Thirty-Six
Lola
Justice and I stood at the edge of the wave pool, and I stared into his sexy blue eyes.
The world stopped.
I heard the faint harmonizing vocals of The Beach Boys in the background and the wild applause of the crowd. Out of the corner of my eyes, everyone in the stands blurred and I felt the trickle of cool water tickle my toes.
He held my hand, gazed into my eyes and love flowed from my heart to his. “I love you, Lola.”
My throat constricted. He’d said those words so many times on our trip, but I never said them back. Tears pricked the back of my eyes, and I blinked them away. “I … I love you too.”
He grabbed the back of my head and pulled me hard into his kiss. Justice tasted delicious, like seawater and sex. Once again our kiss was broadcast on the jumbotron, and the crowd went wild. “Go, Lola and Justice!”
When we broke our kiss, we smiled at each other, and the smile he gave me was the same lopsided grin I remembered from the first time we’d met.
He held up his fist, and I held up mine. We bumped fists and then entered the wave pool.
I didn’t want to admit how much my leg hurt but it fucking throbbed. To hell with injuries. My papai had taught me to be a badass. Sometimes the pain was along for the ride.
I loved Justice. I loved how protective he was of me. He was only trying to keep me safe but if—when—we won the contest, life would be so much different. Justice would save the shop, and I’d quit the bank. But most importantly, I wanted to rub that annoying smirk off of Devin’s face.
The Beach Boys music faded to a low timbre, and the announcer said, “Get your cameras ready, folks because today at the Knight’s Ferry Wave Pool history is in the making.”
We sat in the lineup and Justice hugged me, his arms encircling my body, his breath hot on my neck. “You okay, babe?”
“If you ask me that one more time I’m going to knock you senseless.”
He squeezed my knee, and I felt the muscles in his body tense. I leaned against his muscular chest. A montage of our days together flooded back—Justice dancing the shimmy, Justice doing his crazy ridiculous worm on the dance floor, Justice forcing me to run another mile. Justice slapping my ass as he fucked me.
I think the endorphins surging through my body from the injury were making me loopy, but I had never felt so confident and ready to take on the world.
Devin and Kristin caught the first wave. Devin glared at Justice and mouthed the word, “loser.”
“Let’s kick his ass,” I said through clenched teeth.
Devin and Kristin got into position for their first lift. “What are they doing?” Justice said.
I watched as Devin lifted Kristin up and held her in a reverse knee stand. That was one of the easier moves. Kristin bent into a dramatic backbend and then, as the crowd gasped, he flipped her twice like a baton as Devin’s videographers caught every gorgeous move.
The announcer yelled, “Check this out, folks. Sweet move! It looks like Devin and Kristin are adding their own flavor to the finals. Let’s see what the judges do with this.”
The next wave came through, and Justice inhaled. “Remember what we talked about. One-leg shoulder stand.”
We paddled, stood up, and Justice said, “Here we go.” He hoisted me to his shoulders. But when I stood up for the move that would require me to stand on one of his shoulders, pain shot through my leg. Focus! Lift your bum leg and point your toes. The water rushed underneath us, and I forced myself to concentrate. Justice’s strong hands gripped my foot, and I gracefully arched my back, spreading my arms wide.
“Lola Hamilton’s one heck of an athlete,” the announcer said. “I hope the cameras are catching every second of this Cinderella story. What a comeback.”
A huge grin spread across my face as we rode the perfect wave. We ended our ride, and Justice gingerly eased me down. “Easy there, babe. Watch your leg.”
I laughed. “I know you love me, but quit treating me like a porcelain doll.”
“Plenty of spunk left, I see.” Justice kissed my cheek quickly. “Let’s get back out there and put this thing to bed.”
We paddled out to the lineup where Devin and Kristin sat. “I can beat you two with one hand tied behind my back,” Devin said.
“Stop being a jerk,” Kristin said.
Devin threw his arms around Kristin, yanked her head around and kissed her on the cheek. “I’m never a jerk.”
She pushed him away. “Don’t kiss me!” Kristin pressed her lips together and said to Devin, “I’m not feeling so good. Maybe we should—”
“Win?” He patted her thigh. His devious smile was directed at Justice. “Don’t worry Kristin. We’ve got plenty of money. Who cares about that hundred grand? We’re winners. And after today, the whole world will see.”
The wave picked up, and Kristin’s face took on a tense look. “Come on, babe, let’s go.”
As we watched, Justice said, “Kristin looked sick to her stomach when he kissed her. What’s up with those two?”
I’d tell Justice about my confrontation with Devin later. Right now we had a trophy to win.
The announcer’s voice became animated. “Holy Toledo, the Stonebreaker’s are going for a high-scoring scorpion.”
The crowd broke into whoops, and I glanced up at the jumbotron to see Devin, cool as you please, steady his body, lift Kristin onto his shoulders, and pick her up in a flawless scorpion. Kristin’s thin, shapely legs curled over her head and the applause from the crowd was deafening. But then something went wrong.
Justice’s breath caught, and he exhaled all at once into my neck. “She’s gonna fall.”
Kristin’s legs, perfectly curled in a near backbend, did this herky-jerky thing as Devin hoisted her over his head.
“I don’t know about this, folks,” the announcer’s voice boomed. “It looks like the Stonebreakers might …”
And then Kristin completely lost her balance, her body jerking violently to the right. I think I even heard Devin yell out a few curse words above the din of the crowd.
The announcer’s voice said, “Holy heartbreak, Batman! The Stonebreakers are down.” The crowd let out a collective gasp as Devin and Kristin plunged into the wave pool, sending up ferocious spumes of water. Justice and I gawked as Devin’s head popped up, his face angry and red, his fists slapping the water in rage.
Justice sucked in his breath. “This is our chance, babe.” He gripped my leg. “Let’s do this thing.”
The next wave came through. “Arabesque stand, Lola.”
The fast wave picked us up, and a spray of water hit my eyes, temporarily blinding me. I blinked furiously. “Come on. Let’s go.”
My leg hurt like a motherfucker when Justice lifted me to his shoulders, and I winced in pain. The bandages had started to come loose, and I felt a trickle of blood ease down my bare leg, onto my foot and drip onto Justice’s shoulder.
“I hope the judges don’t pull Lola Hamilton,” the announcer said. “That blood does not look good. Not good at all.”
I inhaled a steadying breath, and Justice huffed out, his muscles straining as he lifted me up into the pose that required him to hold my leg while I leaned forward and spread my arms. Balance, Lola. You got this. Blood dripped into the wave pool, and I could feel the slick liquid working its way under Justice’s hand.
I sneaked a peek at the jumbotron and saw the look of concentration on Justice’s face. Come on, babe. Don’t worry about me. Don’t drop me.
I tried to enjoy the applause from the audience, and I could hear Bobbie screaming in the background, but I was so keyed up that my legs cramped.
Finally, the ride was over, and we dismounted. Justice gave me a high five. “Awesome, babe!”
We got right back on the board. “Let’s get out there and finish them off,” I said.
We met the Stonebreakers back in the lineup and Devin’s face was set in a smirk. “No prob, you guys. Kristin and I fall sometimes, but we always come up smelling like roses. You haven’t seen our best moves yet.” I wanted to jump off the board and slug the guy. “And when I take over the shop I’ll invite you two to the ribbon cutting ceremony.” He made an expansive gesture with his arms. “I’ll have champagne, caviar, and hell, even some strippers. Maybe some of those chicks from The Booty Shop’ll shake their ass at the party.” Devin leered and pointed his finger my way. “You’d like that wouldn’t you, Lola?”
Justice jerked his fists up. “Don’t you talk that way to my wife.”
I gestured wildly. “Shut up, Devin.” An edgy, twitchy feeling coursed through my body and I splashed the water hard with one hand. Screw the jumbotron and Devin’s precious videographers; I didn’t need to put up with his machismo one second longer. “Yeah? And I suppose you’ll be trying to screw as many strippers as you can get your hands on. Just like you tried to screw me. Why don’t you tell Justice and Kristin all about how you begged me to give you a blowjob at the Ritz?”
Kristin’s eyes grew wide, and I heard Justice suck his breath in.
The announcer’s voice came to life. “A little drama’s always good for reality shows, but here at the Knight’s Ferry Wave Pool Contest, we take love seriously on Valentine’s Day. But hey, hey. Looks like we got one heck of a friendly competition out there.”
Justice said, “What the fuck?” His strong hands gripped my arms in a protective gesture. “Did he hurt you?”
“Hell no,” I said. “But if he comes near me again, his balls’ll end up in a vise.”
Kristin’s eyes filled with tears and I felt awful for her. I hoped with every fiber of my being that she’d leave his sorry ass.
Justice jabbed his finger at Devin, and I swear if we weren’t in the wave pool he would’ve stuffed him into a trashcan. I felt his body shake with rage. “Do yourself a favor and stay away from my wife.”
Devin looked over his shoulder as the next wave approached. “I hate to break up this party, but I’ve got a hundred grand with my name on it.” The wave came through, and Devin said, “See you back at the bank, Lola.”
“That son of a bitch,” Justice said. He leaned in and whispered in my ear. “You think you’re up for the arm-to-arm scorpion?”
I didn’t hesitate. “Hell yes.”
The arm-to-arm scorpion was one of our most difficult, highest-scoring moves. I’d have to contort my body into an upside-down position while I gripped Justice’s shoulders, and then curl my legs over like a scorpion’s tail until they almost touched my head.
We watched as Devin and Kristin executed a perfect one-arm straddle, and I cringed as I saw Kristin’s graceful legs stick out in a perfect V. Devin actually waved at the camera with his free arm.
The next wave rolled toward us, and Justice said, “Come on, babe, this is it.” We lay prone, paddled like crazy and dropped into the fast wave. Justice picked me up, and despite my injury, I knew I wouldn’t let him down.
My leg pulsed with pain but I forced the sensation out of my head. Justice lifted me to his shoulders, and then his powerful arms flipped me effortlessly until I was upside down, one hand gripping the back of his neck, the other on his shoulder. I eased my legs into a curled position like a scorpion.
The sun hit my eyes, and I squinted. I blinked. Everything felt perfectly balanced, but that’s when I noticed blood dripping from my foot onto the front of the board. Don’t look down! Point your toes and forget the pain.
But the throbbing pain wouldn’t go away. A sour taste filled my mouth as I felt the blood seep out of my wound. I pressed my lips together and forced myself to concentrate.
The blood continued to ooze, and I knew Justice probably saw it dripping in front of his face as it made its way onto the tandem board.
I took a deep breath as the water rushed underneath us and I glanced at Justice’s face for a second noticing that a few drops of blood had hit his face and the front of his rash guard.
His muscular arms held me firmly, a look of determination on his face.
“Lookie here, folks,” the announcer said. “Lola Hamilton’s executing a perfect, high scoring arm-to-arm scorpion with her husband, Justice. Are they crowd pleasers or what? You gotta give ‘em extra credit for getting back out there.”
The crowd whooped, and I heard Papaw scream, “Show ‘em how it’s done!”
My heart beat hard in my chest, and my spine ached with the contortion, but as the blood dripped off my leg the world came into focus.
Something was happening to me.
I felt like I was in a dream as Justice held me in his strong grip. This man who had captured my heart when we were kids was my soul mate.
Whether we won the contest or not, I had the biggest prize any woman could ever hope for.
Love.
With Justice. Together. Justice and me. We worked together. Like a well-oiled machine.
Being with Justice was a dream come true. He was my best friend, he was my workout partner, and he was romantic in the way I loved. Not with rose petals and cheesy candlelight dinners, but with childlike fun that made me want to grow old with him.
I wanted to ride bikes together in the streets when we were ninety. I wanted to watch our grandchildren grow up so we could all surf together. I wanted to make love to Justice every night as the ocean boomed in the background and then wake up in the morning and grab our boards and run laughing into the sea. I wanted to snuggle in with him and watch The Ring with a big bowl of popcorn on our laps.
I was in love with Justice and, win or lose, I was going to tell him those words every single day until we died holding hands.
Tears pricked my eyes. “I love you, baby.”
The wave came to an end, and Justice eased me out of the pose in a series of athletically graceful movements. I landed on the board with a wince of pain. “What?” he said. “Did you say something?”
I turned around and threw my arms around him. “I said … I love you!”
He smiled, and his lips were on mine, his athletic arms circling me tightly in his embrace. His lips possessed mine, his warm tongue licking, and nibbling. I couldn’t kiss Justice without my knees going wobbly, and so I gave into the passion of the moment. I lost myself in his seductive kiss as the crowd laughed and applauded. I heard Ginger’s voice above the crowd. “You go girl!”
We finally broke the kiss, and Justice’s dreamy blue eyes gazed into mine. His voice was low and husky. “I love you too, baby,” he said. “I never stopped.”
The horn blared, signaling the end of the contest.
“And that’s it, folks. I’d say we saw one helluva show today. Promised you it’d be worth the price of admission. Competitors, exit the wave pool while the judges tally your scores.”