Brazen Tricks - Ali Dean Page 0,32

Beck at my side, but knowing I’m only here to watch and soak in the atmosphere keeps my heart from racing into overdrive.

“Hey.” Beck squeezes my hand, drawing my attention to him. “You okay?”

The side of my mouth tilts in a half smile. “Am I that obvious?”

“No, but you’ve been happy all day and now you’re tense. Come on, let’s sit together, let your friends explore.”

We find a spot on the edge of the park, our legs dangling over sand as we look out at the half pipe. There are a handful of people up there, and my legs swing restlessly as a guy takes a fall. It’s more of an easy slide when he wimps out on following through with a trick, but it still makes me cringe.

Someone takes the spot beside me and I glance over to find Phoebe. She leans closer, brushing her shoulder against mine. “I think I just saw your pal Sarah Kase.”

I groan. “Really?”

“Yeah, I caught Wyatt checking her out as she went up the stairs to the half pipe.”

“I was not checking her out,” Wyatt grumbles as he takes a seat on Phoebe’s other side. “She’s in one of her signature neon sports bras so I was just looking to confirm who it was.”

“Right.” Phoebe pats his knee. “It’s fine, babe. You caught me checking out Griffin earlier so it’s only fair.”

Griffin joined us for the first part of the day but wandered off back to work when we headed over here.

My eyes gravitate to the platform at the top of one of the world’s largest, most notorious half pipes. Sure enough, Sarah Kase is up there wearing her signature bright sports bra. She’s never been very friendly toward me, but I can’t deny that I still hold admiration for her. When I watch her drop in a few minutes later and attack the pipe, I wonder if part of her attitude toward me is based purely on her overwhelming competitive nature. Maybe she struggles to be friendly because she does see me as a worthy opponent, and it’s hard for her to play nice when she takes the sport so seriously. I’ve never let myself entertain this thought before, and maybe I just needed a little more confidence in my own abilities to see things clearly.

With single-minded focus, Sarah does one run after the next in that half pipe. Sure she came when she must have known it would be crowded, but she’s here to train, no doubt about it. There’s no denying her tenacity, and despite everything, I admire her for it.

“Don’t hate me for saying this.” Wyatt leans across Phoebe to get my attention. “But she reminds me of you a little.”

Phoebe adds, “Uh, yeah. I’ve never seen anyone get tunnel vision on a skateboard like that except for you.”

I laugh softly, because it’s not too far from my own thoughts. “The only difference is that she’s willing to endure the crowds, or purposefully seeks them out. Though I bet she’s only here at a popular time to simulate competition atmosphere or something. She’s definitely not paying attention to anything else around here.”

Levi and Devon come over to let us know they’re good to head back to Jay Beach, and I think I’ve managed to escape a Riptide visit without any unwanted encounters. But it seems Sarah has decided to wrap things up at the same time, and she walks over as we stand up to go.

I’m expecting her to ignore me and talk to Beck, but it’s me she addresses first.

“Checking out your competition? When will we be up against each other next, anyway?”

I bite back my laugh at her questions, which would have stung in the past. Now I get it. She does see me the way I’ve wanted her to: as a worthy competitor. It somehow changes all of her interactions with me up to this point under that lens. Sure, I still think she could have a little more grace about it, but I guess that’s not her nature.

“Not until the X Games,” I answer. I’m not going to deny I was watching her just now.

She nods and I think I might detect a tiny trace of a smile. “Good.”

Without any acknowledgment of Beck or my friends, she skates away.

After a beat of silence, Beck pulls me to his side and ignores the exchange that just happened. “So, what do you guys want to do for dinner?”

We’re at the beach the next day when Griffin plops