Rough Waters Read Online Free PDF

It’d spread like an STD, and Vin
doesn’t need to catch it.”
    A.J. laughs from behind his strawberries. But
Reed keeps a serious face.
    “You’re right,” Reed says. “If Vin finds out,
it’ll just blow up worse than it already has. He hates Taylor as it
is. You handle Colby, and we’ll just keep it under wraps.”
    I reach over and steal a strawberry from A.J.
and tell the guys I’m going to call it a night. Driving for two
days is exhausting, and I haven’t even unpacked. I retreat to my
room in the guest house, unpack the essentials, and hang Solomon
back in the bay window. I’m not sure if he’ll bring any good vibes
to me this time around, but it’s worth a try. I feel like I need it
now even more than I did last summer.
     
    I wake up to my phone buzzing against the
nightstand. It’s too early in the morning to deal with anyone or
anything. I feel around until the vibrations land under my hand and
jerk the phone free from the charger. Topher’s name flashes across
the screen.
    “Hello?” I say, trying to sound awake.
    “Were you seriously still asleep?” he asks.
“Do you know what time it is?”
    I force myself to turn over. The morning
light bleeds into the bedroom, but there’s no a hint of sunshine.
No pink or purple hues. Just a faint blue light behind the
curtains.
    “Is the sun even up yet?” I ask.
    “No,” Topher says. “I guess I’m just used to
getting up to surf.”
    And to call me, apparently. I don’t know why
he has to get up with the sunrise. I get it – it’s a surfer thing –
but it’s not like he has to beat the crowds to the lineup. No one
surfs in Horn Island but the Hooligans.
    “Are you coming to the store this morning?
For the meeting?” he asks. “I figure Vin told you about it, but
he’s so wrapped up in Drenaline stuff that he hardly talks to me
these days.”
    Vin hardly talks to me these days. I
thought he’d call last night, after all the chaos died down. I
thought maybe he’d swing by and check in or at least check the
fluids under the hood of my car. And if not that, he’d call to see
if I had any updates on Colby.
    But the only person in the Brooks family who
seems to know my phone number is Topher. I don’t know what the
meeting is for or about, but I decide to pretend like I do.
    “Yeah, I’ll be there,” I say into the phone.
“What time is the meeting again?”
    “He told Miles and me to be there at eight,
so if you want, you can just meet me in the back parking lot a few
minutes before,” Topher says. “See you then, yeah?”
    “Yeah,” I say. “See you then.”
    After spending another half hour tossing and
turning, I realize there’s no chance of falling back asleep. I get
up, shower, and throw myself together just enough to look like I
have a little bit of life in me. Then I head for the kitchen.
Reed’s Jeep is already gone. Alston sits shirtless in the kitchen
when I walk in.
    “Morning,” he says, a bit too chipper for
sunrise hours. “Reed went down to the bakery. He’ll be back in a
few, though.”
    I just nod and slide onto the barstool next
to him. It’s awkward, really. I didn’t have much to say to Alston
last summer. He was just good for keeping Linzi out of my way while
I continued digging skeletons out of everyone’s closets. Now that
we’re roommates and I don’t have Linzi, I really don’t know how to
deal with Alston.
    He doesn’t say anything else and pays more
attention to whomever he is texting. A minute later, he laughs and
hands me his phone.
    Kale: Surf later?
    Alston: Sounds good. Waiting on breakfast!
Haley’s with me.
    Kale: She doesn’t know what she’s
missing!
    And there it is – shirtless Kale waving the
shaka, sticking out his tongue. He must think this whole tongue-out
expression looks good on him.
    “So is Kale your new BFF?” I ask, handing
Alston his phone.
    Alston shrugs but half-nods. “We hang out a
lot,” he says. “Miles is always training, and Topher goes
everywhere