Rogue Wave (The Water Keepers, Book 2) (28 page)

“Sadie…I know I’ve kept you in the dark and hurt you, thinking somehow it was for your own good, but I would never purposely cause you pain. You know that, right?”

My brow tightened, too emotional to answer. I nodded without being able to speak, telling him yes; yes, I know. You would never purposely hurt me.

“My life,” Rayne said intently, “has revolved around nothing but you for the last ten years. Since you were just a child, I wanted to care for you and make sure you were safe. But it’s so much more than that now; if you could only understand what I’m feeling… A life of duty and honor means nothing without you.”

I stood breathless.

It was like he took a swan dive into the center of my heart, piercing the tender flesh to the very core; as if he found the combination to the steel safe which kept my fears locked inside, and he opened the door…allowing all my insecurity and doubt to wash away, in a way that only my heart could explain.

Rayne took my hands in his and pulled me closer to him, bringing his face only inches away. He spoke earnestly as he said, “I don’t know to what degree the Healing Water intensifies these feeling inside me, but I know they come from something real, from years of knowing you and your heart and your kindness. Before I let the first drop of Healing Water ever touch your skin, I knew I would do anything for you, and there’s something I need to make certain you understand. I’m
not
your father. I don’t care if my duty demands it, no matter what happens, I will never abandon you. My heart is yours…forever.”

I closed my eyes and let the faith and hope rekindle inside me. I believed him, every word. Through all my doubts and struggles and childish urges to hide from the truth, Rayne never deserted me.

With the dark cloud of insecurities lifted away, I could finally see Rayne clearly. He had proven himself time and time again. He was not like my father. He would always be there for me. The emotions inside me welled up and spilled over. I didn’t care if the Healing Water played a large part, or a small part, or any part at all in the bond that we shared—because I knew what we had together was real.

Rayne’s crystal eyes illuminated my soul when he spoke again. “Sadie,” he said, taking his hands and brushing them back through my hair along the curves of my face, “Sadie, I love you.”

I trembled at the sound of my own voice, the undeniable rightness of the words pouring out from me in return. “I…I love you, too.”

I couldn’t hold back the flood of emotion coursing through my body. I leapt forward, propelled by longing and renewed devotion, immersing his lips with mine.

I could see everything now, like flashes of inspiration playing back through my mind from our past. I saw Rayne’s eyes like green diamonds from my childhood dreams, the secret prince keeping me safe through the night. I remembered his face, angelic and smooth, hovering over mine when he’d saved me from drowning; the way his presence engulfed me as if we were the only two people existing in the world. Then there were all the little glances, the boyish smiles, the countless moments where the touch of his hand calmed my worries and fears. Rayne sacrificed everything for me…his time, his family, everything he cared about in his life—so he could save mine. Now I wanted to do the same for him.

I pressed myself deeper into his touch, allowing the truth of our love to unfold with new life. Each kiss brought a greater sense of clarity. His lips were my lips. Our hearts pulsed in unison as if they were one. My life was his, and his life was mine.

23. STAY

We walked down the beach and sat together at the far end of the sand as the sun drooped low on the horizon, casting a fiery glow across the fading blue sky. The air was so clear you could see Catalina Island casting shadows along the surface of the ocean off in the distance.

Rayne swung his arm around me and pulled me into his side; then we took a quiet moment to breathe and feel each other’s presence. We were finally, truly together.

The tranquil sound of the rolling waves could only be matched by the peaceful feeling spreading through my veins. I had wanted this for so long. Everything I’d been too afraid to embrace suddenly seemed amazingly right. And for once, in this beautiful moment, I didn’t want anything about my life to change. I broke my gaze from the sea and looked up at Rayne’s face. He didn’t need to speak for me to hear what his eyes wanted to say. If I could stay in this place forever, I would.

The light slowly faded from the day. Rayne reached for my hand under the emerging stars, pulling me close one last time. I closed my eyes as he brushed his lips over my neck, moving up to my ear, then landing gingerly back along my cheek. I could taste the faint saltiness of the breeze as the swirling night moved around our touching faces like a mystery; the mystery and wonderment that somehow came just by being together, our impossible dreams now becoming reality. Rayne held my hand as we walked back to the car, and I did all I could to hold onto this surreal moment, locking it forever in my memory.

Once we were driving home, I couldn’t help but turn and sneak a look at him every few minutes, reminding myself that this was real. Rayne was mine forever. We had spent the last five months together, almost every day, but it was different now. I was different.

We drove a few minutes until we were no longer on the peninsula and stopped at a red light.

“Are you hungry?” Rayne asked. “We can stop somewhere to eat if you want.”

Somehow a restaurant full of people felt too public and ordinary at the moment. I shrugged. “Kind of, but do you have something we could grab at your place instead?”

He chuckled. “Does peanut butter and jelly count?”

I laughed. “That actually sounds really good.”

It was strange how something I’d done a hundred times before could now seem so magical. Even when we were back at Rayne’s house making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, the whole experience felt new and exciting. There was an anticipation surging through my body. Everything I saw was the reminder of new possibilities.

I stepped across the kitchen to place a knife in the sink. When I turned back around, Rayne’s finger dabbed across the tip of my nose, leaving a smear of peanut butter on my face. I jumped back and laughed. With a sly grin, I reached for the jar off the counter, dipped my finger, and returned an even bigger smear down Rayne’s cheek. He wrestled the jar playfully out of my hand, hugging me from behind. We crumbled together to the floor with laughter until he pinned me skillfully on my back.

Our eyes met, and we both stopped moving. He leaned into me, inching slowly toward my face. I was certain he was going to kiss me. But then his hand came out of nowhere, leaving a smudge of peanut butter right across my lips.

“
Hey
,” I said, pretending to complain. I lifted my brow. “If you’re going to make a mess, you have to be willing to clean it up afterward.” Rayne accepted the invitation and kissed the peanut butter right off my lips, making me squirm and laugh the entire time. It felt so nice to laugh again. We didn’t think about anything else all night. We just allowed ourselves to be together.

We smiled and talked on the couch while we ate, then we passed more than an hour doing nothing but playing silly card games and flirting with each other. It didn’t really matter what we were doing, as long as we were together.

Later, we popped popcorn and watched a movie. Well, we watched most of the movie. Sometimes we just had to kiss each other a little more. By the time the credits scrolled across the screen, Rayne was lying next to me on the couch, hugging me from behind. He used the remote to click off the TV, neither of us wanting to move from the comfort of each other’s arms.

After a quiet moment, Rayne pulled his face near my ear and spoke in a hushed tone. “I want you to know, I changed my mind.”

I rolled onto my back to look up at him and smiled. “Changed your mind about what?”

His tone was more serious than I expected. “About your father. I decided I want to tell you who he is…if you still want to know.” I inhaled; a tiny gasp of appreciation. I knew this wasn’t a decision Rayne had made lightly.

I looked at him thoughtfully. “I’m not sure what to say. You don’t know how much this means to me.”

“I just want you to be happy,” he said. “I’ll tell you all about him right now if that’s what you want.”

I reached up and thanked him with a short, tender kiss, then continued to gaze up at him as I lay back against the couch. I smiled softly. “Maybe tomorrow.”

I could hardly believe it myself. I had waited such a long time to find the answers about my father, yet, suddenly it felt like it could wait a little longer. There was something about tonight. I didn’t want to spoil it. Knowing the truth about my father would probably change me, and tonight was about me and Rayne. I wouldn’t let anything interrupt that now.

“I just want you to hold me,” I said. He nodded warmly and pulled me into his body, squeezing his arm securely around my waist.

My eyelids soon felt heavy, and I had to fight to prevent the invisible forces from persuading me to sleep. I wanted to savor every moment of Rayne’s warmth snuggled up against me. But it was getting late, and I wondered if I was supposed to get up and go home now. It was too late to go to Heather’s house for the night like my mother had suggested before she disappeared with Dr. Jensen, and my house was cold and empty across the street. I felt a trickle of fear reappear at the idea of being there alone all night.

Rayne shifted lightly on the couch to place his hand over mine, and the fear dissipated. Before I could decide any differently, my body took over. I drifted away without even realizing I had gone, being lulled by the beat of Rayne’s heart to a slumber so sweet…there was no need to dream.

I didn’t wake until morning. When I opened my eyes and felt Rayne’s warmth pressed up against me, every wonderful moment from the night before came rushing back to my memory. The Sunday morning sunlight never felt so glorious and bright. It was real. Everything. Last night was real. Rayne was real. Our love and tender kisses were all real.

I sighed contently and rolled over on the couch to face him. When I turned, Rayne’s gaze was already on me, as if he had been awake for hours, waiting patiently for my eyes to open. His expression was peaceful.

He reached his hand aside my face and smoothed the stray hairs from off my cheek. His fingers lingered, running gently down the strands as he greeted me. “Morning, sunshine.”

I couldn’t contain the grin taking over every inch of my face when I answered back. “Morning.”

Neither of us jumped up to start the day right away. What was there to rush off to? Everything I wanted was lying right here in front of me.

“What do you think about a picnic today?” he asked, still twirling the tips of my hair through his fingers.

“That sounds nice,” I agreed.

He lifted himself slightly, leaning up on his elbow. “I have somewhere special I want to take you later, but I’m afraid it might be a little overwhelming for you.”

I paused. “Good overwhelming? Or bad overwhelming?”

“Mostly good, I think. But it might still be a lot to take in. Are you okay with that?”

I knew if I wanted our relationship to last, I needed to learn who Rayne really was. I wanted to learn everything about him all over again, even the truths that were difficult to understand.

I nodded and said, “Definitely.” Then I added, “But maybe we could eat somewhere first, just so I have some energy in my system before you fill my mind with…overwhelmingness.” I was pretty sure it wasn’t even a word, but honestly, I was too happy at the moment to care.

“Sure,” he said with a chuckle. “The last thing you want is too much
overwhelmingness
on an empty stomach.”

I blushed, but laughed it off. “I know, right? So, I guess I should go home and get cleaned up first.”

I lifted my torso to get up, but Rayne’s hand reached out and pulled me back to the couch. “Five more minutes,” he commanded playfully, drawing me back to his side.

I didn’t protest. How could I? His smile warmed me so completely, I wasn’t sure I needed the sun anymore.

Twenty minutes later I was home, flitting around the house like a lovesick bird. I could hardly think straight. All I could do was focus on being with Rayne again. It was ridiculous and impossible to turn off, and I knew it, but I didn’t care. I sifted through the clothes in my closet like I was on some kind of sugar high, giddiness taking over my every move. After fixing my hair as quickly as possible and downing a bowl of cereal with record speed, I grabbed my phone and jetted out the front door.

Rayne was already sitting on the porch bench waiting for me at the front of my house. At the sight of him, my goofy grin returned twice as big as before.

“Hi,” I said. “You didn’t have to wait outside. You could have come in.”

“I know. I just thought you could use a few minutes to yourself before we go. I don’t plan on leaving your side for the rest of the day.”

I reached to take his outstretched hand. “No complaints here.” Then I followed him to his car.

When he opened the passenger door for me, an idea popped into my head. I whirled back around. “Can I drive?” I said.

He smirked and eyed me playfully. “I don’t know. Can I trust you?”

“One hundred percent. I promise you won’t be disappointed.”

He smiled and surrendered the keys, allowing me to climb over the center console to the driver’s seat.

“Where are we going?” he asked.

I grinned. “You’ll see.”

After stopping to buy some deli sandwiches for our picnic, I drove Rayne’s car south on Coast Highway. When I pulled left onto a familiar road, Rayne turned with eyebrows raised. “We’re going to Crystal Cove?” he said, as if he finally understood my intentions. But a strange look crossed his face, and I felt suddenly unsure if he was happy with my choice of picnic locations.

“Um, well, you know how much I love this place,” I began, feeling the need to explain. “And I haven’t been back here since the night we first met, when you pulled me out of the water after hitting my head. You saved my life that day, just like you’ve done pretty much every moment since then. I mean, I know we met several times when I was younger, but I feel like this was the place where things kind of…began for us. I just thought…”