Page 16 of Broken Hearts (Hibiscus Hearts #1)

After Sage and I close up the shop, she heads upstairs to get changed or ready for her dinner with Alana or whatever it is she needs to do, while I head back to my place.

I should be finishing these designs for Tanner before I go surfing, but I also need to get the fuck out of here before I walk upstairs to the apartment and beg Sage not to go out tonight.

To stay here with me so we can finish whatever the hell that was we started last night.

Not that it was anything. How could it be? She doesn’t even live on the island. We can’t be anything when in a little over a week she’s probably going to sell this place and disappear back to the mainland. Leaving my life a fucked up mess all over again.

For so many reasons.

“Fuck,”

I breathe out, changing into some boardshorts before grabbing my board and heading over to the beach.

Malo and Owen are already out in the water, and as I walk down to the beach, I see both Miles and Kai getting ready to join them.

“Yo, Nate,”

Kai calls, a huge grin on his face. Miles offers me a tip of his head and a smile, practically the polar opposite of his loud-mouthed older brother. I like both of these guys, but Miles is more like me, preferring minimal conversation and zero questions.

“Hey,”

I say, board tucked under my arm as the three of us head into the water.

We paddle out to where Malo and Owen are, the two of them grinning at us before all five of us line up to catch a wave. The exhilaration of surfing is unreal, never gets old, and from the second Mitch taught me how to do this, I was hooked.

Didn’t matter how many times I fell off my board or got dumped by a wave, I got right back up and tried again. I’m not a natural like Alana is, but I eventually picked it up and now, I can barely let a day go by without getting out on the ocean.

“So, Nate,”

Malo says as we all hang out beyond the break, sitting on our boards as we take a quick break.

“So, Malo,”

I throw back at him, already knowing what he’s going to ask. It’s amazing it’s taken him this long.

He chuckles, glancing at Owen before he turns back to me and says, “Sage, huh. She’s nani loa, man.”

I roll my eyes because of course he’s noticed that and of course he has something to say about it. “She’s Mitch’s daughter,”

I say, repeating my previous statement as though that somehow changes things. I don’t know why it should, it sure as shit didn’t stop me last night.

“How long you been wanting to hit that?”

he now asks, and Kai laughs.

“Since the day she arrived would be my guess,” Kai says.

I flip them both off as I say, “Fuck off.”

Kai just laughs again, turning to Malo as he says, “He’s got it bad and I mean I get it, she’s?—”

“Dude, fuck,”

I say, cutting him off. “She’s Mitch’s daughter. Have some fucking respect.”

Kai, Malo and Owen are all grinning at me, while Miles sits quietly on his board, observing but not saying anything. I’m tempted to suggest he and I go further down the beach so we can surf in peace, but I know these idiots will just follow us.

“She’s here for the memorial service, okay? And to figure out what to do with the shop. She’ll be gone in a week or so and then…”

I trail off, shrugging because I have no idea what happens then.

“Shit,”

Malo breathes out, his smile disappearing as he connects the dots. “Do you know what she’s gonna do with the shop? She wouldn’t sell it, would she?”

Like me, Malo depends on The Pipe Dream. Owen in a different way and Miles and Kai too, to a certain extent. I mean I know they sell their dad’s boards in other places, but The Pipe Dream has always been known for being the only place to stock their custom, one-of-a-kind designs. The boards I design for. And if that’s taken away, it’s not just me who loses out.

“I don’t know,”

I say with a shrug. “But that fuckhead Butler has already dropped by. No doubt laying on the bullshit to try and convince her to sell.”

“And?”

Malo says, as though I somehow have all the answers.

“Like I said, I don’t know. I haven’t asked her about it.”

“So why don’t you,”

he now says. “Find out what her plans are.”

I blow out a breath, my hands moving through the water. “Got nothing to do with me,”

I tell him, even though it kind of does. “It’s her shop, her decision.”

“Yeah, but Nate,”

Malo starts.

“She knows that we all depend on the shop,”

I say before he can continue. “She knows how important it is to us, but it’s still her decision, dude. I can’t try and convince her otherwise.”

Everything I’m saying is true, even if a big part of me is desperate to ask her what her plans are. Is desperate to beg her not to sell, even if she goes back to New York and just owns it from there. But I know I can’t do that because it’s not my place to say anything to her.

“Maybe we should?—”

“I’m gonna catch some more waves,”

I say, cutting him off as I paddle in to where the swell breaks, not wanting to continue this conversation.

I’m sitting on my front porch, finishing up the designs I blew off earlier and trying not to act like I’m waiting for Sage to get back.

I’m totally waiting for her to get back.

After surfing, I’d blown off the guys and their suggestion that we head into town for some drinks, playing up that I needed to finish my drawings when the reality was, I just wanted to be here when she came home from Alana’s. As much as I don’t want to admit it, that kiss we had shared last night had been on a solid replay loop inside my head all fucking day.

And I was kinda desperate for more.

Just as I finish up the last design, I hear the crunch of her footsteps on the gravel. My eyes snap up to see her walking around the side of the shop, her iPhone lighting the way. I open my mouth to call out to her, but she’s already looking over at me, her gaze instantly locking with mine.

“Hey,”

she calls out, walking halfway across the yard before stopping.

“Hey,”

I say, standing and making my way toward her. I watch as her eyes widen, her body stiffening ever so slightly. “Want a beer?”

I ask, heading toward the fridge under the stairs.

Sage blows out a breath as she says, “Sure.”

I grab two Coronas, opening them before turning back to her. “How was your night?”

I ask, handing her a beer and making my way back to my open porch.

Sage follows me, sitting in the chair next to mine. “Good, fun. Alana’s roommates are really nice.”

Chuckling, I glance over at her. “You met Daisy and Sloane?” I ask.

“Yeah,”

she replies with a nod. “Why’d you laugh at that?”

I shake my head, letting out another laugh. “Nah, it’s nothing. Just those three can be a lot all at the same time.”

Sage smiles at that as she says, “Yeah, I can see that. Alana is like non-stop. She’s really great and super friendly, but is she ever not excited or bouncing with energy?”

“Nope,”

I tell her, taking a sip of my beer.

“I kinda still can’t believe you two are actually friends,”

she now says, an almost playful smile on her face. “You are so different.”

“I know,”

I reply with a laugh. “But you think I had any choice in the matter?”

Now it’s Sage laughing. “No, I guess not. So what did you get up to tonight? Did you go for a surf?”

“I did, and then I finished up some drawings.”

I nudge the sketchbook on the coffee table with my foot, watching as Sage’s gaze moves to it.

“Can I look?”

she asks, turning back to me.

“Sure,”

I reply with a nod.

Sage reaches for the book, slowly flicking through the pages as she takes in the designs. I can’t help but watch her, watch as she turns the pages, her fingers sometimes tracing the design. When she reaches the end, she blows out a breath before returning the book to the table.

“Nate, these are really good,”

she says, her words barely a whisper.

“Thanks,”

I say, smiling at her as I finish off my beer.

She does the same, her gaze still locked with mine. “I guess I should…”

she starts, standing from her chair as though she’s about to leave.

But I don’t want her to go.

I want her to stay.

Reaching for her hand, I thread my fingers through hers, the two of us still watching each other. I hear her whispered gasp at my touch though, feel the way her fingers tighten in mine as I tug her toward me, pulling her down so she’s sitting in my lap.

She doesn’t say anything, and neither do I. The two of us are still staring at each other as I brush the hair back from her face, tucking it behind her ear before resting my hand against her jaw. I watch as my thumb brushes against her bottom lip and then Sage leans in, closing the distance between us as she brushes her lips against mine.

A low groan rumbles in my chest as my hand circles around to the back of her neck, holding her against me as I now deepen the kiss. My tongue traces her bottom lip before sliding against hers.

My whole body feels electrified, heat sparking in my chest as Sage leans into me, her hand resting on my chest, right above my pounding heart.

Fuck, I can’t get enough of her. I want more, a lot more. I want fucking everything, and I don’t care that she’s not here to stay or that in a week or so, she’s going to leave, probably fucking up my life in the process. Because right now, all I want is this.

Her.

“Nate,”

she breathes against my mouth, not stopping her kiss.

“Sage,”

I whisper against hers, feeling her smile.

“What are we doing?”

she now asks, still kissing me. It’s slow and deep and sexy as hell, and I know she can feel how hard it’s making me. She’s sitting right on my dick.

I slide my other hand up her thigh and under her dress as I murmur, “Pretty sure it’s called kissing.”

She laughs at that, still not stopping even as she asks, “Do you think we should?”

“Uh huh,”

I say, my hand squeezing her thigh in an attempt to stop myself from going higher.

“But,”

she moans, squirming in my lap in a way that only gets me harder. “You…you don’t even like me,” she says.

This time I do stop, pulling back a little as I open my eyes and meet hers. “Yeah, I do,”

I breathe out.

Sage swallows hard, lifting her hand to my face, her thumb brushing across my cheekbone. “Really?”

Chuckling, I lean in, kissing her again. “You can’t tell,” I tease.

She smiles, squirming in my lap again as though to check. Or prove a point. I’m not sure. “I mean…”

she starts, nipping at my bottom lip. “Yeah, but…”

I silence the rest of her sentence with another deep kiss, my grip on her neck tightening as my hand on her thigh slides a little bit higher. “I like you, Sage,”

I whisper. “I like kissing you. I can’t get enough of it.”

She groans at that, not saying anything as she kisses me hard, her fingers sliding into my hair as she pulls me closer. I have no idea what this is right now or why the hell I just admitted what I did, but I’m not about to take it back. Not when it feels like Sage wants the exact same thing.

Just as I’m about to stand and carry her inside, Sage slides her hand down my chest before slipping it under my T-shirt and brushing her fingers over my bare skin.

“Fuck,”

I groan, her touch sending a million little jolts of electricity all through me.

She chuckles against my mouth, even as she whispers, “I can’t get enough either.”

My hand on her thigh slides higher now, gripping her hip under her dress. I desperately want to move it between her legs, find out if this kiss is driving her crazy too. Find out if it’s making her wet.

“Come inside,”

I murmur against her mouth.

“Nate,”

she groans, my name sounding sexy as hell as it falls from her mouth.

“Sage,”

I reply, and this earns me another smile. My fingers trace the edge of her panties at her hip, itching to slip beneath the fabric. It’s been so fucking long since I did this, and even though I’m horny as hell, I know it’s not just because it’s been forever since I got laid.

It’s her. Sage. This girl who has walked into my life and turned everything upside fucking down.

“Should we really do this?”

she now asks, her hips moving in my lap, her ass pressing against my dick in a way that’s driving me insane.

“Uh huh,”

I murmur, my grip tightening against her hip. “I want you,”

I whisper, unable to stop the words. “I wanna take you inside and explore every fucking inch of you until you’re moaning my name.”

Jesus, I can’t believe I’m telling her all of this.

But even as I say the words, Sage is groaning into my mouth, her hips shifting in my lap again as her palm smoothes across my chest.

“Come inside, Sage,”

I moan, needing more. A lot more. “Please…”