Page 15 of Free Wind (Lifeguards of Barking Beach #2)

His gaze drifted over to the surfers out the back. The waves were only okay, and he could tell there were a lot of beginners in the lineup. It occurred to him that Blake had to be a relative newbie if he’d grown up in the Flinders Ranges.

He looked for Blake, his pulse fluttering just at the thought of seeing him again. Which was mental, right? First off, Blake had said he was helping out a mate. Second, he’d only just met him. Fair enough, they’d shared spit and jizz, which was a pretty big deal—at least to Damo.

Even with chicks, he’d never had many hookups. Or any, now that he thought about it. Aside from Shaz, there’d been a couple of girls who hadn’t lasted long, but they were more than just a one-nighter.

But was it different with guys?

He chewed that over as he watched a new group of swimmers leave their towels right by the DANGEROUS CURRENT warning sign.

When Damo had left the toilet, Blake had seemed…distracted? Before, his attention had been intense, and it wasn’t only the guyliner making his eyes more dramatic.

Yet when Damo had left his apartment, Blake had seemed preoccupied. Not quite as present. Damo couldn’t help but wonder if it was because they’d gotten off. Maybe the excitement was gone? The mission was accomplished, so Damo wouldn’t be interesting anymore?

He scoffed at himself. As if he was some man of mystery. Still, it wouldn’t be the first time a bloke lost interest after orgasms, would it? Chicks complained about that all the time—understandably. And if Blake wasn’t fussed with him anymore, Damo had to admit the disappointment would be…

“You right?” Liam asked.

“Huh?” Damo glanced away from the water to find Liam frowning at him.

“Got ants in your pants and you’re sighing every five seconds.”

“Sorry, mate.”

Eyes on the water, Liam shrugged. “No worries. Everything good?”

“Yep,” he answered too quickly. “I’m sweet.”

And everything was good. Blake had clearly wanted to see him again, so why was he worrying about being brushed?

Because thinking of Blake had him hot and nervous and excited, and he tapped his foot against the dash.

“Excuse me?” a teenage girl asked.

Damo jolted guiltily, and he and Liam turned as she tentatively approached the buggy on the left where Liam sat. Liam said, “G’day.”

She brushed a dark, frizzy curl from her face. “You’re Liam Fox, right?”

Damo could feel the tension ripple through Liam’s big body even though they weren’t touching. Liam nodded, waiting. The girl couldn’t be more than fourteen and fiddled with the strap of her striped bathers.

Damo said, “This is the legend in the flesh.” He was pretty sure the girl wasn’t about to tell Liam he was a pervert going to hell since she was practically vibrating from nerves. He hoped not, at least.

“Um, I…” She shifted on the sand. “I just wanted to say thanks. For coming out. I’m bi, and when I told my dad, he didn’t even get mad. You helped him understand.”

Liam exhaled. “I’m glad. What’s your name?”

Smiling, Damo looked back at the water—and jumped to his feet.

He pulled off his long-sleeved blue uniform shirt.

Sure enough, the couple had been lifted off the sandbank by the swells, and they couldn’t swim a stroke.

At times, lifeguards waited to see if people could get themselves out of trouble, but Damo knew instantly he was in.

“There they go. I’m gettin’ wet!”

He could hear Liam on the radio calling the tower, where other lifeguards would be watching with binoculars. Rescue board in hand, Damo raced in, punching past the impact zone and paddling hard to where the couple flailed and grabbed at each other in their terror, pulling each other under.

“I told ya not to swim here!” he couldn’t resist shouting as he grasped their arms. “Especially if you can’t actually swim!”

They couldn’t speak English, which was common on Barking. They were close enough to shore that he was able to drag them back to the sandbank and walk them out of the water.

He pointed to the danger signs, and then down towards the safe swimming area. They nodded and thanked him, the woman gripping his hands gratefully.

Damo’s frustration ebbed as he returned to the buggy. He knew no one wanted to get into trouble in the waves, but he wished they’d give the ocean the respect it demanded.

Liam shook his head. “Couldn’t swim a stroke.”

“Nope.” Damo rubbed a towel over his arms. “That was nice of that girl, hey?”

“Yeah. Took a selfie with her.” Liam looked vaguely embarrassed.

“You should be used to it by now, Foxy.” Damo shoved his shoulder playfully.

Liam huffed, but he smiled too. “I can’t imagine coming out at her age. Maybe things really are changing.”

“Hope so, mate.”

They went back to patrolling in comfortable silence when they weren’t hopping on the megaphone to tell people to move to the safe part of the beach—to little effect, as usual. Damo pulled his shirt back on and swatted a persistent fly, and the girl’s voice echoed in his head.

“I’m bi.”

Was he bi too? He rolled the word around in his head. Bi. Bisexual. Biiiiiiiii.

Yeah, he’d been curious for a while—probably longer than he’d admitted to himself—but putting words on it made his palms sweat. Which was bloody stupid given he and Blake had gotten naked together.

Crap, now he was thinking about jizz in chest hair again, and Blake’s big hands, and his stubbly, heart-stopping kisses—

“What’s got you all tied up in knots?” Liam asked.

His cheeks went hot. “Nothing!”

“You can…” Liam waved a hand. “I can listen.”

Damo had to smile. Before Cody, Liam would have rather pulled out his fingernails than have a deep and meaningful.

“Yeah, nah. Just have a lot on my mind.”

“Hot chicks and the next party?”

And shit, that shouldn’t have hurt, but it did. Damo put on a grin. “You know me, Foxy.”

It wasn’t Liam’s fault. Damo had created an image for himself on the lifeguard service. Always keen for a joke and a comment about bikinis. It hadn’t been intentional, but since he never talked about home, the boys had no clue. Damo rocked up to work with a smile no matter what else was happening.

There was no reason Liam’s offhand comment should sting. Yet Damo sat there feeling like a dickhead. And it was ironic that Liam of all people was the one buying into the act when Liam had pretended to be straight for years.

Though Damo did like hot chicks in bikinis, and he did like a joke. He’d wanted to keep the beach his sanctuary. It wasn’t like he was pretending to be someone he wasn’t.

Jesus, he didn’t know which end was up.

As he scanned the waves with his foot on the dash, Damo asked as casually as possible, “How’s it been lately? Being out and everything.”

Liam was quiet for a few seconds. “Good. Mostly good.”

“No regrets?”

“Not one,” he said right away. “Well, aside from regretting that my parents still won’t talk to me. I can’t control that, though. I can only control how I respond.”

It was clear Liam had been going to therapy. Damo nodded.

“Now that Cody and I are getting—” he stopped.

Leaning forward, Damo examined the water. “See something?”

“No, it’s fine,” Liam said quickly. A flush rose over his bearded cheeks.

Narrowing his gaze, Damo asked, “Now that you and Cody are what?” His Spidey senses were tingling.

“Nothing!” Liam pushed to his feet, moving faster than you’d expect given his size. “I’m going to—”

“You’re going to cough up what you were gonna say!” Damo tugged on Liam’s sleeve. “You and Cody are… Let’s see. You already live together. You have a dog.” He half-joked, “Are you getting hitched?”

“Shh!” Liam hissed, jumping back in the buggy.

“Are you?” Damo drummed his hands on the dash. “You are!”

With a hilarious scowl, Liam shook his head but didn’t deny it.

“Far out!” Ignoring Liam’s head shaking, Damo grinned. “I won’t tell, Foxy. It’ll be our little secret.”

With a heavy sigh, Liam shot him a skeptical look.

“I swear. My lips are sealed.” He dropped the smile. “Look, I know people think I’m a total boofhead, but I can keep a secret. Maybe better than you think.”

Brow furrowed, Liam nodded. “Thanks.”

“Right, now tell me all about the proposal.”

Liam flushed an even darker shade of red, and Damo whistled. “There’s an adults only story there, hey?” And he was not allowed to think about it because Cody and Liam were his mates.

“No more questions,” Liam muttered.

“Whoa!” Damo exclaimed. “That chick got smoked.” He watched as the young woman’s surfboard popped up in the shallows.

She’d disappeared in the white froth of the worsening impact zone, nosediving on her way back to shore on a breaking swell that dumped her in a meter of water.

Damo and Liam sat bolt upright, watching and waiting, all joking and talk of weddings forgotten.

The woman did appear, staggering to her feet unsteadily. Damo said, “Gonna make sure she’s okay.” He hopped out of the buggy and jogged over to her. Dark-skinned and gorgeous, she was about thirty, her long legs shaky under her half wetsuit.

“How ya goin’?” he asked.

“Been better,” she replied in a Brit accent.

“Copped it hard, hey?” He reached out and touched her shoulder. “Did you hit your head at all?”

“No. But my back feels sore.”

Damo led her to dry sand. “Sit for a minute. You probably just tensed up and strained the muscles a bit, but let’s make sure.”

He went through the questions they asked to rule out a spinal injury. If there was any doubt, he’d call for a spinal board to be brought down and tell the tower to ring an ambulance. But after a few minutes, he was satisfied she was okay.

The woman—Ella—put her warm hand on his knee where he crouched beside her. Smiling, she said, “It’s nice to know there are lifeguards like you to take such good care of us.”

Last week, Damo probably would have smiled back and chatted her up for a minute if it wasn’t busy. But now, he leapt up and smiled too wide. “No worries! Just doin’ our job, hey? Later!”