揥e抮e going to paddle. Do what I do, okay??
I nodded, swallowing, and he let go of my board before he paddled further out into the water against the waves, muscular arms dipping into the water to propel him forward.
Just like that, I told myself. Just paddling. Easy peasy.
It was not easy peasy. My arms burned, but my pride wouldn抰 let me call it quits. The water grew darker as I swam further out, and I tried not to think about what lurked underneath and how my feet wouldn抰 touch the bottom if I fell off my board. I worked harder to stay close to Wyatt. Every few strokes he would glance over his shoulder to make sure I was near. Even without my glasses, I could see the guy was hardly breaking a sweat. Me, on the other hand, I breathed hard and my muscles burned, even the ones in my legs that I didn抰 think were working. My abs hurt already.
The area we paddled to wasn抰 as calm as where we started. The waves were bigger out here, picking me up and dropping me as they passed. I swallowed and my pulse beat in my ears from the exercise and nerves. My board tipped with a passing wave and I nearly fell off, wobbling and clinging to it hard.
I had to work hard to keep my balance laying down. What would standing up be like?
As if he read my thoughts, Wyatt stopped paddling, reached out for my board and steered it so we both had our backs to the wave.
I looked over my shoulder with alarm at the approaching wave. 揥hat are you doing??
He shot me a challenging grin. 揌ere you go, bookworm. Your first wave.?
I shook my head vehemently. 揘o. I抦 not ready.?
He nodded. 揝ure you are. Get in the ready position.?
My hands came to the board on my hips without my permission. It was like his words had authority over my body. Traitorous hands. Wyatt did the same over on his board. I drifted away from him. My heart beat in my ears. I shook my head at him, fear pounding in my ears, and he nodded back at me with bright eyes.
The wave was right behind us.
揝tart paddling,?he said, and began to propel himself forward.
揥hat??I called after him. 揧ou didn抰 tell me this part!?I tried to follow him but he was too fast.
The water crested around me. Was this the part where I was supposed to assume the ready position or get up? I placed my hands on either side of my hips, about to pop up on my board but before I could, the wave knocked me off, face-first into the water.
My nose burned as my head submerged, and my eyes stung. I hated getting water in my eyes. My chest heaved with a cough and I inhaled a mouthful of water. My leash tugged on my ankle and a moment later, the board bonked me on the back of the head梐 stark reminder that I didn抰 know what the hell was I was doing.
I wrenched my burning eyes open above the surface and took a breath as another wave crashed into my face, sending even more water up my nose.
A firm hand wrapped around my upper arm, hauled me up onto my board with ease, and I crumpled onto it, coughing and sputtering.
揘ice work,?Wyatt crowed. He paddled us single-handed further into a nearby cove, where it was calmer, while gripping my board.
I blinked at him with a frown. 揂re you making fun of me??
He laughed. 揙f course not. You抮e doing great.?
I spat more salty water back into the ocean and coughed again. My eyes watered. 揥yatt, I hate to be rude, but you抮e a terrible surf instructor.?
He laughed and continued paddling. 揧ou抮e on an accelerated curriculum.?
My mouth fell open and I tried to sit up on my board. It rocked with my teetering weight and I slipped back under the water.
When I had re-emerged, I shot him a glare. 揥hat lesson did I just learn??
His teeth flashed with a grin. 揟hat was your first bail. Not so bad, right??
Unbelievable. 揂re you kidding me? Yes, it was so bad. You dragged me out here in the middle of the night to humiliate me.?
He shook his head. 揥hen we come back out next time, you won抰 be as afraid of falling off your board.?He took in the sky, a clear, light blue, dotted with a few clouds over the forest. 揂nd now that you抳e worked for it, you can enjoy the view.?
We floated on our boards, listening to the sound of the waves behind us on the shore. Two seagulls bobbed in the water nearby, ignoring us. My feet were frozen solid, and I wiggled them to get my circulation moving.
Beside me, Wyatt studied the sky with a wistful expression. That playful smirk of his was gone, replaced with a calm, thoughtful look.
揇o you come out here every day??
揧es.?
揥ow. One with the ocean, and all that.?
He smiled to himself. 揑 wouldn抰 say I抦 one with it. The ocean is like this huge, unpredictable monster that could kill us at anytime.?
揥hat??My eyes widened, and I glanced down at the water around us. I couldn抰 see further than a couple feet beneath the surface. Panic hit my bloodstream. 揥hat do you mean, kill us? Like, sharks??I pictured the scene from Jaws, where the shark hoisted himself into the boat.