The Arrangement

And it sure didn’t hurt that she could cook circles around us.

Kayleen was still spitting water when I reached her, coughing out flecks of the sea. I pulled my board up alongside her so she could grab onto it.

“Don’t forget what I told you…” I reminded her quickly. “Always dump to the side. Never in front. You don’t want to get hit by your own board.”

She coughed once more, then squinted up at me. She looked breathtakingly beautiful, grinning from ear to ear.

“I rocked that wave though,” she said smugly. “Didn’t I?”

I was already beaming right back at her. I couldn’t have been more proud.

“Fuck yeah you did.”

On the heels of victory we paddled in, to where our towels were already spread out and warmed by the sun. Kayleen pulled four different sandwiches from our bright red cooler, while I cracked the top on two frosty bottles of water.

“Cheers, big ears.”

It was a stupid toast I’d picked up in London years ago, whi

le traveling with my parents. Kayleen rightfully rolled her eyes.

“Great job out there,” I told her. “A couple more weeks and we’ll be surfing side by side.”

Kayleen shook her head at me and smirked. “A couple more weeks,” she corrected, “and I’ll be stealing your waves.”

She toasted me and drank deeply, while I sat there and laughed. I couldn’t help but watch the cool water glide down her smooth, flawless throat.

“So…” she sighed, slicking her hair back. “How’s the story coming?”

I stumbled for a few seconds in answering her. With the water beading off her well-oiled skin, she was just too pretty. The curves of her body, too perfect for words.

I wanted to freeze the moment in time. Tuck it safely away, so I could always have it…

“Nathan?” she smiled. “Earth to Nathan?”

“The story’s fantastic,” I told her. “The first book’s done, and we’re well into the second.”

“That’s awesome.”

It wasn’t the first time she’d asked. At first we figured she was just being polite, but lately Kayleen seemed to be taking a genuine interest in what we were writing.

“It’s even more awesome you’ve already got a publisher lined up,” she went on. “That you’ve already got the hard part — finding an agent and landing book deal — out of the way.”

I studied her carefully.

“Some might say the hard part would be writing a best-selling book,” I put forth.

“Maybe,” Kayleen shrugged. She tore a sandwich down the middle and handed it to me. “But with the publisher and marketing already set up for you, you guys are bound to succeed.”

I bit down into something that tasted like pure heaven. Light and flavorful, it was like she’d found the freshest tuna in the Universe.

“Don’t get me wrong,” she added quickly. “I’m not saying your book wouldn’t kick ass even if you didn’t have a publisher…”

“Trilogy,” I corrected her. “Not book.”

“Yeah, that.”

“And just because we have a publisher lined up, doesn’t mean…”