Summer leaned in, ready to add to the conspiracy. “We’re like undercover awesome.”
“Exactly. And that’s the best kind of awesome. If people knew, we’d have fans stalking us. Things would be so hectic.”
“Then we’d have to wear big, hiding-from-the-paparazzi shades and complain about how hard our life is.”
Ashlyn laughed. “Word.” She grabbed her board. “Now let’s get into the water before we start another conversation that has no end.”
“I just want to point out that you started that one.”
“Hey,” a male voice called, and Summer spun around to see Troy jogging over to them, surfboard tucked under his arm. “I thought you girls would be in the water by now.” He draped his arm around her shoulders and hung on her, as if he needed to catch his breath from his short jog. It was another one of those flirty things that confused her because she wasn’t sure if it was a friendly gesture or an I-wanna-be-more gesture. “Sorry, I’m late. I had a thing.”
And then there was still the fact that he always had to be somewhere else, without ever explaining why. Summer shot him a sidelong glance. “A thing? Yes, I’ve heard that things can be very important.”
“Are you mocking me, Sunshine?”
“Oh, I wouldn’t dare, Mister Bond. Not when you have mysterious things going on.”
“Troy, I barely got her to stop rambling,” Ashlyn said. “Now we’ll never get in the water.”
“No, I’m ready now.” Summer stepped out of Troy’s grasp and pulled her surfboard out of the sand. “If you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a thing to go do in the water.”
Ashlyn followed, and within a couple of minutes, they were nearing the spot where the frothy waves promised an awesome day of surfing.
Troy paddled over to where Ashlyn and Summer were floating on their boards in the water. The waves had gotten weaker and weaker, not giving them much to work with anymore. “So, it’s been fun, but I’ve got to go.”
Summer turned to Ashlyn. “You see, Troy’s in charge of an underground resistance movement. He doesn’t have time for idle chit-chat anymore.”
“Ooh, sounds intriguing,” Ashlyn said. “What cause are you fighting for?”
Troy rolled his eyes. “I told you guys I didn’t have much time, but I came and caught some waves, anyway. Now I’ve got to go.”
“Well, thanks for the favor of hanging out with us,” Summer said, irritation over his continued secrecy digging at her. “We’re so lucky to get a few hours of your time.”
Ashlyn glanced over her shoulder. “Oh, here comes a wave. It’s wimpy, but I’m going to catch it.” She paddled off, ducking under the smaller waves to get out to the bigger one.
Troy moved his board closer to Summer’s. “Are you mad at me? You’ve been cold all week.”
Yeah, ever since your friend Tiny showed up and you made it clear I should get lost. “I’m not mad. It’s just been a rough week.” And I can’t deal with you if you’re only going to confuse me more.
He ran a hand through his hair, the damp strands sticking up in a completely charming way she was trying to ignore. “I keep telling you that you can talk to me.”
“Sure. Right before you run off to your important…whatever you’re always doing.” She raised an eyebrow at him. “What if I want to talk now?”
“I’ll skip my thing and we talk. I’ll just need to go make a quick call first.”
Summer didn’t know why she was being so confrontational and needy. The last thing she wanted to do was manipulate him so he’d stay. Especially since she didn’t have anything to talk about—or anything she could talk about, anyway. “I was just giving you a bad time. Thanks for coming and hanging with us. I mean that, I swear.”
Ashlyn rode past them. As the wave petered out, Ashlyn lost her footing and the board pitched forward, throwing her backward into the water. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her wipe out like that before. Not when the water’s so smooth.
Summer watched the spot she’d disappeared and waited for her to come up.
And waited.
Her pulse spiked as she scanned the surface of the water, still not seeing Ashlyn. “Where is she?”
“She’ll come up,” Troy said, his eyes glued to her empty surfboard.
But more seconds passed, and panic tightened her lungs. She hadn’t seen this earlier, and she’d been looking out for it. Of course, they’d been out here for hours. “Come up, Ash.”
Still nothing.
“Something’s wrong.” Summer glanced at Troy and then they both paddled toward the spot Ashlyn had gone under. Troy tore his cuff off and dove into the water.
Don’t freak out. You need to keep your head clear enough to help. Summer ripped off her cuff, took a deep breath, and plunged into the ocean. Murky salt water stung her eyes as she tried to look around. She couldn’t see Ashlyn or Troy, and soon the need for oxygen overpowered her. She pushed herself to the surface and took a couple deep breaths.
Just as she was about to dive back in, Troy and Ashlyn broke the surface. Troy had his arm around Ashlyn, keeping her head above water. He headed to the shore. Summer followed, swimming as fast as she could.
I messed up. I’m too late. I didn’t even get her to make up with her mom. Guilt ripped through her, and tears sprung to her eyes, mixing with the salt water dripping down her face.
Summer tripped onto the sand where Troy had already laid Ashlyn. “Oh my gosh, is she…?” Ashlyn couldn’t be gone. She just couldn’t.
Dropping to her knees, Summer looked her friend over. Her lips already had a bluish tint, and her skin was deathly pale.
With a shaky hand, she reached for Ashlyn, deciding to try to get a read on her. This late, she didn’t know if she’d see anything.
Her fingers grazed Ashlyn’s shoulder…
And Ashlyn coughed.
A large gasp followed, then her breath came out in ragged, wheezing noises.
“I’m sorry.” Tears spilled from Summer’s eyes. “This is all my fault.”
“Don’t be so dramatic,” Ashlyn said. “I’m already embarrassed enough without you blubbering all over me.” She coughed again.
“You scared the crap out of me! Don’t ever do that again!”
Troy sat back on his heels. “You want me to call a paramedic or the lifeguard or something?”
“Yes,” Summer said, while Ashlyn yelled “No!” over the top of her.
Ashlyn sat up halfway, propping herself on her elbows. “I’m fine. I got a little winded; then I got tangled up in my cord. Let’s not make this any more embarrassing.”
“You should at least get checked out.”
Troy watched them argue, his head turning to one, then the other, as they went back and forth on the issue of getting a medical opinion.
Summer put her hand on Troy’s knee, hoping he’d be able to talk some sense into Ashlyn. “Tell her she needs to see somebody.”
“Well if she feels okay…” Troy shrugged.
Heat burned through Summer’s veins, and she was irritated at him all over again. I can’t believe he’s not backing me up here! Of course, he didn’t have the whole truth. He didn’t know about Ashlyn’s looming death. That Summer had thought that death had come before she’d done her job. “Fine. You better hurry off to your thing, so you’re not late. I’ll take Ashlyn home and see what her mom thinks.”
“Summer, please don’t tell my mother. She’ll say it’s because of…” Ashlyn glanced at Troy, then back at Summer. “And it’ll be a mess and make things worse. Promise me you won’t say anything.”