us off and gets up. "Forget you guys." He heads for the ocean. "Yo, Cadeycake! Teach me how to surf."
Cade looks Colby up and down, then glances over at me. I chuckle and shake my head.
"Don't hurt him, and I'll pay you for it later," I yell.
A grin stretches across his face, and he gestures for Colby to come with him. Just before they reach the water, he turns around.
"If he drowns, I can't be held accountable."
I giggle and watch as the two of them dive into the incoming wave. Meanwhile, Tessa is staring at me with a prideful glint in her eyes.
"What?" I ask.
She puts her hands up defensively. "Nothing, it's just maybe you're right. Sex changed you."
"That's what I'm saying!"
I lean back in my chair and pull my sunglasses into place, watching as Cade shows off by making tricks with his surfboard look easy. Even if losing my virginity hasn't changed me, being with him certainly has. And I couldn't be happier.
HAVING TO PRETEND TO have nothing to do with Cade in front of our parents is one thing I really wish I didn't have to do. Figures, I can't stand him when my dad wants us to spend time together, but when all I want to do is be near him, my dad wants me as far away as humanly possible. Could my luck get any worse?
Usually, Cade sneaks into my room after everyone is in bed and sneaks out in the morning before sunrise. It allows us to spend the night together and minimizes the risk of getting caught. This morning, however, I wake up to a knock at my door and Cade still sound asleep in my bed.
My eyes shoot open, and I panic for a moment before going over to answer the door. "I'm not decent."
"Are you okay?" Nora calls back.
Fuck. I pull the door open just a crack but make sure not to let her see past me. "Yeah. I'm just waking up. Is everything okay?"
She looks unsure. "I can't find Cade. He's not in his room but his Jeep is in the driveway."
I run my fingers through my hair. "I think I heard him on the phone with Bryce yesterday, talking about being picked up before sunrise to go surfing."
"Oh," she says. "I guess that would explain why he hasn't been answering his phone."
I smile. "Yep, just probably in the water."
It looks like she's finally about to head back down the stairs and I mentally relax, but she catches me off guard at the last minute.
"Oh, you know I should probably grab your laundry for Melani while I'm up here. She's been complaining about that issue with her hip."
Before I have a chance to stop her, she comes through the door. My breath hitches as I slowly turn around, but as I look back at my bed, Cade is no longer in it.
What the fuck?
She grabs my laundry basket and leaves with a friendly smile sent my way. I grab the door and swing it closed, when the sight of Cade standing behind it scares the crap out of me.
"Oh my God," I gasp, clutching my chest and feeling as my heart pounds against my ribcage. "Don't do that!"
He chuckles and wraps me in his arms. "I'm sorry."
"We almost got caught."
"But we didn't."
"We could have."
He pulls me closer and drops down until his lips meet my own. "But, we didn't."
All the fight I had against him leaves, and all that's left is the way he makes me feel when we're alone—when there isn't someone watching to make sure we keep a certain distance or looking at us funny for seeming too close.
"I wish we didn't have to hide," I whisper.
He sighs. "Me, too."
Since the argument that led to us having sex for the first time, we haven't talked about anything that has to do with my dad. Not how he wants me to keep my distance. Not how Cade plans on getting his parents back together. We've just focused on enjoying the time we can together, no matter how little it is.
"I have to get ready for dance, but are you picking me up after?"
He nods. "I'll be there."
With another kiss and a panty-dropping smile, he goes over to the window and climbs out to where the tree rests against it. He climbs down like Tarzan, swinging from limb to limb with his muscles flexing in all the right places. Then, he walks in the front door like he just got home.
Such