Chasing Sin

40

"How did we let you talk us into this, Haven?" Kace asks, wobbling as he struggles to balance his weight on the paddleboard beneath him.

"I thought it would be a great way to relax after the chaotic night we had yesterday," I remind them, finding it surprisingly hard to balance myself on my own board. My hair hangs down in my face as I lean down to watch my feet carefully.

"Chaotic is an understatement," Taylor agrees.

I glance over to see her standing with one foot in the air, bent at a beautiful angle, with her hands gracefully reaching over her head, making the rest of us look like uncoordinated ducks.

"I think it had more to do with us feeling guilty that your birthday celebration got ruined," Aubrey says with a half-smile.

Ever since last night, Aubrey seemed calm—as calm as normal Aubrey is—but carefully avoided the topic of her mother's visit last night.

"Try to release all that negativity as you exhale, focusing on your balance rather than whatever may be preoccupying your mind," our instructor, Kimberly, tells us. Her hooded eyes are closed, and her straight black hair hangs around her face, making her look like a perfect picture of serenity.

She transitions into a different yoga pose, making me wonder how long she's been teaching paddleboard yoga. She seems quite skilled as she offers us instruction.

I suggested doing paddleboard yoga because I wanted everyone to relax after last night, but that doesn't necessarily seem to be happening. It is getting everyone distracted from all the drama, though, which I suppose is good too.

The entire night was a whirlwind of drama and chaos, but waking up next to Sin made up for it all in my opinion. It was far better than the last time, with no hangover or memories of embarrassing transgressions tainting the experience.

I was still fully clothed in my cute pajamas when I woke up, having shamelessly wrapped around Sin throughout the night. He was as gorgeous as ever, his voice raspy from sleep and his hair mussed.

Pulling myself from my daydreams about Sin, I look up to drool over him in the present.

His board is directly in front of me, much to my enjoyment. Since we're on the water, everyone is wearing a swimsuit, despite the fact that no one has made it into the lake yet. Sin, of course, looks ridiculously good and makes every yoga pose look effortless. It's really not fair that he gets to be great at everything.

"Wow, Haven," Aubrey says, distracting me. "The fact that you can manage oogling Sin, while still staying perfectly balanced on your board, proves how great women can be at multitasking."

I blush as the others laugh and even Sin turns around to meet my sheepish gaze.

"A feminist icon," Skylar agrees, adding to my humility.

I roll my eyes and despite my blush, try to come up with a good comeback. Before I can manage one, though, I hear a giant splash behind me.

I turn around the best I can to see Beckett's head pop out of the water, his auburn hair a darker color and his face dripping with water as he clings to his board.

Peyton cracks up at this, laughing loudly and practically slapping his knee as Beckett struggles to get back up on his board.

Kimberly, although trying to give him tips on how to get back onto the board, can hardly get a word in over all our hooting and hollering.

"Oh man, you suck!" Peyton tells his best friend through his laughter. "Next time warn me and I'll shout 'man overboard!' before you can fall."

Before Peyton can say anymore, Beck reaches over and knocks Peyton off his board and into the water with him.