunlight. Nothing but heartache ever came when she got so overwrought.

Then Tanner touched her.

He curved one hand around the back of her neck, tugging her near. With his other fingers, he made her look. The expression on his face threatened to rip her to shreds from the inside. His eyes tilted down at the corners with deep emotion.

The thumb he rubbed over her cheek was wet. She hadn’t even realized she was crying. But that was how deeply he affected her. “God, I’m so sorry,” he finally said. The words were harsh with more emotion than she’d ever thought to hear.

“I am, too, but . . .” her voice trailed off. She ducked his gaze. The open collar of his shirt displayed his thick neck. Burying her face in that strength would be so incredibly comforting. And she even had a feeling he’d let her. They could quietly declare everything done, then carry on to take what they could from life.

Avalon pulled her head back to look at him in the eyes. A faint, glassy sheen hovered behind his lashes. She bit her bottom lip on the hard thud that echoed through her chest. Her heart, absolutely lost without him. “I should have told you, though. Anything worth doing is worth admitting to.”

He shook his head. “I didn’t give you a chance to explain after the fact, either.”

“I could have made an opportunity. Except,” she said on a quiet whisper. “Except I still don’t think I was wrong to do it.”

He sighed. The grip he folded around her upper arms was like coming home. “You weren’t. God, you definitely weren’t.” He pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her. “I’ve been an ass.”

With her face pressed against his chest, there was no missing his clean, soap scent. Not that she would want to. “You have been,” she agreed. “Feel free to talk at length about that.”

“I was an idiot, a jackass. It’s gone really far back too.” His hands roamed over her shoulders, mostly giving comfort. “I was playing God, like Dad did. But in an entirely different way. Thinking I had all the right answers. I’m so sorry, Avalon. I know you were only doing what you thought best. Hell, what you did ended up being what was best. Mom needed to prove it to herself that Mako couldn’t touch us.”

He bent his face to the top of her head, nuzzling his lips across her temple. But the hand he curved around the back of her head trembled the slightest bit.

There was one thing that had become clear to her over the past couple days. “I didn’t tell because I was afraid of making you upset. Because making you upset could mean losing you.”

“Never.” He held her firmly. His hands were unmovable. Steady and real. “You’re not losing me. Avalon, without you I’m lost. I need you. You’re my girl. Everything to me.”

She slicked her tongue over her bottom lip, wondering how to say what she needed to. “I . . . I don’t know if I believe that. I want to. So badly, it makes me ache inside. But really I’m not sure I understand how you can need someone who hasn’t made herself heard?”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

She nibbled on the inside of her cheek. The slight bite of pain centered her whirling thoughts. “It really, really bothered me that you didn’t tell me about your idea to turn your mom’s store into a surf school.” When it looked like he was about to protest, she held up a hand. “Not that I expected you to consult me. I just wanted you to . . . think of me, I guess.”

“I always think of you,” he said solemnly. “You color the way I think, the way I see the world, my every move. Avalon, I love you.”

The air in her throat thickened. Her lips parted on a silent gasp and her heart was beating so hard it felt like it was trying to slam out of her chest. “You love me?”

His big, strong hand was heavy against her jaw, his fingers on her neck. “I do.”

“I love you, too, Tanner.” The breaths that had been silent a second ago flipped into a tiny sob. She pulled back far enough that a wisp of breeze could move between them and flirt with the bottom hem of her blouse. Her skin was sticky hot, but that was most likely the emotion of the moment. “Not just because I love Sage and your mom, but because you make me happier than I ever thought I could be.”

She nibbled the inside of her lip hard enough to make it tingle with a hint of pain as one last worry nagged her. “The bigger problem is that I didn’t speak up. I didn’t tell you once I had a problem, like I was some second-class citizen who doesn’t get to voice her problems. That’s not happening again.”

His grin did wicked things to her insides. “Sweetheart, that’s absolutely fine.” He ducked his head to skate his lips over her neck. Shivers washed out over her skin. “In case you haven’t noticed, I love it when you’re mouthy.”

“Those photos . . .”

His mouth stilled against her flesh for half a second; then he pulled back. “Those photos were everything you were talking about the other day.”

“You were listening to me.”

“Of course I was. I listen to everything you say. It’s a matter of me learning to unpop my head from my ass.” He waved that off. “But those photos are amazing. Emotional and real. Everyone in that room stopped what they were doing. You deserve that.”

“They’re so intimate.”

“I don’t care. Not if it means you get the recognition you deserve. Making you happy means more to me than you realize. I’d do anything for you.” He smoothed her hair. The emotion and power in his eyes was almost intimidating. Almost. It was also heartwarming and what she’d been looking for all her life.

Her fingers found purchase in the sides of his shirt. Through the fine material, the heat of his skin worked through her. The stinging pressure behind her eyes finally eased. “How about we make a deal?” Her smile worked all the way up from the tips of her toes to her head, easing the tension she hadn’t even realized she’d had.

“Anything,” he agreed automatically. “Anything so long as I get to keep you.”

But she put the tips of her fingers over his mouth. “I’ll promise to talk even when I think I’ll upset you, if you’ll promise to talk calmly with me before you run off at the mouth.”