Rough Waters (11 page)

“I hate him,” Topher says. He looks over at
me. “Every big name in the surf world is going to be at this event
– media, sponsors, magazines. Every kind of sponsor too. I’m
talking wetsuits, boards, energy drinks, clothing lines, shoe
companies – the whole works.”

He takes a drink from his bottle of Ocean
Blast Energy and pushes himself away from the countertop. “This
would be my chance to prove I’m up to being a real deal surfer. If
I could show them what I’m made of, maybe someone would want to
sign me, and then Vin would realize how good I am and finally offer
to sign me here instead.”

I seriously wish there was a way to hug his
heart because I swear, he has the sweetest heart of anyone I’ve
ever met. Every surfer along the California coastline will be at
this event, trying to catch the eye of someone who matters. Topher
just wants to prove to his own brother that he’s what Drenaline
Surf needs.

“I’m not going to do this,” Topher says. “He
can’t just expect me to sit around here and babysit the store so he
can go build everyone else’s career. Can you watch this place for a
while? I need to get out.”

He leaves me signed in under his employee
login on the register, leaves me the key to the safe in the back
office, and tells me he’ll love me forever for doing this for him.
A.J. walks through the front entrance of the store as Topher
leaves. Topher grabs A.J. by the arm and tells him that he needs
him. He probably needs a vehicle since Vin took his. I should’ve
given him my car. A.J.’s car won’t make it very far.

A few hours later, Emily comes in and
interrupts my research of professional surfers. At least I can
participate next time the guys argue over who is a better surfer –
Nat Young or Taj Burrow. I still think I’ll just side with Topher,
though, and vote for John John Florence.

Emily grabs a stool from the back office and
joins me behind the counter, which I’m sure is against all
Drenaline Surf policies to have a non-employee back here, but I
really don’t care about the rules at this point. I’m just thankful
for some company. She rambles on about surf world stuff, the
Hooligans, and different mascara brands for the most part.

“And rumor has it that Strings and Starlight
is going to be closing probably in the next year,” she says. “I’m
surprised they’ve been able to stay open this long. Jace better be
glad he has friends who can hire him on pretty quickly.”

“Jace works there? At the music place near
the hotel?” I ask, trying to refresh my mind. I’m not quite sure if
I knew that. I feel like I did. Maybe? I remember passing the store
last year with Linzi on our quest for food.

“Yeah, he practically runs the place,” she
says. “He gives guitar lessons, fixes broken instruments, the whole
bit. He knows his stuff. Alex told me about it, so it’s not
anything official, but I’m pretty sure Jace will be job hunting
soon.”

The phone rings before I can dig in and ask
more questions. Maybe Jace will end up in the ‘official’ Drenaline
Surf family after all. He’d be a great counterpart to Vin. They
could handle this place together, and I think Vin would trust Jace
enough to actually let him help.

“Drenaline Surf, this is Haley,” I say into
the cordless phone.

“Hey…I have a problem,” Topher says through
the earpiece. “Um, I kind of need you to come get us.”

Great. I knew A.J.’s car would break down.
Hopefully they didn’t run off too far in it.

“Where are you?” I ask.

“Um, that’s the thing. Uh, we’re at the
police station,” Topher says.

The police station? Oh my God. My heartbeat
speeds up like the Titanic trying its damndest to avoid that
iceberg, but I know it’s about to hit, and I can’t stop it.
Breathe, Haley. Just breathe.

“Look, this is what I need you to do,” Topher
says. “I’m fine, but they impounded Reed’s Jeep. He’s going to have
to come with you to get it back. Tell him to bring his insurance
card. And I need bail money because they hauled A.J. in just for
being with me.”

“Topher,” I say through my teeth, turning my
back to the register so no one in the store will hear me. “What in
the hell did you do?”

He sighs and it’s clear that he doesn’t want
to tell me. “I was speeding…a lot. Pittman pulled me over, and he
gave me a ticket. But then he saw A.J. and wanted to make a
statement, so he had the vehicle sent to impound and brought A.J.
in because of his record.”

I scribble down all the information Reed will
need to get his Jeep back and call him as soon as I hang up with
Topher. My hands won’t stop shaking. Fortunately, Reed says he has
enough cash to post A.J.’s bail so I won’t have to borrow from the
Drenaline Surf safe.

Emily doesn’t say anything until I’m
officially done with phone calls and a panic attack. “How can I
help?” she asks.

I should be more hesitant, but I hand her the
key to the safe, show her quickly how to work the register, and ask
her to watch Drenaline Surf. She tells me to consider it done.

“Give me your keys,” Reed says as soon as I
meet him in the back parking lot behind Strickland’s Boating and
Drenaline Surf. “I’m better to drive. And I know where the police
station is.”

Reed is much too calm on the drive over. He
talks about how A.J. needs to fight this charge because Pittman
can’t use his juvenile record against him now that he’s eighteen
and that A.J. shouldn’t have even been picked up when Topher was
the one driving.

“He probably said something stupid to piss
Pittman off,” I say. “God, I hope he didn’t. I can see it now.
Disrespecting an officer of the law. Resisting arrest. Something
fabricated. I’m sorry about your Jeep and all this mess.”

Reed laughs it off like it’s no big deal and
it’ll all work out. I wonder if the Hooligans have been drugging
him. He’s like a brand new person this summer. He’s still the same
Reed who thinks things through and has a mature head on his
shoulders, but he’s more…his age. He’s not so overly grown up and
Mr. Nice Guy. He’s finally living life instead of letting life
control him.

I let him lead the way into the police
station when we arrive. An officer with a beer gut comes over and
shakes his hand, apologizes for the hassle, and then asks how
Reed’s dad is doing. They make small talk while the officer gathers
whatever information Reed needs to fill out to collect his
Jeep.

“And I need to post bail for A.J. Gonzalez,”
Reed tells him. “I have cash. And can you make sure you give him a
copy of all his paperwork? He won’t keep up with it, but I will for
him.”

The officer nods. “Let me go find Pittman to
sign off on his side of the paperwork and I’ll get the boys for
you.”

I sit and wait with Reed while he fills out
papers and complains about the clipboard. Even though it’s probably
not even two minutes before I see Topher and A.J., it feels like
two hours. My heart pounds the entire time. I feel it in my
throat.

“Haley,” Topher says, the moment he sees me.
He rushes over to me, and I stand up to meet him. He wraps his arms
around me and squeezes me tightly. “Pretend you’re my
girlfriend.”

“What?” I ask, pulling back to look at
him.

He jerks me back toward his chest.
“Seriously, hug me. Like really hug me, like I’m your favorite
person on Earth and you’d die without me. Please.”

I squeeze him and try to channel how I felt
the other night at Toledo’s Bistro and Lounge when, for a moment in
time, Topher really
was
my favorite person on Earth. I
remind myself to just be happy that he and A.J. are back in my
custody. I can curse him out later.

“Thank you,” he whispers. “The guy in the
holding cell was hitting on me, and I told him my girlfriend was
coming to pick me up.”

“Holding cell?” I say, pulling away for real
this time. “You said they only charged A.J.”

Reed hands me my car keys and tells me to
take A.J. and Topher outside while he gets his Jeep. A.J. hands
Reed a few papers and they talk briefly – and quietly – while I
force Topher outside.

“What the hell, Topher?” is the first thing
out of my mouth.

“I’m stupid,” he says as he gets into my
passenger seat. “I was sitting there waiting while they were
booking A.J., and then Pittman went to throw him in the holding
cell and told me I couldn’t talk to him. So I asked if I could go
with him because I didn’t want to sit out there alone.”

I crank up and turn the air conditioning on
full blast. I think my blood is boiling worse than the sunshine. No
freezing temperature could kill this blaze inside of me. Who knew
anxiety and panic could be so freaking hot?

“You
are
stupid,” I agree. “I’ve never
in my life heard of someone asking to sit in a jail cell so they
don’t have to sit by themselves. How old are you again?”

“I’m sorry,” he says, throwing his head back
against the headrest. “I was mad at Vin, and I just wanted to burn
some energy. So I asked Reed if I could borrow his Jeep and went
for a joyride. I was on a hidden back road. I didn’t think anyone
would know, and I sure as hell didn’t expect A.J. to get
arrested.”

A.J. and Reed exit the station as if on cue.
I roll down the window and turn the air down so I can hear Reed. He
says A.J. is going to ride back with him and that they’ll meet us
at Drenaline Surf. Topher checks the time on his cell phone and
says he hopes we get back before Vin does. I agree, especially
since I left a non-employee in charge of the store with access to
everything. Maybe I’m as stupid as Topher, but I trust Emily.

My heartbeat speeds up again when I pull into
the parking lot behind the store. Topher’s truck is here, which
means Vin beat us back. Topher grabs my arm before I can get out of
my car.

“I’m sorry, Haley,” he says. “Really. I’m
sorry I got in trouble and A.J. got arrested. I’m sorry I asked you
to watch the store and put you in this position. It’s my fault, I
know. Thank you for coming to my rescue. I couldn’t have asked
anyone else.”

You could’ve asked Reed, apparently. He and
A.J. wait for us, so we can all face the music together. Maybe we
should’ve just joined A.J. and Topher in the holding cell. It might
be better than what we’re about to walk into.

“It’s okay,” I say. “Stupid things happen.
We’re going to be okay.”

The look on his face says he doesn’t believe
me. Honestly, I don’t even believe me. Topher and I stick behind
A.J. and Reed, as if they need to protect Topher from his big
brother’s wrath. My breathing unravels as we come closer to the
entrance of Drenaline Surf. I’m not sure I’ll even be able to
speak. Maybe we should call Theo to be on standby in case I stop
breathing.

A teenage guy is at the counter paying for a
surf leash. Emily mans the register while Vin stands, arms folded,
in the middle of the store. He doesn’t say a word when we walk
inside. Once the customer is out the door and out of earshot, Vin
comes unglued.

“What in Christ’s name do you think you’re
doing?” he shouts, echoing off the walls.

No one moves, but Topher speaks up, as he
knows the question is aimed at him.

“I got a speeding ticket,” he says. “It’s not
the end of the world. I’ll pay it, and I’ll pay Reed back for
having to get his vehicle out of impound.”

“Oh, you bet you will,” Vin says, drawing
closer to us. “And you’re paying off A.J.’s fine and anything else
that comes from this situation.”

A.J. tenses up and blocks Vin’s way when he
tries to move toward Topher. A.J. is smaller than Topher and Vin,
but his protective instincts are stronger than anyone’s strength in
this room. I just always figured A.J. would be defending Vin if the
situation ever arose, not Topher. I feel like I’ve missed a lot in
this last year.

Reed shuffles a bit but stays firmly planted
with us, ready to plead his case if Vin gives him the opportunity.
I doubt Reed, A.J., or I will need to be called to the witness
stand, though. This looks like a battle of the Brooks brothers.

“I’ll handle it,” Topher says. “Reed and A.J.
know that. It’s not that big of a deal.”

“It’s a big fucking deal,” Vin shouts,
slinging his arms out. “You skip out on your job, have someone
else’s vehicle impounded, get a speeding ticket, cause someone else
to get arrested, and then this store gets left in the hands of
someone who doesn’t even work here while Haley and Reed have to
clean up your mess!”

Vin spins back around toward the counter,
leaving us right where we are in the middle of the store. Oh my
God. I hope he doesn’t blast Emily for this. It’s not her fault
that I left her in charge.

“Do you have a job?” Vin asks her. He’s calm
and steady, like he didn’t just flip out on his little brother.

Emily shakes her head. She looks like a
terrified little doe in the forest who got separated from her mom
and is about to be attacked by a mangy wolf.

“Do you need a job?” Vin asks. When she nods,
he says, “You’re hired. Come by sometime tomorrow morning after
ten, and we can officially get you on the books. I’ll make sure you
get paid for today too.”

Then Vin looks over at us and points at A.J.
“That offer goes for you too. If you want onboard, come by here
tomorrow, and I’ll get you on the books. I’ll need some new
employees because Topher’s fired.”

Topher pushes past A.J. “You can’t do that,”
he says to Vin.

Vin leans back against the front counter,
crosses his arms with a typical Vin-Brooks-attitude, and smirks at
Topher. “Well, little brother, I believe I just did. So now you can
get a taste of the real world. You can get a real job and start
paying off your debt to your friends.”

“I belong here,” Topher says. “I belong at
Drenaline Surf a hell of a lot more than you do.”