Page 9

Cora

“Where do you think you’re going?”

I froze midway through pulling my tank top over my head and turned to see Chief propped up on one elbow. His dark hair was a mussed from sleep and our activities from the night before.

My eyes dropped to the sheet that had slipped down to his waist, revealing that glorious tattooed chest I’d spent hours exploring last night.

Why did he have to be so damn sexy?

I shook my head.

No. Nope. Nuh-unh.

I would not get distracted by the sexy naked man in my bed. “Go back to sleep.”

He squinted at the alarm clock on my nightstand, then let out a growl that rumbled through the quiet room. “It’s 4:30 in the fucking morning! Get your ass back in bed, woman.”

Laughing, I pulled my hair into a messy bun on top of my head. “Not everyone gets to sleep in, grumpy. I have a class to teach this morning.”

“Your early morning class is bullshit,” he muttered as his sexy naked ass rolled out of bed anyway, revealing every spectacular inch of him.

My heart started pounding in my chest as I remembered exactly what that body had done to mine the night before.

Focus, Cora.

I watched Chief as he bent to retrieve his boxers from where they’d been discarded on the floor. “I’m really enjoying the view,” I mumbled out loud, not even trying to hide the fact that I was staring.

“Please tell me there’s at least time for some coffee,” he said, pulling his jeans up over his hips, covering up the masterpiece I was appreciating.

“Already made a pot,” I said, grinning as I slipped into my shorts.

He stood there, with a look on his face I couldn’t decipher. Was something on my face? I wiped my hand across my cheek but I didn’t feel anything.

Opening my mouth to ask him if everything was okay, I quickly closed it when he crossed the room and pulled me against his bare chest.

“Wha—” the words died when he slammed his lips to mine. I gasped and he took the opportunity to lick into my mouth. My eyes closed as I surrendered to his talented mouth.

“Good morning,” he rumbled, satisfaction clear in his voice when he pulled away.

Blinking up at him, I whispered, “Morning.”

His hands lingered on my waist, thumbs tracing circles against my skin through the thin material of my tank top. The gesture was so unexpectedly tender that it made my heart do a backflip in my chest.

“Finish getting ready,” he said finally, releasing me with a smack on my butt. “I’ll pour the coffee.”

It was my turn to stand there watching like a fool as he gathered up the rest of his clothes and sauntered out of the room looking like every woman’s dirty fantasy.

“Get a move on, Cor!”

Shit. Shaking off the effect he had on me, I finished getting ready.

When I finally made it out to the kitchen, Chief was leaning against my kitchen counter, watching me over the rim of his cup. He’d finished getting dressed, but his hair was still a mess and there was stubble darkening his jaw.

He really was a sexy man.

“Ready?” I asked, tearing my eyes away from him before I suggested we blow off the morning lessons and go back to bed.

He nodded, and we headed out of my apartment and down to the parking lot where my pickup was parked.

Chief took one look at Dorothy and shook his head. “Hell no. We’re not going in that deathtrap.”

I planted my hands on my hips, fighting a smile at his horrified expression. “All my boards and gear are in my truck, Mason.”

His eyes flashed with heat at the sound of me saying his name before they went back to Dorothy. He curled his lip.

It was all I could do not to laugh. He really did not like my truck.

“Fuck. Fine.” He held out his hand. “But I’m driving.”

I fished my keys from my bag and dropped them into his waiting hand. I was a smart woman. I knew which battles were worth waging and which weren’t. This wasn’t one of them. “Just be gentle with her. She’s sensitive.”

His lips twitched. “I know how to handle sensitive things.” The words were loaded with innuendo that made my cheeks heat.

The drive to Atlantic Beach always put me in a good headspace.

I had Whitney Houstong singing about how would she know if her man really loved her and the sky out in front of me painted in dark blues and pinks as the sun started its ascent. Add in my chauffeur who had one hand on the wheel and the other resting on my thigh, and the morning was feeling a lot like heaven.

“Babe.”

“Hmm?” I turned my head in his direction.

His eyes were darting from me to the road ahead, with a brow arched high. “The fuck you listening to this shit for?”

My head jerked back at the blasphemy of him referring to the queen of R the list went on and on.

When we pulled into the beach parking lot, I felt Mason’s mood shift. “This is where you teach your lessons? At this hour?”

I followed his gaze around the empty parking lot. Okay, so maybe this wasn’t the best area of Jacksonville, especially at dawn.

The beach was beautiful, but the surrounding neighborhood had seen better days. Broken streetlights, abandoned storefronts, and more than a few sketchy characters made it a little suspect.

“It’s fine during the day,” I said defensively. “Besides, the waves are perfect here.”

“It’s not fucking fine, Cora,” he growled, throwing the truck into park with more force than was necessary. “This area has gone to shit in the last few years. Drug dealers, gangs?—”

“Mason,” I snapped, unwilling to listen to any more of his lecturing. “I’ve been teaching here for two years without any problems.”

“Because you’ve been lucky,” he countered, his jaw tight. “Not because it’s safe.”

A pair of headlights swept across the parking lot, catching my attention. Relief flooded through me at the sight of Marley’s mom’s Range Rover pulling into a spot nearby and saving me from Captain Worrywart.

I patted Chief’s thigh and leaned over to press a quick kiss to his jaw. “Get over it.”

Before he could launch into what promised to be an epic meltdown, I hopped out of my truck and slammed the door behind me.

Marley waved through the windshield of her mom’s car, her blonde ponytail bobbing as she bounced in her seat. I waved back with a grin. She was seriously too stinkin’ cute.

As soon as Marley climbed out of the Range Rover, her mother rolled down the window.

“Morning, Erin,” I called, walking over to them. “We’ll be done around 6:30.”

“Thanks, Cora.” Erin Thompson gave me a tired smile. “Paul’s picking her up today. He’ll text her when he’s on his way.”

I nodded, used to navigating the complexities of Marley’s co-parenting situation. Her parents’ divorce had been finalized a few months ago, and they still weren’t all that great at communicating with each other.

“No problem. Have a good day at work.”

As Erin drove away, Marley bounced over to me in her pink wetsuit, surfboard tucked under her arm. Then her eyes went wide as they fixed on something behind me.

“Who is that?” she whispered.

I glanced back to find Mason pulling my board from the bed of my truck, his muscles flexing under his T-shirt. A smile tugged at my lips. Like most of the female population, Marley was completely enamored by the bad boy vibes Mason was putting out.

“Chief,” I said, remembering to use his roadname as I waved him over. “This is Marley, one of my students. Marley, this is my...”

I paused, suddenly unsure how to introduce him. What were we exactly? Friends? Lovers? After one night together—well, one night five years ago and then last night, did that even mean anything? Were we dating now?

“Boyfriend,” he supplied, stepping forward and extending a hand to Marley, whose eyes somehow got even bigger.

I could feel the heat coming off my cheeks.

My boyfriend… The words shouldn’t have made my heart do that stupid flippy thing again, but they did.

“Nice to meet you,” Marley managed, shaking his hand with a star-struck expression.

Mason turned to me, his eyes softening as they met mine. “Which of these do you need, baby?”

“Uhh…” I climbed into the back of the truck, grateful for the distraction, and grabbed my black and purple wetsuit. “Just the red Roxy board. The rest stays here until Beckett shows up.”

As I handed Mason my board, I glanced around the parking lot, expecting to see Beckett trudging across the sand with his battered backpack. But there was no sign of him.

“He’s usually here by now,” I said under my breath as I pulled out my phone and checked the time again. There were no messages, no missed calls.

A knot started to coil in my belly as I remembered the bruises he’d had on him the other day.

Mason’s eyes followed my gaze when I looked back towards the beach path. “You waiting on someone else?”

I nodded as I looked over my shoulder at the empty parking lot. “My other student. Beckett. He’s usually here by now.”

“He might be running late again,” Marley said, a frown on her face as she, too, looked around for any sign of him.

I forced a smile. “Probably just overslept. Let’s get started, and maybe he’ll show up.”

Twenty minutes later, Marley and I were sitting on our boards beyond the break, waiting for the next wave, and Beckett still hadn’t shown up. The sun was just above the horizon, bathing everything in a golden-pink glow. As breathtaking as the view was, it was hard to appreciate when one of my students was missing.

“I’m sure he’s fine,” Marley said, paddling closer to me. “Maybe he just forgot.”

I nodded, but we both knew better. Beck never forgot our lessons. They were too important to him.

“Let’s catch a few more waves, then head in,” I suggested, trying to keep things normal for Marley’s sake.

We spent another half hour in the water, but neither of our hearts were in it. Every time I looked back at the shore, I hoped that Beck would be standing there, but he wasn’t.

When we finally trudged back to our gear, Mason was waiting for us, his stance rigid as he scanned the beach with narrowed eyes. He’d clearly picked up on my anxiety.

“Still no sign of your other student?” he asked, handing me a towel.

I shook my head, trying to hide my concern from Marley. “Nope. Must have something else going on today.”

Marley’s phone buzzed, and she pulled it from her bag. “My dad’s here,” she said, chewing on her lip, before she spoke again. “Cora? You’ll let me know if you hear from Beck, right?”

“Of course,” I promised, giving her a quick hug. “Don’t worry, I’m sure he’s fine.”

She nodded, but the worry in her eyes mirrored my own. “See you Monday.”

Once Marley was safely in her father’s car and driving away, Chief turned to me with a more serious expression.

“What’s really going on with this kid?”

I sighed, the facade slipping now that Marley was gone. “Beckett’s... different. He’s not like Marley. He doesn’t come from money. He showed up to watch my lessons about six months ago. He’s a foster kid. Thing is, he’s always showing up with these bruises.” I bit my lip, the worry feeling like a lead weight in my stomach.

Mason’s jaw tightened. “Someone’s putting their hands on him?”

“I think so.” My voice cracked. “And it’s not the first time,” I admitted, wrapping my arms around myself despite the growing heat. “I’m pretty sure his foster dad...” I couldn’t bring myself to finish the sentence.

“Where does he stay? Any idea?”

I shook my head. “I’ve asked, but he always dodges the question.”

Mason’s eyes darkened as he pulled his phone from his pocket and tapped the screen a few times. When it started ringing, he put it on speaker.

“What up, Prez?”

“Zero, got you on speaker,” Mason replied, his eyes on me. “Need you to look up an address for a...” He paused, waiting for me to fill in the blank.

“Beckett Reynolds,” I rattled off his full name, a flutter of hope rising in my chest. “He’s seventeen.”

I could hear the clickity-clack of keys on a keyboard through the phone. “Give me a sec... Got it. Beckett Reynolds, currently assigned to the Wilkins foster home on 1824 Eastland Drive. Foster parents are Gerald and Margaret Wilkins.”

“Thanks, Zero,” Mason said before ending the call.

He turned to me, a worried look on his face. “Let’s go check on your kid, baby.”