The Moment of Letting Go - J. A. Redmerski Page 0,20

I was crossing the street.” My eyes widen and I feel the warm, salty air hit my teeth as my lips slowly begin to part. “And I hit the asphalt hard—”

“Are you OK?” I look him over, seeing no visible injuries.

He nods heavily, rapidly, and tries to catch his breath some more.

“I lost consciousness and woke up in some house—weird beads and shit were hanging from a doorway, and it smelled like incense.” My forehead wrinkles as I try to put the odd scene together in my head. “My wrists and ankles were tied to a chair.” He points at me briefly. “You know those fancy patio chairs with cushions that you wonder about leaving out in the rain?” Huh? “It was that chick on the bike. Somehow she got me to her house and tied me up. I thought: OK, this feels a little like Misery—you’ve seen that movie, right?” He points at me again.

Knowing now that he’s full of shit, I cross my arms, crushing the beach towel between them, and narrow my eyes.

“No, I can’t say that I have,” I answer with a smirk.

I catch him grinning, but he recovers quickly and continues with the charade that I find both ridiculous and charming.

Luke falls down in the sand, lying with his back against it and his knees bent, his hands resting on his chest, the right one crossed over to lie flat against his so-called rapidly beating heart.

“And just what did this girl do to you?” I play along.

He gazes up at me as I hover over him—he looks so serious.

“She wanted me to teach her how to surf,” he says matter-of-factly.

I try not to laugh, pushing the urge down and putting on my own serious face.

“So what did you do then? Did you teach her?”

Luke’s head moves side to side against the white sand. He swallows and looks into the clear blue sky, recalling the “event.” “No,” he answers distantly. “I told her I couldn’t, that I was booked for the day.” He looks at me with concentrating eyes. “I said I had a very important, beautiful client today that I couldn’t reschedule under any circumstances.”

My cheeks feel like they’re on fire.

“The look on her face when I told her that, it scared the hell outta me.”

“It must’ve been so awful for you,” I say dramatically, pressing my hand to my bikini-covered chest. “I just can’t imagine.”

“I know, right? But I managed to get my hands free from the rope and then untied my legs. I was about to jump out the window when she came back into the room and saw me. A tray with chips and a sandwich fell from her hands to the floor. She lunged”—his hand juts out in front of him, his fingers arched into a claw—“like a cat.” He bares his teeth and makes a hissing sound—my serious face has vanished and I can’t stop smiling. “I leapt at the window, crashing right through the screen, and then rolled when I hit the grass outside. I ran all the way here.”

He stops and releases one last quick breath from his lungs. And then he just looks up at me.

“What kind of chips were they?” I ask.

“Tortilla,” he says without hesitation.

I nod. “Well, at least she was going to feed you.”

Luke smiles, a shadow cast by me standing over him covering his face. I purposely step to the side and a burst of sunlight beams into his eyes, causing him to flinch. He laughs and springs to his feet.

Suddenly his expression shifts, the playful look disappears, replaced by apology and sincerity. I can’t stop looking at his eyes. They’re so kind and devoted and passionate.

“I almost didn’t come,” he finally says with honesty.

“Why not?” I’m not sure I really want to know the answer to that.

Luke pushes his hands deep into his pockets, his arms tightening to reveal the hard, defined muscles running along them.

“I guess I just thought if I spent an hour with you before you had to leave, I’d probably like you enough that I’d be more disappointed you couldn’t stay longer.”

Wow—already on the same wavelength and we barely know each other. This is kinda freaking me out. In a good way.

I look down, trying to tame the heat in my face.

But all too soon reality rears its ugly head and the moment is lost.

I switch shoulders with the beach bag and look back at the hotel where Paige waits for me inside. I sigh quietly. Less than