When Its Least Expected (41 page)

She yelped in surprise, but it lasted only seconds, as her arms were already wrapping

around his neck. He swallowed her sounds as she pushed back at him with just as much
pressure as he gave. Her fingers pulled at his hair, and he grabbed the end of her
pink t-shirt. They were ripping, pulling, pushing. Every verb he could think of, they
were experiencing it, right there in the airport. Vaguely, he heard a few whistles
and catcalls around him as their mouths melded into together. She was the first to
pull back, but their foreheads met. Her eyelashes tickled his cheeks.

He swallowed the emotion in his throat as he spoke. “I can't believe you actually
came. I

thought…” He pulled her face up towards him with his palms, just so he could look
down into her dark eyes. He couldn’t hide his feelings long enough to get his words
out in entirety.

“I’m here. That’s all that matters now, Mase.” They became one again. This time it
was

all her. She slowed the fierceness of their lips down, and he more than welcomed it.
It was so close to perfection that he was ready to give up his world just to be with
her like that for forever.

After what felt like hours, they finally separated due to the fact that Mason’s mom

groaned at them from behind. “Come on, you two. You’re going to wind up hurting each
other

with all that … kissing business.” Mason smirked, and Harley blushed. The moment was
theirs, mom interruption or not.

He grabbed her hand and bag, pulling her into his side as they headed to the car.
Every

other second, he had to stare down at her, just to make sure she was there. His cheeks
ached from smiling so much, but it was the best kind of pain.

She smiled up at him shyly, “What are you staring at, Mase?”

He shook his head as he answered, rubbing slow circles against the palm of her hand.

“Isn’t it obvious?” She rolled her eyes but gifted him with an equally excited grin.
Life couldn’t get much better than that.

***

To say that Mason was surprised by Harley’s unexpected visit was an understatement.

Harley on the other hand was more than surprised at his enthusiastic greeting. Her
lips were still swollen today with the amount of kissing they’d done since she’d gotten
there. She grinned. She could spend her entire life kissing Mason Daniel, among other
things of course too. She sighed out of contentment as she lounged on the beach awaiting
the first rounds of his tournament.

Harley only wished she knew where they stood as far as coupledom went. Last night,
they’d

certainly acted like one, hauling up in his room at his tiny two bedroom apartment
all night. She grinned, thinking about his roommates complaints that morning.

She smiled, and apparently it’d drawn Mrs. Daniel’s attention because she spoke with

obvious curiosity and wonderment. “So … what do you think of Santa Cruz so far, Harley?

Obviously they don’t have beaches like these back in Hillsdale Nebraska, huh?”

Harley smiled shyly down at her lap. She couldn’t help but wonder if the woman

questioned what they’d done all night together. She didn’t want to be her
son’s trampy girlfriend,
but hell, there was no denying that she was learning to enjoy the art of their intimacy.

“Nope, they sure don’t, and now that I’m here, I don’t think I wanna to go back. This

place is amazing!” The sounds of the water and waves crashed against the beach, reminding
her of the soothing ability this place had over her. She was finally realizing why
Mason’s heart was always here. Hell, she’s most likely lost some of her own heart
here too, and it had only been less than twenty-four hours.

“You’ve got to come out here and see this place at night though, Har. The stars are

freaking amazing, so clear and beautiful. My dad and I, and sometimes even Mason too,
spent a whole lot of midnight hours' right here on this very beach.” She covered her
brow to block the sun as she stared over at Maisy’s grinning face. Yeah, this place
did wonders for people

apparently.

Mrs. Daniel hugged her daughter tightly as Maisy laid her head onto her mom’s shoulder.

They obviously had an amazing relationship. “So, tell us, how did you enjoy the tour
of the local college this morning? I went there you know. That’s actually where I
met Maisy and Mason’s

father.” Mrs. Daniel smiled brightly at her daughter. Maisy response was equally as
shiny. She sort of felt like as if she was intruder on their shared family moment
even though she was sure they didn’t care.

“To tell you the truth, I loved it. For being a community college, I was super impressed

with the place. I even picked up some enrollment papers, but I haven’t told Mason
yet. I kind of want it to be a surprise.” They both grinned at her, and she shrugged,
delving her fingers deeper into the coolness of the sand.

Harley knew the truth of it was the moment she stepped off that plane yesterday; there

was no way she’d ever be able to go back to Hillsdale. Mason was her home now, and
where

Mason was, Harley would be too.

“Mason’s very lucky guy to have you in his life, Harley. You’ve changed him and

actually given him a reason to smile and live again. I’m so happy he found you.” Crying
was not an option, but Harley fought against the tears as she smiled back anyways.

“Look, there’s Mase!” Maisy pointed excitedly at her brother’s form. Harley stiffened,

staring back at his dripping wet form. He stood near the judges table, grabbing his
number to pin on his wet suit.

Her mouth dried up. His body was lean with the perfect mix of muscle. His green and

black outfit molded him like a glove. All thoughts fled her mind as she closed her
eyes,

imagining her hands running up and down the smoothness of his suit.

Breathe, Harley. Just freaking breathe.

Mrs. Daniel cleared her throat, and Harley reopened her eyes while struggling to keep
her

ogling to a minimum. Shit, that was embarrassing.

“Harley, did you hear me?” Turning her head to look over towards Mason’s mom, Harley

noticed the smug smile on her face. “I
asked
if you wanted to move a little closer to the water so we can see a little better.
The beach is getting packed, and since this is your first time seeing Mason surf,
I figured you’d want to get as close as possible.”

“Um, yeah. Sure, let’s go.” She grabbed her towel against her chest and stood. Her
face

was burning up. She was like a little girl who got her hand caught in the cookie jar.

Okay, so she’d undress him with her eyes in the privacy of his room next time,
or
she’d just undress him period.

An uneasy feeling tugged at her insides the closer it got to go-time. She wrapped
her

arms around her waist, struggling to keep herself reassured. Mason was fine. He’d
been surfing his entire life! Still, the thought of him out there in those humongous
swells made her throat dry up.

“Look, Har. He’s next!” Mason stood along the edge of the water, his body relaxed
and at

ease as he stood with his board at his side. “Oh my god, Mom! Look, its Jake!”

Maisy practically swooned as she fell against her mom. Jake, huh? Who was this Jake

dude? Harley squinted, taking in the six foot something, black haired hottie, standing
at ease next to Mason. Yeah, so he was more than a hottie. Stunningly gorgeous was
the more appropriate

word, that is if one preferred talk, dark, and broody men.

His black hair was spiked high on his head, and his muscles were definitely not lacking.

He had to be at least three inches taller than Mase, and that was saying something.

“Who is he?” Harley questioned, nudging her chin in their direction. Maisy didn’t

answer, she only sighed. So
that
was Jake.

“That’s the boy Maisy claims she’s going to marry someday,” Mrs. Daniel stated matter

of factly. Maisy nodded and sighed some more. She was a love sick puppy. Harley could

definitely relate.

A few minutes later her attention turned to Mason as he guided himself out onto the

water. It was a beautiful site to see, and he made it look so easy. Harley’s heart
squelched with pride as she watched him. Mason was truly amaze-balls. The waves, they
were his home, his

sanctuary. He belonged with them. They belonged
to
him.

It felt like only seconds had passed until she spotted him on his board, his arms

positioned at his side as he took his water flight. Mrs. Daniel spoke in awe over
the roar of crowd. Her gasping words caught Harley’s ears, “My god, Maisy! Look at
that!”

“I know mom, he looks amazing, doesn’t he? This is the best I’ve ever seen him do.”

“He looks just like your dad!” Mrs. Daniel cried out, covering her mouth. Harley once

again felt like an intruder.

She moved, needing to get away. The water called to her, or maybe it was Mason

himself. When he finally made his way back into the shore, Harley pushed and pushed
until she was out there knee deep, wading in the water to join him. It might not have
been a good idea.

Hopefully he didn’t get in trouble, but she couldn’t help herself. His eyes locked
with hers, and he smiled widely. It was cheesy to say, but she could have sworn up
and down that the earth had stopped spinning the moment their eyes meet.

“You were amazing out there, Mason! I–I had no idea …” He pulled her into his arms,

dropping his board beside them. It bumped against her legs, but she barely noticed
as the male model extraordinaire before her held her tightly to his wet body. She
couldn’t delay the

inevitable any longer, and she attacked his mouth with so much need that she was about
to

combust. It was a long and sensual movement and probably not entirely appropriate
in front of a large crowd of people, but Harley’s body was desperate to be close to
his.

Would it always be that way?

Their foreheads met, and small waves crashed against her legs. She shivered as the

wetness explored her skin. His mouth caressed her ears, and his whispered words blew
a warm breath over his cheek, “You’re my good luck charm, little beast.”

“Aren’t you going to introduce me, Mason?” a deep voice hollered from behind them,

interrupting with a deep chuckle. Mason pulled back again but still snaked an arm
around her waist. He held her against him almost possessively, and she accepted and
marveled in his

nearness as they moved back on shore.

“Harley, this is Jake, my best friend and my mentor.” Harley nodded her hello at the
guy

she saw talking to Mason earlier.

Wow, he was even cuter up close. Too bad she was desperately in love with the boy
by

her side. He was the only one who could triple her heartbeat in such a short amount
of time.

“So
you’re
the
little beast
who has my boy so wound up. It’s good to finally meet you, Harley.”

“Same here, Jake,” she blushed. She liked this guy already. He just had that kind
of

demeanor about him, like was an all-around decent guy. She leaned her head against
Mason’s

chest, not at all embarrassed at her clingy behavior around the best guy friend.

The tell-tale sign of a giggling girl distracted Harley’s content state. She turned
watching Maisy and her mom approach. Maisy stared dreamy-eyed at Jake, twirling her
fingers in her long blond hair. She was barely sixteen, and Jake had to be nearing
twenty. The look they shared though, woo-boy ... it was anything but platonic and
friendly. There was history there, and Harley wondered if Mason had any clue. She
sure as hell wasn’t going to tell him that though.

“I have to go, Har. I’m up again in a few minutes.”

“Already?”

“Yup, it’s the way of the game, little beast,” he grinned down at her, kissing her
lightly

on the tip of her nose only to scatter away seconds later. The sand under her feet
felt cold, but the site of Mason’s sexy backside was electrifying her entire body.

“You guys make me sick. You do know that, right?” Maisy replied, a finger going inside

her mouth feigning a gagging motion. Harley gave her a brief glance, shook her head,
and

sighed.

“I know,” Harley crooned. Then she smiled. There was no way she’d ever deny that fact

anymore.

* * *

This was it, the last spot of the day. He rubbed a hand over his calves keeping them
loose.

He was beyond exhausted. He probably should have been nervous too, but his scores
had been so off the charts awesome that he was guaranteed to place, no matter what.
He was easily having the most amazing surfing experience of his life. The best part
was Harley was there to see it all.

“You ready for this, buddy?” Jake asked, smacking Mason along the back of his

shoulders.

Mason nodded, crouching in a stretch to keep loose, “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

Jake smirked and shook his head. Mason may have been cocky, but it was the

awesomeness of his girlfriend that had him believing in himself today.

The offshore winds were perfect for the last set, and there was no doubt in Mason’s
mind

that this would seal a good placement for sure. Like always, it wasn’t about the win,
it was about the high, the adrenaline, the rush of owning the waves, if only for a
few moments at a time.

He glanced back over to look at Harley once more. He winked at her. Her sunburned

cheeks turned up into a smile as she waved shyly. She was an amazing site in that
purple bikini top and those short black shorts and it was all the motivation he needed
to ride those waves like the animal she made him feel.

He paddled out quickly, immediately trying to get into the zone. Surfing demanded
one

hundred percent concentration, and that vision of Harley in her sexy outfit left Mason
feeling way too off centered. He made it out though, immediately becoming greedy by
grabbing the first perfect swell he saw. His dad had always told him to take his time,
and that if he wasn’t patient enough, it would never take, but he didn’t listen to
the old man alive. Why should he have done anything different in death? Besides, he
had this. He owned it.