Page 38 of Guys Can’t Write Romance

It didn’t escape her that he’d used her first name. “You wanna know something funny?” she said.

“What?”

“I’m glad Mags paired us up.”

“Me too.”

They sat in comfortable silence for a moment, gently rocking on their boards as small waves passed beneath them. Daisy once again found her thoughts drifting.

“Penny for your thoughts,” Chad said.

“You’ll need to make it at least a buck so I can buy another coffee.”

“A buck it is.”

She smiled faintly, but it was tinged with a touch of sadness. “I was just thinking about my dad. He would have loved this.”

The words slipped out before she could catch them. She rarely talked about her father, especially today of all days. The memories were too precious, too painful. But at that moment, she wanted to share that part of her with Chad.

Chad’s expression softened with understanding. “Was he a surfer?”

“No,” Daisy smiled slightly. “But he loved the ocean. Every time we moved to a coastal base, the first thing he’d do was take me to watch the sunrise or sunset over the water. He said it was the best way to make a new place feel like home.”

Chad nodded, not pushing for more, but clearly listening intently.

“He’s the one who got me into reading, actually,” Daisy continued, surprising herself with the desire to share this piece of her father. “He’d read to me every night, no matter how tired he was from training. Said books were the one constant we could always take with us.”

“He sounds like a good dad,” Chad said quietly.

“The best,” Daisy agreed, blinking back the sudden moisture in her eyes. “Sorry, I don’t usually talk about this. It’s just… he passed away three years ago today, so he’s been on my mind all week.”

Chad reached across the space between their boards and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “Think how proud he must be of the amazing writer you’ve become.”

A deep warmth filled her eyes as she watched him. “Thank you,” she said softly.

He nodded. “Ready to paddle out a little deeper?” he said, giving her an easy out from the emotional moment. “The waves are perfect for beginners today.”

Daisy took a deep breath. “As ready as I’ll ever be.” She released his hand, but not before giving it an affectionate squeeze.

Chad led the way, showing her how to paddle efficiently, how to navigate through the breaking waves, and finally, how to turn and position herself in what he called ‘the lineup,’ the place where surfers waited for the right wave.

The water was considerably deeper out here, and though Daisy’s initial anxiety had returned, there was something peaceful about floating beyond the break, the shore now looking distant and small.

“This is...” Daisy searched for the right word.

“Freeing?” Chad suggested.

“Yes,” she agreed, surprised. “I thought I’d be terrified, but it’s actually beautiful.”

Chad smiled, clearly pleased. “This is my favorite part. Just sitting out here, feeling the ocean move beneath you. It’s like you’re part of something bigger.”

The poetry in his observation surprised her, though it shouldn’t have. For all his laid-back, beer-drinking, procrastinating ways, Chad had a depth that continually caught her off guard.

“You feel it?” Chad asked, watching her face. “The way the water is never completely still? Even between waves, there’s this constant motion, this... aliveness.”

Daisy closed her eyes, concentrating on the sensation. He was right. The ocean beneath her felt like a living, breathing entity, gently rocking her board in a rhythm that was both soothing and energizing.

“Just let everything else go,” Chad said softly. “All the expectations, all the plans, all the what-ifs and should-haves. Out here, none of that matters.”

Daisy opened her eyes to find him watching her with an expression she couldn’t quite read, something tender and cautious and hopeful all at once.

It struck her suddenly that bringing her here, to this peaceful spot on a day of grief, might be the most thoughtful gift anyone had given her in a long time.

“I never pictured you as the philosophical type,” she said, trying to lighten the suddenly charged atmosphere.

Chad grinned, the vulnerable moment passing. “I contain multitudes, Fields.”

“Did you just quote Walt Whitman?”

“Maybe,” he shrugged. “Or maybe I saw it on a bumper sticker.”

Daisy laughed, the sound carried away by the sea breeze. “You’re impossible.”

“Part of my charm,” Chad agreed easily. “Now, let’s find you a wave to catch.”

He pointed toward the horizon, where a small swell was forming. “That one’s perfect. Remember what we practiced. Paddle hard, feel the wave catch, then pop up. One fluid motion.”

Daisy nodded, suddenly nervous again. “What if I fall?”

“Then you get back on the board and try again,” Chad said simply. “That’s the beauty of it. The ocean doesn’t care how many times you fall. There’s always another wave coming.”

The approaching swell grew closer. Daisy positioned herself as instructed, heart pounding.

“Start paddling,” Chad called. “Now!”

Daisy paddled with all her might, feeling the wave begin to lift her board. Just as she prepared to attempt her pop-up, a familiar voice boomed across the water.

“Yo, lovebirds! Save some waves for the rest of us!”

Daisy’s concentration shattered. She turned to see Rhino paddling toward them, grinning like a schoolboy who’d just interrupted a private moment.

The distraction was enough. The wave caught her board at an angle, flipping it and sending Daisy tumbling beneath the surface. She emerged sputtering, hair plastered to her face, to find Chad beside her looking concerned and Rhino looking sheepish.

“You okay?” Chad asked, helping her back onto her board.

“Fine,” Daisy gasped, pushing wet hair from her eyes. “Just my pride that’s drowning.”

“Sorry about that,” Rhino called, more sincerely this time. “Didn’t mean to mess up your ride.”

“It’s fine,” Daisy assured him, though Chad was giving his roommate a look that suggested it was anything but fine.

“Don’t you have somewhere to be?” Chad asked pointedly. “Like annoying literally anyone else on the planet?”

Rhino grinned. “Nope. My whole morning is free. Thought I’d catch some waves with my best bud.” He turned to Daisy with exaggerated courtesy. “And his friend, who’s definitely not his date.”

Daisy laughed, the earlier heaviness of the day receding under the childish bickering between roommates. “It’s fine,” she assured Chad. “I should probably call it a day anyway. I need to get ready for school.”

“One more wave,” Chad insisted. “You can’t end on a wipeout. It’s bad surfing karma.”

“Is that a real thing?” Daisy asked skeptically.

“Absolutely,” Rhino confirmed. “Terrible luck. You’ll be cursed with flat hair and sand in uncomfortable places for a month.”

“See? Even Rhino agrees, and he never agrees with me about anything,” Chad said.

Daisy looked between the two men, both watching her expectantly with identical expressions of boyish encouragement.

“Fine,” she conceded. “One more wave. But if your roommate causes me to wipeout again, I’m holding you personally responsible.”

“Deal,” Chad agreed. “Rhino, back off and give the lady some space.”

“Yes, sir!” Rhino mock-saluted, paddling a short distance away. “Don’t mind me. Just observing the wild McKenzie in his natural habitat, attempting to impress a female with his surfing prowess.”

“Ignore him,” Chad advised Daisy. “He thinks he’s way funnier than he actually is.”

“I heard that!” Rhino called.

Chad rolled his eyes, then pointed to another approaching swell. “This one’s perfect. Remember, feel the wave, become one with the water.”

“Now who thinks he’s funny?” Daisy teased, positioning herself.

“Paddle!” Chad said as the wave approached. “Now!”

This time, Daisy felt it, the moment when the wave caught her board, propelling her forward with a burst of energy. Without overthinking, she pushed up, brought her feet beneath her, and stood.

For three glorious seconds, she was surfing. She felt the wind in her face, the spray of water around her, and the pure exhilaration of riding a force of nature.

Then she tumbled, the board slipping away as she plunged into the water. When she surfaced, both Chad and Rhino were cheering.

“You did it!” Chad exclaimed, paddling over to her. “Great job!”

“Three seconds of actual surfing!” Daisy laughed, grabbing her board. “Are you dazzled yet?”

Chad chuckled, remembering how she’d used that word during their walk home from the bar. “Completely dazzled.”

“I thought you would be,” she laughed, still patting herself on the back.

Chad paddled back to shore with her while Rhino returned to the lineup.

As she stepped onto the sand, legs wobbly but heart light, Daisy realized she hadn’t thought about Ava’s criticisms, Ethan’s expectations, or even, for those three perfect seconds on the wave, the grief that had been her constant companion all morning.

As Daisy slipped back into her shorts and t-shirt for her drive home, she thought about the concern in Chad’s eyes as he fetched her from the water and helped her back on her board.

She glanced over at him as he dried off, and her heart swelled with affection.

Maybe, just maybe, she had someone in her life again to catch her when she fell.