17. Riptide

The night seemed less appealing in the cold, harsh glare of the nightclub's overhead lights. The dance floor was sticky from discarded bottles; the DJ was packing up his equipment, ready to head home.

Alec and I danced until most of the crowd had cleared. No longer having an excuse to press our bodies up against each other, I took a step back. Only moments ago, the air around us was charged with sexual tension and longing.

I scanned my surroundings for our friends. Had they witnessed our moment together? Would they have left without me? I couldn't blame them if they did. Once I was in Alec's arms, I lost myself in his touch, forgetting they were even here with us.

I felt self-aware of my outfit, of my actions, and of the emotions swirling in my heart and head. Fearing Alec could read my thoughts, I cast my eyes away from his intense gaze and escaped up to the bar.

Sian and Rosie leant on the dark wooden countertop, giggling and whispering to one another. I stood between them, wrapping my arms around their shoulders.

"Well, well, well. Where have you been?" Sian slurred, repeatedly poking the tip of my nose with her finger.

I swatted her hand away from my face. "Here and there. You know what it's like. Just having fun." I clocked Rosie shaking her head before sipping her pint glass of water.

A warm hand rested on my lower back. "They're closing soon. Do you need a lift? I promised to take Abby and Finn home so it might be a squeeze," Alec softly said from behind us. My breath hitched at the contact.

Rosie's mouth broke out into a wide smile around the edge of her glass. She put it down and smirked. "Daniel will be here any minute. I rang him earlier. Unless Nat wants to go home with you?" She questioned, her arms crossed and her brow raised. She tried to stay serious but struggled to suppress her grin.

Alec removed his hand from my lower back; my eyes were the size of saucers. He didn't answer her, neither could I. Luckily for us, Sian was now lost to the wonders of her phone.

"Come on then. Let's wait for him outside." I tugged on Rosie's arm and waved my hand in front of Sian's face to bring her back into our world.

Hope had left with some bloke she had met shortly after our chat. Abigail promised she would ring her then let us know she was safe. I might have been mad with her for interfering with Alec, but I felt uneasy knowing she had gone home with a stranger.

Sian and Rosie climbed straight into Daniel's Range Rover, which was already waiting outside. I said my goodbyes to Abigail and Finn as they got into Alec's Audi, leaving us a few minutes on our own.

Alec brushed a lock of my hair away from my face. "So-"

"So," I sighed. His unwavering stare made the pit of my stomach fall, and I dropped my eyes to the ground.

"Do you want to come back with me?" he murmured, taking a step forward. His arms snaked around my waist.

I still couldn't look at him. Daniel had music playing from his radio. I faintly heard the melody, mixed with the sound of an alarm, ringing in the distance. My heart beat hard against my chest. "I'd better go with them." I motioned towards Daniel's Range Rover with my head.

Alec lifted my chin with his finger, leaned into me and placed a gentle kiss to my cheek. "I'll see you soon, Nattie," he breathed into my hair.

My breath caught, my mouth going dry. "Uh-huh," were the only words I could utter as I stumbled back. Alec's hand ran down my arm until we held onto each other by our fingertips and shook his head with a lopsided smile dancing on his lips.

He strolled to his car as I went towards Daniel's and turned his head to peer in my direction one last time.

I sat in the backseat behind Daniel, letting out an audible sigh. Sian's eyes were closed as she hummed to herself. Rosie spun round; her gaze scrutinising my face.

"Not now," I mouthed before staring out of my window.

As we neared Petersfield, Sian whined about how much she missed James and couldn't bear to spend the night without him. Daniel, taking pity on her, agreed to take a slight detour, so we could drop her home.

Sian hugged us as we parked outside her flat. I promised to call her the next day and to drop her overnight bag back to her parents' house.

When we arrived home, Daniel went straight up to Rosie's room to sleep, having work first thing in the morning. Rosie and I silently worked around each other, making cheese on toast in the kitchen.

We were leaning on the kitchen island, eating our food when Rosie eventually grinned, "So, Alec?" She wiggled her eyebrows and snorted. She definitely hadn't stuck to having only a few drinks tonight.

"Yeah, Alec," I giggled as I picked at the crust on my bread. "Does that make me a terrible person? I only slept with Max a few days ago?"

She chewed her mouthful and paused for a minute. "No, I always thought Alec was good for you. Keeps you and Sian in check. Max was just a blip. Never liked him. He has this habit of always looking for the next best thing. He'll only make you miserable."

I nodded and bit into my piece of toast. She had a point. I would constantly worry Max would ditch me at the drop of a hat. I didn't love him. Not even close. I felt a strange infatuation towards him and nothing more. If I wanted a relationship with him, wouldn't I have wanted to see him or call him by now? Neither one of us made contact after Sunday night, which didn't bother me.

***

I spent, more or less, all of Friday in bed since I fell asleep as dawn broke.

Waking up later that afternoon, I checked my phone to find two messages; one from Alec and one from Max. I ignored Max's message, going straight for Alec's.

[Don't make plans Saturday. Pack a swimsuit and be ready for 8.00am xx] Alec

I couldn't contain my smile as I lay in my bed hugging myself. Spinning over to rest my elbows onto the mattress, I dialled Sian's number.

She answered after the fifth ring, her voice groggy. "Why are you so chirpy? Can't you whisper? My head's pounding." Sian mumbled to James if he would get her some water and headache tablets. Next thing, she was making wet kissing noises near the receiver.

"Shall I call back later? You two sound like wet fish." Shuddering at the unwelcome sound, I continued on, asking if we could meet up as I had something to tell her in person. Sian was in no state to see me so invited me over for Sunday dinner at her flat. At last, I would get to meet James as her boyfriend and not as my ex's brother.

Once our phone call was over, I tapped on Max's message. It was a screenshot of the selfie Sian had posted of us on her Instagram. Underneath the photo, he wrote, Hot!!! Meet up later? X

I groaned and threw my phone onto my bed without answering.

The next morning was Saturday. I fiddled with the front buttons on my navy blue, polka-dot sundress as I impatiently waited for Alec.

It was now twenty to eight, and I had been up since five am. I had gone for my run, was washed and even managed a small breakfast, despite the butterflies that were wreaking havoc in my stomach.

I checked my beach bag every ten minutes, to make sure I hadn't forgotten to pack my bikini.

It might have been wiser to wear it under my dress, even if that meant visible ties. Unfortunately, the shape of my swimsuit was unflattering under the thin fabric.

Sitting at my desk, I tried reading as a distraction. It was no use. I was a bundle of nerves. The words jumbled on the page, causing me to read the same few lines repeatedly.

The clock on my nightstand displayed 7:55 am. I grabbed my bag and sandals on the way down the stairs. Everyone else was still in bed, so I left a message for my mum, on the magnetic notice board, on our fridge.

At eight am on the dot, his white Audi pulled into our drive. Alec and I wore matching goofy grins as he walked up to meet me halfway. Pins and needles crept through my limbs and up to my neck.

"You're not late for once." I smiled, reaching out to brush my fingers across his cheek.

He was beautiful, and not only from the exterior. Did I appreciate the way his deep brown hair altered into hues of bronze, chocolate and coffee in the morning sunlight? Or the way his emerald-green eyes sparkled against his honeyed skin? Of course. However, what I noticed most about Alec was the way his dimpled smile only got wider as he came closer. His piercing eyes always followed me when we were together. He had this way of making everyone around him feel special and interesting, but most importantly; he was my safe place.

"I couldn't wait." He removed my bag from my shoulder, lightly brushing my bare skin, and slipped his hand into mine.

"Where are we going?" I finally asked twenty minutes into our journey.

"It's a surprise. Have you eaten? Are you hungry?" Alec kept his eyes on the road and his fingers drummed on the steering wheel to the song playing through his stereo.

"I've had breakfast." Even if I hadn't already eaten, there was no way I could face food.

An hour after we set off, Alec parked in a freshly mown grass field, overlooking a sandy beach. The same sandy beach we visited as children.

"Oh, Alec! I haven't been here in ages. It hasn't changed one bit," I rejoiced, taking in the view.

The morning sun reflected off the golden sand, which gently swirled with the cool breeze. I hastily left the car, kicked my sandals off to dig my feet straight into the hot grains and took a deep breath of fresh sea air in.

Seagulls circled overhead in search of their next stolen meal.

To my left, the weather-worn multicoloured beach huts had seen better days. A few families had already set up camp for the day. To my right, you would find Wittering's sand dunes.

As a child, we would spend each summer here, alongside Sian and Alec's families. This was where I spent one summer terrified of the water after I misjudged the waves and was dragged under. This was also where Alec helped me get over that fear.

My hand went straight to the starfish necklace around my neck as I recalled each memory. Somewhere in the neighbouring town, nestled between a coffee shop and an antique dealer, lay a quirky gift shop. Alec had found my necklace in there. On my tenth birthday, he left it under my pillow with a printed note from the shop owner: "Starfish, a star that fell from the sky into the sea."

Alec stood next to me, my beach bag, a picnic blanket and a hamper at his feet. His fingers replaced mine on the silver starfish. "I noticed you still wore this." His deep soothing voice was barely above a whisper in the breeze.

I dropped my eyes to watch his hand run the pendant up and down the chain. "I have to or our wishes won't come true," I reminded him. "Has yours come true yet?"

He let the necklace fall back onto my skin. Sadness briefly clouded his eyes. "Not yet, but I hope it will soon. Did yours? You never told me what it was."

"So far, so good. Neither did you. Besides, it won't come true if I tell you." I poked his side with my finger.

"That only works for wishes that haven't been granted. There are no take-backs," he laughed. "Please tell me."

"I wished we would always stay best friends," I coyly admitted.

"That will never change. No matter what happens." He nudged my shoulder with his and smiled. "Come on, Nattie. I have something to show you."

We walked to our left and stopped in front of a blue and white striped beach hut. Alec removed a key from his pocket to unlock the front shutters.

I stepped inside and ran my fingers along the chipped paint around the frame. The interior was painted in white, which was now yellowing with age. The cabin was barely big enough for the both of us. A bench occupied the entire back wall, above it shelves held trinkets the owners must have found while beachcombing. A few aged books rested on a compact cabinet which I couldn't help flicking through.

"Do you like it? My mum knows the owner and said we could use it for the day. I thought we could have lunch here. I made a picnic. Or, we could walk into the town," he rambled nervously.

"It's perfect. I'd happily spend all day here." I sat on the cushioned bench and looked out at the waves crashing onto the beach. "Sian would've liked it here too but can I tell you a secret? I'm happy it's just the two of us."

Alec placed our belongings on the floor and joined me. "Me too," he beamed before tucking a loose strand of my hair behind my ear.

My eyes found it practically impossible to look away from his pale pink lips, my fingers longing to trace his cupid's bow. At that second, I desired nothing more than to know what it would feel like to have them pressed on mine.

Tomorrow could not come quick enough. I needed to speak to Sian, and fast. I let out a weak cough. "Do you want to have dinner at Sian's, tomorrow? We get to finally meet her boyfriend, and you'll never guess who it is," I babbled, trying to break the bubbling tension.

"Let me guess?" He tapped his chin with his index finger and chuckled. "You're going to tell me it's James, and that you told me so."

"Me? I'd never do that. But you're right and I did tell you so," I laughed and bumped against his side.

"I'd love to," he replied after a while in his low husky voice, clasping my knee with his hand.

Soon afterwards, Alec and I changed into our swimwear. We paddled in the sea, ate the picnic he had prepared, and strolled through the sand dunes and coastal grasses.

We recalled our childhood antics and spent most of the day clutching our stomachs from the laughter.

As the sun was about to set, Alec drove us back to Hawkley. Leaning over, I wrapped my arms around his waist and thanked him for one of the best days I had spent that summer. Every moment spent next to him would always be a favourite of mine no matter what happened after that day.

***