Page 12 of Fragile Hearts (Hibiscus Hearts #3)

I head back up to the reception area after my last lesson of the day, grinning when I see Sloane still behind the counter. I know she must be close to finishing her shift, given how early she started.

“Hey,” I say, sauntering up, not missing the way her gaze drops to my bare chest before lifting to meet mine. Seriously, if this is what gets her looking at me, I will happily go shirtless for the rest of my life.

“Done with your lessons?” she asks.

“Yep,” I reply. “And now you and I are going surfing,” I tell her.

“We are?” she asks, narrowing her brow. “I don’t even have my board here.”

Grinning, I give her a wink as I say, “Yeah, you do. I brought it with me. You got a suit, or should we swing by the gift shop and grab you one?” I ask, jerking my thumb in the direction of the shop that stocks pretty much everything you could possibly need for a day by the pool or on the beach.

Sloane smirks. “I always have a suit on me.”

Chuckling, I hold out my hand to her. “Well, in that case, let’s go, gorgeous.”

Ten minutes later, we are down at the beach that’s in front of the hotel. It’s not a huge break, but it’s not a bad one either. Pretty much perfect for giving inexperienced hotel guests lessons, even if it’s the kind of break Sloane and I could surf in our sleep.

“How was the rest of your day?” I ask after we paddle out to where the swell is breaking.

Sloane looks over at me, a smile on her face. “Good, your mom gave me a heap of kalua pork to take home.”

“Yes!” I shout, fist-pumping the air just as the waves surge beneath us. “You ready?”

Sloane nods, her smile widening as we both lie down on our boards and get ready to catch the wave. Surfing is something I have been doing for as long as I can remember, having learned when I was a kid and then joining Mitch’s surf school later on when Miles joined up.

I’ve never wanted to do it professionally like Alana or Flynn though, but I can’t deny the rush I feel every time I catch a wave. And surfing with Sloane...fuck, that’s pretty much the best thing ever.

“You good?” I call out as she stands on her board, slicing through the wave in front of me.

Sloane turns back, looking at me over her shoulder, a huge smile on her face as she calls out, “Think you can keep up?”

Chuckling, I pop up on my board, following after her as the two of us ride the wave into shore. I don’t take my eyes off her, watching to keep enough space between us so I don’t drop in on her and watching because I just can’t look away.

“Not bad,” she says as we reach the shallow water and hop off our boards.

“Not bad yourself,” I say with a laugh. “Go again?”

Sloane grins. “For sure.”

We spend an hour or so surfing together, the two of us riding most of the waves together. It feels so easy and relaxed, just hanging out with her like this, and if nothing else, I am really glad her living with me has brought us closer as friends.

Even if every single part of me wants us to be more than that.

My attraction to Sloane is not something I can really describe because I can’t really remember a time when it wasn’t there.

And it’s not just about how she looks either, even if she is undeniably gorgeous.

It’s all the other things about her too: her loyalty to her friends, how hard she works and how much she wants to make something of herself.

Everything about her is attractive to me.

“You good?” I ask, forcing myself to stop fantasizing as I grab my board and tuck it under my arm.

She laughs, doing the same thing. “Yeah, I mean I could surf more, but I’m also starving.”

“Yes, and we have kalua pork to stuff ourselves on,” I say, loving Sundays at Orchid Bay because of the luau my mom and dad put on for the guests. The pork is always insanely good, and I know every employee fights to get leftovers to bring home.

It doesn’t surprise me that my mom gave some to Sloane, and I know it’s got nothing to do with the fact she’s living with me. My parents adore her. They have ever since she started working for them and long before they found out about my crush on her.

Sloane laughs as she undoes the leash from around her ankle. “Okay, piggie, let’s go stuff our faces then.”

“Holy shit, that was so good,” I groan as I sink into my chair on the back deck.

“So good,” Sloane groans beside me as Mochi lets out a little bark of what I assume is happiness because the fluffball has been fed so much meat.

“You know my mom will pretty much give the leftovers to you every Sunday,” I tell her, rolling my head along the back of the chair so I’m facing her.

Sloane laughs. “Yeah, maybe, but I don’t want any favoritism.”

“It’s not favoritism,” I say.

Smiling, Sloane looks up at the sky. “I kinda think it is, but don’t worry, I won’t turn down the leftovers. That pork is too good.”

I keep watching her as she sits beside me, a calmness about her that wasn’t there when she first moved in. I like that with every day she lives here, she’s getting more and more relaxed, which is probably why I ask my next question.

“Do you ever hear from your mom?” I ask, my words quiet and gentle.

She turns to look at me, her smile fading as she shakes her head. “No, I don’t even know where she is.”

I sit up a little, reaching out to grab her hand, twisting our fingers together. “Do you want to know?”

She blows out a breath, turning back to the ocean view, her hand still in mine. “I don’t know. No. I used to think I did, but I figure what’s the point? She clearly doesn’t want me.”

I squeeze her fingers. “You don’t know that for sure.”

She huffs out a laugh. “She left, didn’t she?” she says, but there’s no bitterness in her voice, just a weary resignation, as though there’s nothing she can do about it. “She didn’t want me, so I guess the feeling is now mutual.”

I narrow my brow, wondering if that is really true. “Maybe she’s changed?” I suggest.

She smiles. “Maybe. But I have to, even if deep down, I’m still the same damaged girl I always was.”

“Sloane,” I murmur, tugging on her hand until she looks at me. “You aren’t damaged. Not even close.”

“I kind of am,” she says, shrugging. “But it’s okay, Owen, I know who I am and?—”

“No,” I state, sitting up even straighter. “You’re not damaged. You’re...you’re...”

“I’m what?” she asks, a wry smile on her face.

I take a deep breath, letting it out slowly as we watch each other, our fingers still entwined. “You’re perfect,” I eventually whisper.

She scoffs, letting out a quick laugh as she turns back to the ocean. “Trust me, Owen, I am far from perfect.”

I tug on her arm again, harder this time, pulling her out of her chair and over into my lap. Wrapping my other arm around her waist, I pull her close, relishing the feel of her in my arms. “To me, you are,” I whisper, letting go of her hand as I tuck some loose strands of hair behind her ear.

“Owen,” she murmurs, her eyes soft as she looks down at me.

“It’s true,” I tell her, needing her to believe me. “I’m not just telling you this to make you feel better. Sloane, you know how I feel about you, how I’ve felt about you for a really long time. And I get you aren’t on the same page, but just know, that when I look at you, all I see is perfection.”

She doesn’t say anything at first, and in the silence that surrounds us, I can’t help but wonder if she can hear my heart, which is pounding out a hard rhythm in my chest. I’ve never made my crush on Sloane a secret, not to her or our friends, but I’ve never been this open and honest with her about it either.

And I’m really not sure how she’s going to react to it.

We stare at each other, neither of us saying a word. Eventually though, she smiles softly, her fingers brushing the hair back from my forehead.

“How is it you are still single?” she whispers, almost as though she’s talking to herself.

Now it’s me laughing. “Really?” I ask, brow raised. “You really need me to answer that after that speech?”

Sloane laughs, shaking her head, even as she says, “We’re friends, roommates.”

“I know,” I reply with a nod. “So we get along, and we can live together. That’s awesome.”

She smirks at that. “You have an answer for everything, don’t you?”

I tip my head to the side, smiling as I say, “When I’m certain about something, yeah.”

“What if...” she starts before trailing off.

She doesn’t have to finish though, because I know what she’s thinking. What if it goes wrong? What if it doesn’t work out? It’s not like we can just walk away and never see each other again. We see each other all the time now. We have the same friends and work in the same places.

We couldn’t avoid each other if we tried.

And it’s not like we haven’t seen how awkward things have gotten for Miles and Daisy at times, even if they both try to act like it’s not a problem.

But I just don’t see Sloane and me being like that.

“What if...” I now say, smiling up at her as my hand slides up her spine to grip the back of her neck, wondering if instead of words, there’s another way I can convince her. “What if I just kiss you? Nothing more.”

Sloane stares down at me, her blue eyes wide and filled with so many questions. But buried behind them is something else, something that might just be what’s mirrored in my eyes.

Want.

“Can I kiss you, Sloane?” I whisper.

She stares at me for a few more seconds before she eventually nods, her tongue poking out to wet her bottom lip. Smiling up at her, I tighten my grip on her neck as I slowly, gently pull her closer.

Our lips have barely touched before a low growl rumbles in my chest. Sloane shivers in my lap as though this is already affecting her just as much. I take my time though, gently pressing my lips against hers in a slow kiss.

It’s Sloane who takes it further, tracing my bottom lip with her tongue in a way that has me moaning embarrassingly loudly. She smiles against my mouth, and my grip on her neck tightens as I now slide my tongue against hers, deepening our kiss even more.

“Fuck, Sloane,” I growl against her mouth.

I can’t help but wonder if she’s feeling even half as much as what I am right now. How much I wish I could pull her even closer, strip her out of her clothes and bury myself inside her all fucking night long.

But I know that can’t happen tonight because as much as I have fantasized about fucking this woman in every way possible, I know I have to go slow.

And for Sloane, I will go slow.

Even if my dick is aching inside my shorts right now.

Sloane’s fingers slide into my hair, gripping it tight as she angles my head slightly and nips at my bottom lip. Now it’s me smiling against her mouth, loving that she’s the one directing this, that she’s the one who now wants more.

“So fucking perfect,” I whisper, my other hand resting on the warm skin of her thigh.

She smiles again, finally breaking the kiss as she pulls back a little. Her blue eyes are now pools of blackness as she stares down at me. I return the smile, letting go of her neck as I move my hand around to cup her jaw.

Brushing my thumb across her swollen bottom lip, I say, “Please don’t ever doubt how perfect you are.

” Her smile turns adorably shy as a blush creeps up her cheeks, and I can’t resist laughing as I nuzzle against her neck.

“I’ll tell you every day until you believe me, Sloane,” I murmur into her warm skin.

She giggles, squirming in my lap a little. There’s no doubt she can feel what this kiss has done to me, but neither of us makes any move to separate or take things further.

“I kinda think it might be you who’s perfect, Owen Sinclair,” she whispers, the color on her cheeks darkening.

Chuckling, I swipe my thumb across her bottom lip again as I whisper, “Maybe we’re just perfect for each other.”

She smirks at that before saying, “Maybe.”

My heart immediately starts racing at that one word, at the possibility of what it means and all that it might imply.

This is as close as we’ve ever come to taking things further between us, and a part of me can’t help but be hopeful that not only did Sloane let me kiss her, but that she also kissed me back.

And she hasn’t moved from my lap.

Or stopped smiling.

And she apparently thinks I’m perfect.

I pull her close again, so our foreheads are resting together, my hand sliding into her hair as I hold her to me.

“I’m not going anywhere, Sloane,” I whisper. “I’m here, and I will wait for you for as long as I need to.”

She smiles, huffing out a soft breath as she asks, “What if I’m never ready?”

I close my eyes for a moment, letting out a slow breath before opening them. “Then that’s okay too,” I tell her, meaning it. “But Sloane?”

“Yeah?”

A smile tugs at my mouth as I press my lips to her forehead in a soft kiss. “You can’t kiss me like that and then pretend there isn’t a part of you that doesn’t want to try,” I whisper.

She laughs at that, her head falling to my shoulder as she buries her face in my neck, and all I can do is wrap my arms around her, pulling her close as I silently hope this is the start of something.