dangerous

• Eight

The weather Saturday was perfect; the sun was shining, there was a soft breeze.

Smiling, I leaned back on my elbows, watching the guys in the water. Jude was sitting on his surf board, waiting for a wave; Isaac and Eli were wrestling around in the waves near the beach. Ava laughed as Eli slammed Isaac into an upcoming wave.

I laid down, letting the warm sun soak in to my skin. Beside me, I heard Lucy stand up. "I'm going to go get ice cream. You guys want?"

"Um, duh?" Ava laughed, standing. "Ella? You want?" I shook my head.

"No thanks,"

I heard them leave, and I rolled over on to my stomach, resting my head on my arms. Jude fell down on to the towel his sister had previously occupied. "Having fun?" I asked, opening my eyes.

Jude nodded. "You ever been surfing?" He asked. I shook my head, terrified by just the thought of the sharks in the water, and of the way the water could easily swallow me up.

"I'm perfectly content on the beach, thanks though," I said.

Jude chuckled. "Are you scared of the ocean?"

I grimaced. "That easy to tell?"

"Yeah," he said, laying on his side so we were eye to eye. "Will you go out there with me? It's not as scary as it seems."

I narrowed my eyes. "Yeah, sharks and killer waves aren't that scary,"

Jude laughed. "Come on, Els, please? You can't spend your entire first trip to the beach with your arse in the sand."

He held out a hand. Truth be told, I did really want to swim. Sighing, I let him pull me to my feet. Jude didn't let go of my hand like I assumed he would, though. His large hand engulfed mine as we walked through the hot sand toward the water.

We stood where the sand became softer with the tide coming in.

I sighed, knowing that Jude deserved an explanation for everything; for the night at Isaac's house, for the party. . .

"Jude, I—" I started.

"Hey guys!" A familiar voice broke through the beginning of the conversation.

I groaned, recognizing Luke's voice immediately. Jude gave me a funny look before turning to face his friend.

Jude let go of my hand to give Luke one of those weird bro-hugs. "I didn't know if you were coming, man." Jude laughed.

Luke shrugged, his hands in the pockets of his swim trunks. "Couldn't miss a day at the beach. Besides, Kellie has never been,"

I frowned. Who was Kellie?

Jude had the same thought. "Who's Kellie?"

Luke smirked. "Flavor of the week, if you know what I mean,"

Rolling my eyes, I crossed my arms across my chest and scoffed.

Luke's eyes met mine for a fraction of a second before he turned, facing the girls on the towels. On my towel between Ava and Lucy, was a redhead in a green skimpy one piece that looked more like Victoria Secret lingerie than a bathing suit.

He motioned her over. She stood, practically skipping over to us. She stood next to Luke, wrapping her arm around his. "Hi guys," she chirped. Her voice was impossibly nasaly, and I could tell closer to her how frizzy her hair was and the crookedness of her teeth.

"Kels, this is my friend Jude." Luke said, completely ignoring me. Jude looked between the two of us, before stepping forward to give her a small hug.

"Nice to meet you," Jude said politely. "Pardon Luke's rudeness, but this is my friend Ella."