Far Country (20 page)

           
Pete shook his head. “Nope.  I was born in the mountains, and I attended
Appalachian College. I went straight to Hanging Rock and I’ve been there every
summer since I graduated. Until today, I’ve never gone further east than
Raleigh.”

           
Steve turned back toward the water and let his gaze travel up and down the
coastline, seeing it through fresh eyes.  It was really a perfect spring
day. The white sand, and the incredibly blue sky stretched forever, and all of
it was bathed in the yellow gold of the sun. How often he had taken this view
for granted throughout his life!

           
“Well my friend,” Steve said at last, “welcome to the Crystal Coast.” He kicked
off his sandals and grinned at Pete. “Let me introduce you to some friendly
waves!”

           
Pete grinned back and took a deep breath. “Lead on!”

           
Steve felt strong.  Except for a mild limp when he was tired, his leg felt
nearly as good as ever. Reveling in the moment, Steve gave a bonsai shout as
his bare feet slapped against the wet sand, and he charged hard into the
breakers, splashing out as deep as he could go. As a huge wave crested in front
of him, he threw his hands straight over his head and dove neatly through the
center of the wall of water, bobbing up safely on the back side of the
wave.  He had barely regained his feet when another large swell rose up in
front of him. Again, he dove into the crest and belly flopped in the trough on
the far side. He stroked out a little deeper in the water, then flipped onto
his back and floated idly for a minute to catch his breath, until he felt
another rolling swell pass under him. Steve planted his feet firmly in the sand
to balance against the strong currant, and shook the water out of his eyes in
time to see it smash heavily onto the shore.  He looked around, surprised
how far down the beach the currant had carried him already.  There must be
a storm somewhere offshore to cause an under currant this powerful! He wondered
what had happened to Pete. Worriedly, he looked to his left and right, but
Pete’s head did not appear anywhere near him. Treading water, Steve peered to
the shore. He had thought that Pete was close behind him when he dove through
the first wave.  Where had he gone?

           
Pete had been right on Steve’s heels until they hit the foaming breakers of a
receding wave. Intrigued, Pete stopped knee deep in the water and watched in fascination
as the retreating water pulled at his feet, seeming to wash the sand right out
from under his toes. Pete grinned at the strange sensation and then hurried
forward into deeper water. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a huge
conch shell, that shimmered just below the sparkling water. Pete turned back
and quickly reached for the shell, never really noticing the looming wave until
it crashed down on him, knocking him from his feet and driving him face first
into the gritty sand!  He twisted and scraped along the bottom,
terrifyingly at the mercy of the swirling mass of water. Finally, just as he
felt that his lungs would burst, the monster wave pulled back from him, and he
struggled to his hands and feet in the shallow surf, coughing and retching on
sea water, thankful to be alive.

           
But even as he lurched to his feet and began to stumble toward the shore,
another large wave smashed down on him and sent him sprawling into the sand one
more time. Disoriented and choking on the salt water, Pete struggled against
the drag of the knee deep surf.
Where was Steve in all of this heaving
water?
He thought wildly, as he struggled to his feet and tried to see
through the stinging salt in his eyes.
Was this what he meant by ‘friendly’
waves?
 Swimming in placid mountain lakes had never prepared him for
this almost living and breathing force that seemed determined to suck his body
out into the depths of the sea!    

Suddenly,
small strong hands steadied him and guided him through the dragging surf and
beyond the breaking waves. Pete collapsed on the ground once more, sitting in
ankle deep wash, still gasping to fill his lungs with blessedly dry air.
Finally, his racing heart calmed at last, he wiped the last of the streaming
water from his face and smiled weakly at Deborah.  “Thanks,” he rasped
painfully, “I’ll be okay in a minute.”

           
Deborah, her right hand still resting protectively on his shoulder met his
grateful gaze with a relieved smile. “You scared me when you went under the
second time,” she told him shakily.

           
“I was pretty scared myself,” Pete admitted, taking another deep breath and
coughing hard to clear his lungs.  They sat side by side for a minute, and
Pete noticed that she sat so close to him their arms touched in a way that
seemed so intimate and right. Now that his breathing had steadied, he couldn’t
help looking at her. She looked so beautiful, sitting beside him! Her green
eyes, still shadowed with concern, met his. Impulsively, Pete leaned forward
and kissed her lightly on the lips.  “Thanks for coming to my rescue,” he
said sincerely.

           
Taken off guard, Deborah blushed, but before she could reply, another huge wave
crashed in front of them and the surf burbled up around their arms and legs
.“Let’s get out of this mess,” he muttered disgustedly, staggering to his
feet. 

He
reached down for her hand and pulled her to her feet beside him.  Together
they made their way back to their towels, and Pete threw himself down. He lay
on his back with his eyes closed, letting the
sun dry
the salty water from his skin. When he opened them again, Deborah was propped
on one elbow beside him. She studied him with a slight frown of confusion on
her oval face. 

           
“What was that?” She asked him at last.

           
“Just a kiss,” he answered offhandedly, wondering why he had done such a stupid
thing. He closed his eyes again, feigning indifference and not wanting to see
rejection in those green eyes.

           
But Deborah wouldn’t let it go. “But
why
did you kiss me?” She
persisted.  “We’ve been friends for a long time, and you’ve never even
tried to kiss me before.”

           
Pete mentally kicked himself. He’d seen the way she’d looked at Steve when he’d
mentioned another girl. It was obvious that she hadn’t really given up on
him.  Yet Pete had grown so tired of waiting patiently for her to notice
him! He berated his foolish impulse inwardly. An unexpected kiss might not
bring him the kind of attention he wanted from her!    

Why
had he kissed her?
Pete took a deep
breath before he answered her. “Partly because I wanted to say “thank you…” He
paused, steeled himself, and looked directly into those incredible emerald
eyes, knowing he couldn’t pretend any longer. “But mostly because I like you,
…,” He took a deep breath and summoned a lopsided smile. “and you’re so
beautiful, even when you’re dripping wet.”

He
watched the play of emotions race across her face with a sinking heart. Deborah
seemed stunned.  Her eyes widened and she stared at him, unable to speak
. 

 Not
exactly the reaction I dreamed of,
he
thought miserably. Embarrassed by her silence, he rolled abruptly onto his
stomach and rested his chin on his arms, wishing there was some way to take
back the last five minutes. Being nothing but friends, but being able to dream
of more was still better than being told the dream was a hopeless
fantasy.  From the look on her face, he had been living in a fantasy
world! He waited in wretched silence for Deborah to stand up and walk away.

But she
didn’t leave. Instead, the silence stretched until Pete was unable to stand it
any longer. He turned his head toward her and was surprised by what he saw.
Deborah had rolled onto her stomach, too.  Her chin rested on her hands
and she chewed thoughtfully on her lower lip. When she finally lifted her eyes
to study his face, her expression was open and vulnerable. 

           
 At last she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper. “Like… a little
like?” Her hesitancy touched his heart with hope.  For the first time,
Pete felt as if she was really seeing HIM, and
mayber
,
as something more than just her friend!

Pete’s
brown eyes grew warm as they looked at her.  “Like- a LOT like,” he
replied quietly, barely daring to breathe as he waited for her response.

Deborah
flushed and looked away under his gaze. Something in his tone of voice made her
stomach do flip flops.  Her heart bounced around her rib cage in a crazy
rhythm that made it nearly impossible for her to catch her breath. Pete- safe,
comfortable Pete -had kissed her and suddenly her entire world had turned
inside out!

She
had always known she could trust Pete; they had been friends since the first
day that they had met. Yes, he had admitted to a crush on her long ago, but he
had never spoken of it again, and she had half forgotten his declaration in the
wake of Steve's accident. For her, it had always been Steve. She had decided
the first day that she talked with Steve at the refreshment bar by the lake
that they were meant to be together, and she had not allowed herself to believe
anything different – until today.

Pete;
gentle and considerate, and always there when she needed him.  She had
known instinctively that he was a good man, and in the last year their
friendship had only deepened into...what? It was as if that simple little kiss
had opened her eyes. Why had she thought that she and Steve should be together,
just because she had had a crush on him in high school?  Had she been
blinded all this time? Maybe she had been chasing rainbows when the real gold
had been beside her all along...

She
turned back to Pete, a tremulous smile on her lips.  “I think, I’ve been a
fool…” she whispered shyly.  Pete sent a silent prayer of thanks to the
lord above.  Gently, he placed a finger under her chin. His lips touched
hers and lingered for a long moment. Deborah tasted the salty warmth of his
lips against hers. The sensation made her breath catch in her throat and she
sighed. A kiss had never before felt so – right.

           
Pete drew back after a moment. “Okay?”  He asked, hardly daring to believe
this was happening at last. Deborah felt her insides melt under the intensity
of his eyes. A slow smile spread across her face. She leaned close to him and
returned his kiss hungrily, letting it go on for some time.

           
At last she drew back, “Okay,” she said with a shaky little laugh.  She
lay back beside him, and felt his hand close around hers.  She was
surprised at just how perfectly their hands seemed to fit together. And how
peaceful it was to lay here, simply holding hands.

           
Steve stood dripping in the sand a few feet away, uncertain of how he felt
about the scene he had just witnessed between Deborah and Pete. Was this a new
thing? He could have sworn on the drive out here that Deborah was still
oblivious to Pete’s quiet feelings for her.  Deborah had pursued Steve for
so many months; it felt strange to see her look at another man that way.

           
As he watched, Deborah tucked her fingers more firmly into Pete’s big hand. A
sigh of regret escaped Steve’s lips. He had definitely let something good get
away, no doubt about it. But he also felt an overwhelming certainty that Pete
and Deborah together was a good thing.  Much better than he and Deborah
would ever have been! They would be a great couple!  Steve even felt that
he was happy for them….or, at least he would be happy, he thought ruefully, if
he could just get off of this leg!

           
He gritted his teeth, thinking how stupid he had been to race into waves as rough
and huge as the waves were today, as if he still had two good strong legs.
Going in had been easy enough, but walking out…! The undercurrent had ripped
and pulled at him, and before he had been able to make his way out of the surf,
a wave had knocked him sideways, twisting his knee in a way that still sent
waves of nausea through his stomach.  It had been a slow and painful walk
back up the beach.

           
He desperately wanted to collapse on his towel and pray that he’d not done any
lasting damage, but now, watching what appeared to be the opening scenes of a
love story long in the making, he knew he could not intrude on their happiness
so soon.

He
stood hesitating, balancing on one good leg and wondering where he could go. He
scanned up and down the beach until he finally spotted Chuck, sitting on a big
ice cooler and talking animatedly to a couple of young girls. The girls
appeared fascinated,  hanging on Chuck's every word, but Steve suspected
that his near perfect tan and windblown surfer appearance added a great deal of
interest to his story telling skills. Girls always had liked Chuck and Chuck
looked as if he was glorying in the attention. Right now, sharing a seat on the
cooler seemed like the best option.

           
Steve limped painfully toward Chuck.  “Hey, amigo!” He hailed his friend,
hoping Chuck wouldn’t consider Steve’s appearance as an intrusion as well. “I
wondered where you’d gotten to.”

           
“
Hola
!” Chuck replied raising a can of root beer in a
kind of welcoming salute which erased Steve’s apprehension immediately. Chuck
flipped the trap door on the top of the cooler and produced another can of root
beer, then slid over to make room for Steve, who sank onto its cool white
surface thankfully.