Isla

13.

1 3 | d o u b l e  b a y

I TAPPED MY PEN against the counter of the Shack, watching as River and Connor tried to teach Everett how to surf – the key word being tried.

Connor had lent him one of his own boards and they stood in the sand, trying to show him how to stand correctly. The problem was, Connor was a terrible teacher, River clearly couldn't be bothered, and Everett had awful balance.

"No, like this!" Connor snapped, shoving Everett off the board and taking the correct stance.

"That's what I was doing!"

"No, it really wasn't."

"Shut up," Everett grumbled. He shot me a helpless look and I raised a brow at him, a laugh sputtering from my lips.

I wanted to surf with them, but Austin still had my board. I hadn't seen him since he'd left me yesterday. He didn't even call me until an hour after I'd arrived home.

Isla, I'm so sorry, he'd said. Something came up.

I scoffed at the excuse. Yes. Something did come up. And that something was Mia.

Did he think I was an idiot? I had Mia on Snapchat and Instagram. I saw her stories of Austin driving her around town. I saw his red Jeep in the background, my surfboard still strapped on its roof.

But he sounded sorry. We'd been friends for over a decade. I couldn't throw away our friendship for one mistake, and I forgave him, even if I spent all night thinking about it.

Second choice.

I frowned. And he hadn't shown up today either. This was our last summer together, and we were already two Nauti Buoys down.

"Isla."

I turned to see Tom entering the Shack from the back door. He waved a hand at me, shooing me. "Go on, take your break. I'll take over from here."

"Thanks, Tom," I grinned.

Finally.

I kicked my shoes off, leaving them behind the counter, and leapt over it, landing with a thud on the warm sand. Instantly, the sun hit my skin, sending a warm jolt through my body.

I raced towards the boys, grinning widely.

"How's the lessons?" I called.

"Isla!" Connor cheered. His face lit up. "You're on break!"

"Yep," I chuckled, slumping over as he threw an arm around my shoulder, putting all his weight on me. I shoved him off, elbowing him lightly in the chest with a playful grin.

"Lessons are shit," River grumbled. He gave me a dark look. "I'm sick of this bloody American."

"I didn't ask to learn how to surf!" Everett cut in. He nodded towards Connor. "That was all his idea."

"Well, it's your fault for listening to me. You should know by now that I have terrible ideas."

"He's right," I added, raising a brow. "The last time he had a bright idea, we were caught by –"

"Austin!" Connor interrupted.

I froze, the story dying in my throat with a choking sound. Everett arched a brow at me, giving me a funny look.

"Hey guys," came Austin's deep voice from behind me. A lump seemed to rise in my throat, butterflies escaping in my stomach.

Austin. Austin. Austin.