Making Waves: A Perfect Kisses Novella by Ophelia London Read Free Book Online Page A

out to get over her feelings for Will Davenport today, she was doing one hell of a crap job at it.
    “Sure,” she said, opening the door and sliding out. She stood outside her rental and kept an eye on his Jeep, noting where he parked.
    Will apparently wasn’t as stealthy as he thought, because by the time she drove up to meet him, there were five or six kids surrounding him. When he saw her pull up, he climbed out of the Jeep, gave some fist bumps, then walked to the driver’s side of her car.
    “Scoot over,” he said through the open window.
    “Why?”
    “Because I’m driving so you can type.”
    “Gotcha.”
    She was about to climb over the center console when Will opened the door and held out his hand. She slid hers inside it and he pulled her to her feet. She kind of accidentally bumped into his chest on the way out. Well, maybe not so accidentally. She saw his muscles through his shirt—they’d just needed a closer, physical inspection.
    As she walked around to the passenger side, she heard one of the kids behind her say, “That’s the girl he macked on after the finals.” Justine pressed her lips together, trying not to grin.
    “You’re sure you have time to take off today?” she asked as they started back down the windy highway. “Don’t other people want to meet you?”
    “Honestly”—he ran a hand under his chin—“there are some events I should attend, but nobody will be surprised if I don’t show.” He glanced her way. “Chase Ryder is kind of a recluse.”
    “And Will Davenport isn’t?”
    “Davenport has an excuse.” He flashed a smile.
    “Which is?”
    “He’s a computer programmer who works from home for half the year. Recluse goes with the territory.” He eyed her closed laptop. “Shouldn’t you get started?”
    Justine didn’t want to stop talking to him, though. He was funny and charming, just like the guy she thought she’d been falling for back home. While they drove down the coast, she made it a point to run complicated facts by him, keeping their conversation going.
    “Why is it so important to keep your real name a secret?” she asked.
    By then, she was mostly done with the article. First, she’d transposed her handwritten notes to the bottom of a Word document, then started writing at the top, copying and pasting, rearranging until it sounded perfect. She’d even gone the extra mile and composed two versions, one briefly mentioning that the famous surfer went by two names. Although, she’d kind of almost totally decided to not go that route—knowing what happened between them last year was becoming more and more important.
    “ Off the record,” she added, flashing him a smile while closing her laptop as a gesture of trust.
    Before speaking, Will flipped his sun visor and rolled up the window. “For starters, I haven’t always been the well-adjusted guy you see today. When I was starting out, I let the fame go to my head. I was a bigger douchebag that Justin Beaver.”
    “Bieber,” Justine corrected.
    Will laughed. “Right. Well, things got out of hand. One night, some people— fans , they said—broke into our house. They thought no one was home, so when my mother came downstairs, they…reacted. It was dark.”
    When he didn’t go on, Justine felt herself holding her breath.
    “There were ten of them. Seven took off right away with some of my trophies and clothes, but three stayed. They were high, so they probably didn’t realize… Well, that’s what the judge said, anyway. The worst of my mother’s injuries happened when one of them threw my longboard across the room before running out. My board.” He shook his head. “She never saw it coming.”
    “Will,” Justine whispered, staring at the side of his face. “Is she…okay?”
    He ran a fist over his mouth and nodded. “She spent a few nights in the hospital, but even after installing a new security system, she hardly left the house. We ended up moving and it took her a long time to