“That was . . . insane,” I finished. Holy shit, that was up there as being one of the best experiences of my life. Rolling onto my side, I studied her as she lay there with her eyes closed. She had the biggest smile on her face I’d seen in months.
“I want to do it again.” She grinned. “Do you think we can?”
I jumped to my feet and reached out for her hand, pulling her up. She stumbled into my arms. I curled them around her waist to stop her from falling. I tried to stop myself from staring at her, but it was hopeless. She looked so beautiful, with her damp, messed hair and a splash of red in her cheeks. Her hold on me didn’t weaken; her eyes didn’t falter. I pulled away, confused by the moment. I could’ve sworn there had been something there.
I had to have imagined it. There was no way . . . was there?
“Let’s go find out,” I said with a grin.
***
We reached the top of the cliff, courtesy of Pete’s partner, Lacey, who had been waiting for us down by the water in a beat up old Honda. Andy was nowhere in sight. I saw Marta and jumped out of the car as it slowed to a stop.
“Is he okay?” I asked, worried about him.
“He’s fine—he’s just a little tired. Don’t worry, he got the whole thing on tape,” she added with a smile. “He’s asked for me to take him home.”
I nodded. “Of course. We’ll be right behind you.”
“No, he wants you to stay here. He is very insistent on you making sure the girl has fun.” She lowered her voice so Em wouldn’t hear. “I’ve only known the kid for a few hours, but he loves her. He’s not concerned about himself at all. Everything is about creating memories for that one.”
Memories that he should be creating with her, not me.
“Okay.” I nodded. “Will you stay with him until we get back?”
She burst into laughter. “Honey, he’s hired me to stay with him twenty-four seven.”
I wondered if Em knew about that.
“What’s going on? Is he okay?” Em came racing over to me as Marta walked off.
“He’s fine, just tired. He wants us to keep going. Marta is going to stay for a few days, apparently.”
“Oh. Okay.” She took a step back, her brow creasing. I got the feeling she felt like she’d been replaced.
“Em, he wants you to have fun. He wants the last few weeks of his life to be full of memories that are going to make you smile, not cry.”
“I know. I get that, it’s just . . .” She shook her head. “I can’t turn things off. I can’t pretend everything is fine, because it’s not.”
“Come on. Get changed.” I pushed her toward the van, my hands resting on her shoulders. She was right: nothing was going to change reality, but I was going to try my hardest to help her escape from it for at least a little while.
“Why?” she asked, unzipping her wetsuit. “I thought we were going again.”
“Nope.” I shrugged my own suit off and stepped out of it, reaching for my towel to wrap it around my waist. “I’ve got a better idea.”
She groaned. “God, I’ve had enough of surprises for one day,” she muttered.
I grinned. I was sure she was going to like this one. My heart pounded as she lowered her wetsuit. Her black shorts clung to her like a second skin while her pink bikini top pushed up her cleavage. She reached for a towel and began to dry her hair.
Every tiny detail I noticed: the way the ends of her hair flicked trails of water down the length of her arms; the way she smiled as the sun hit her face; the way her body curved, creating the sexiest silhouette I’d ever seen.
I dragged my eyes away from her, but not before Pete met my gaze. He gave me a knowing smile. Great. I needed to pull myself together. Bundling up my clothes, I thanked Pete and told Em I’d meet her back at the car.
Pulling my T-shirt over my head, I grabbed my phone. Six missed calls. Numerous texts from Deb and my mom. I groaned. They were both going to kill me.
Flicking open a message to Mom, I texted her.
I’m doing what I need to do for Andy. Please understand. I promise to call if anything happens.