8. Beach Day

  (Zeyna)

  What amazed me the most about Sera and Zephyr’s friendship was that, despite all the time they spent together, nothing ever truly did happen between them. It was something of a feat on her part.

  I avoided sexualizing my brother as much as any sister, but I couldn’t deny the stereotype that daemoni had a high libido. Some claimed it was a blessing—others, a curse—from Satan himself, fallen angel turned God of Temptation.

  So either Zephyr had the self-control of a monk or Sera’s walls were sky high and impenetrable. Any normal girl who looked into a Demon’s eyes would drop their panties in a second. I was no different when it had come to Zai’len’s glittery irises. I couldn’t get them out of my head.

  “I barely slept,” Sera groaned. She slipped Lina’s oversized sunglasses past her ears.

  Though Lina loved the anonymity she got from the glasses, she didn’t need them as much, shaded by her floppy black hat. I, on the other hand, decided to forgo sun protection. It was practically sacrilege to avoid the sun, when my ancestors had been lucky if they got to see the sun at least once a week.

  I gobbled up the sun to the point that any summer I spent in Alora ended with me returning to Solace with my nose and shoulders peeling. I usually ended up at least two shades darker and a golden hue colored my ruby hair. Unfortunately, a weekend wouldn’t be enough to overdose on UV rays.

  The beach had filled up before we’d even left the house. While we walked the boardwalk to the beach club, people crammed themselves into tight spots and set up their stations.

  “Do you see the guys?” Sera asked with a grimace.

  “I see many guys.” There was a likely chance we’d never find our guys, though.

  We stared on our way by. A few caught our eye from below but they were too far to approach. Lina took the lead when my pace slowed. Her flip-flops pelted sand at us in her strut.

  “I’ll call Hellion,” Sera offered.

  Her magi-tab was already out, and she tapped the little call button. The ring echoed out after she pressed the speaker. She held it up so we could hear better.

  Lina paused to wait for us.

  Zeph answered on the fourth ring. “Heyo.”

  Sera brought the microphone to her mouth. “Hellion, where are you guys? It’s packed.”

  “We’re near the beach club. Are you with Zeyna?”

  “We’re at the beach club,” I said as we stopped beside Lina, “by the restaurant patio.”

  The bistro was just as packed as the beach. The lunch rush started early to accommodate all the older couples that woke up at sunrise to fit in some golf before it got too busy on the greens.

  The rest of the demographic included a majority of families with small kids. There were groups our age, but they were the minority. More came to take over the beach at night, when they could drink and party in peace.

  “What?” Sera shouted when we missed Zeph’s response.

  “I said wait there. I’ll come get you.”

  The call ended before we got the chance to respond. Sera shrugged at me, and the three of us moved aside, casually people-watching in the meantime. Lina and Sera spoke amongst themselves while I checked my magi-tab.

  Zai’len had messaged me over an hour ago, and it had taken all my willpower not to respond right away. The notification still waited on my screen. I prodded it, and the conversation opened up again.

  Private | Zai’len Vash’ta

  Zai’len Vash’ta: What’s your address? I’ll pick you up tonight

  Zeyna: Sorry, I’m busy tonight. I won’t be able to get out of my plans.

  Zai’len Vash’ta: That’s too bad.

  I stared at the message. I’d been contemplating my next move for the past hour, but he hadn’t made it easy. I expected him to be more accommodating, to at least ask if I was free some other time. Then I could’ve turned the situation to my benefit—if he really wanted to see me again.

  It seemed he didn’t care too much, now that he’d gotten what he wanted out of me.

  I let out a sullen breath and tucked the tab back into my bikini. What the fuck do I say to that? That was exactly the type of message you left unanswered. If I did, that was the end.

  Leaning on the boardwalk railing, I tuned into Sera and Lina’s conversation but didn’t offer any comments.

  “I feel guilty. He knows me so well, but when it comes to knowing him, I’m at a loss.”

  “Don’t fault yourself. Zeph only knows you so well because he’s a borderline stalker.”

  “Still, we’re like best friends. It’s been, what, twelve years? It’s strange how little I’ve been paying attention.”

  “‘Like best friends’ doesn’t afford you the same privileges as best friends. You know us really well.” Lina looked past Sera to me for backup.

  “Yeah,” I agreed and tried to come up with something else to reassure her. “Take it from me, there’s no use comparing yourself to Zeph; you’ll just feel inadequate afterward. I’ve been dealing with it my entire life.”

  A sympathetic frown curled on Sera’s face. “We’re better at sports at least.” The frown turned into a weak smile.

  I mirrored it and nodded. “There is balance in the world after all.”

  Shuffling closer to Sera, I hooked my arm around hers and nuzzled her shoulder while she continued the conversation with Lina.

  “I want to put in more of an effort, but I also don’t want him to get the wrong idea.”

  “That’s his problem. Just because you become more attentive, that doesn’t entitle him to a romantic relationship. Plus, it’s Zeph. I think he’s gotten the picture by now that you don’t share his feelings.”

  “Has he…?” Sera murmured.

  I wasn’t in the mood to be the devil’s advocate, but if I was, I would’ve told them that even though they thought that to be the case, he had no plans to give up. That was Zeph. He never knew when to throw in the towel.

  In the same way, I never knew where to draw the line of getting my way either. I genuinely had no idea what crossed the line. Most of the time, I only found out afterward. Across the line, my actions usually came with disappointing consequences. The worse they were—the more unbearable—the farther I was across the line.

  Maybe it was a Demon thing. Or our parents had simply taught us to be too determined.

  Zeph showed up about ten minutes later. He jogged up the stairs and greeted Lina and Sera. I wasn’t offered the same pleasantries. After Lina suggested he take their bags, he gave me the evil eye and turned to lead the way back to wherever he and Kayo had set up our shit.

  What the fuck was that about?

  I brought up the rear and followed the girls as they wove between people and umbrellas. Lina and Sera laughed about something that had happened at the bar a few days ago. I’d heard the story while Lina had been at work, so I launched up and flew over them to Zeph.

  “No flying!” someone shouted from up on the boardwalk. I ignored them as I landed beside Zeph.

  “What was that look?”

  He glanced back at Sera to make sure she wasn’t paying attention, then muttered, “Why did you just disappear last night? Sera was worried about you all night.”

  So I’d heard. They’d gone out looking for me and everything.

  “I didn’t think you’d notice—or that I’d be gone that long.”

  “Well, we did and you were.”

  “What do you want me to say, Zeph?” Sera was over it. What more was to be done?

  “Nothing. I just want to be annoyed with you.”

  “What, on Sera’s behalf?”

  “Sure, why not? She didn’t punish you enough.”

  I rolled my eyes. “It’s not a big deal.”

  Zeph glared at me. “It is a big deal. You didn’t have to see it or deal with it, but I did.” His jaw flexed. “I know it’d be a big deal to you if you had.”

  I swallowed. Probably. I never wanted to see Sera hurt or upset. I’d seen enough of that for a lifetime. We all had.

  “My bad.” I turned to the girls. “I’m sorry, Sera, that I worried you last night. I won’t do it again.”

  Her eyes grew. “W-what? It’s fine, Zey… You’re back now.”

  “No, it’s not.”

  While I was busy getting laid, she was probably spiraling about what could’ve happened to me. Just the same as how I didn’t want to see her hurt or upset, she didn’t want to see me hurt or, worse, missing.

  It was a onetime thing. I didn’t think it’d be a big deal, but clearly, I was wrong. She’d trusted me to inform her of my wellbeing, and I didn’t want to break that trust and cause her any undue anxiety.

  “A booty call should never matter to me more than you. I’m sorry that I ditched you guys.” I looked between the three, hoping for some forgiveness. “I never should’ve gone to his place to begin with.”

  “What, no,” she said sullenly and took my arm. Zeph continued on, and we followed from a few feet away. “You said you like him, right? You shouldn’t regret it.”

  “Nothing good came from it. All I did was hurt you. The sex wasn’t even that good. And in the end, he’s blowing me off.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Didn’t he say he was going to pick you up tonight?” Lina chimed in.

  “I said I was busy, and all he said was, ‘That’s too bad.’”

  She sounded her disappointment, and Sera said, “Wow. That’s all?”

  Zephyr must’ve overheard us because he peered back with furrowed brows.

  “What?” I said to him.

  He turned back around and shrugged.

  “What, Hellion?” Sera shouted at him.

  “Nothing,” he called over the hum of the beach.

  “Tell us! You have to do what we say.”

  He sighed and slowed. “What happened?”

  I clicked my tongue and begrudgingly filled him in on the situation. I obviously left out the sex, though he had enough common sense to put two and two together when I mentioned that it was Zai’len’s place that I went to last night.

  By the time I finished my explanation, we reached our spot on the beach. Two striped towels and a mid-sized lime green polka dot blanket spread out on the sand. A big rainbow umbrella shaded the area. Some sweaty beer bottles sat on the orange cooler beside a low chair that was occupied by a backpack.

  Zeph let down Sera and Lina’s things on the blanket while they settled themselves. He grabbed one of the beers and said to me, “Imagine that, someone who doesn’t want to let you manipulate them into giving you your way. How can you fault the guy?”

  “What?” I blurted as I flicked off my sandals. I tossed the backpack aside and sat in the chair.

  Lina hummed and hawed in agreement with Zeph’s point. Sera was too busy searching through the cooler to respond.

  “He’s told you like three times that he can’t make it to the barbecue, but you’re still trying to force him to come.”

  Sera opened a canned mojito and got up to stand in the sun with Zeph. “He does have a point…”

  “You’re being such a girl right now,” Zeph accused me, and my mouth popped open. When we all accosted him with dirty looks, he raised his hands in surrender. “I’m just saying. You’re making it into something it’s not. Yes, he said, ‘That’s too bad,’ but that doesn’t mean it’s over. You’re the one who refused to message him back because he didn’t respond how you wanted.”

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  The other two murmured their agreement, as if they would’ve preferred not to.

  “He even made a point to meet up some other time this weekend. What more do you want from this guy?”

  I sighed. I wanted more attentiveness after I made sure to please him yesterday. I wasn’t asking for a lot.

  As a final point, Zeph added, “A guy will only chase you for so long.”

  We girls looked at each other, reading each other’s minds. Zeph must’ve been the exception to the rule because he’d been chasing Sera for as long as we could remember.

  But he continued, “There has to be some sort of reciprocation.” He left the group to rejoin the volleyball game.

  Lina smirked. “Sera, I thought you didn’t like Zephyr. Why are you reciprocating?”

  “I’m not!”

  I chuckled. “You must be if he’s still willing to chase you.”

  “Well, he’s clearly deluded. This is exactly why I can’t pay more attention to him. He’s absolutely getting the wrong idea.”

  Lina perused the cooler. “It’s a wonder how men and women communicate with such vast differences in our thought processes.”

  “Right? Having sex with Zai’len seems pretty reciprocal to me,” I muttered to them.

  “I don’t think there’s anything more reciprocal,” Sera agreed.

  “Guys are weird, though,” Lina said, opening a water bottle. “Sex means nothing to them. It’s like shaking hands.” Sera and I laughed. “You met him, texted a bit, went to his place to shake his hand, then denied his request to go out tonight. It’s all your fault he lost interest.”

  We all grinned at each other, quick to express our disbelief and disappointment in men.

  “This was so short-lived,” Sera whined. “I had high hopes for this one.”

  “Same,” I said, then shrugged.

  “So you’re just going to let it go?” Sera asked.

  “Guess so. I have no idea what to say.”

  “You mean you have no desire to lower yourself in order to continue the conversation,” Lina claimed.

  “What?”

  She shrugged casually. “You could always message back. But you feel like it’s beneath you to chase him.” She wagged her finger. “Y’know, I do get Zeph’s point. He probably saw that you were going to try to push his boundary and shut it down.”

  I was the one two steps ahead. People didn’t see through my attempts, and people definitely didn’t shut me down. It was crazy to think he knew me well enough to out manipulate me.

  “Even if he did, it’s not worth it for me to pursue it any further.”

  Lina gave me a condescending smirk. “Wow, someone is on to your nefarious ways for the first time, and you have no idea what to do about it. Are you scared? What if he beats you at your own game?”

  I eyed her. “Shut up…”

  Sera snickered. “Be the bigger man, Zeyna.”

  Maybe it wasn’t over yet. Trust you know what you’re doing. I’d get my way as long as I stayed the course. Sure, I hadn’t gotten the response I wanted, but I still had the power. He was still the one who had been rejected in the end. And what did I have to lose if he wanted to leave it at that?

  I was here with my friends—a guy I liked too. I didn’t need Zai’len. I’d have a good time either way.

  “This is stupid,” I said and got up. I grabbed a beer from the cooler. “With so many boys around, what use is there in overthinking him?”

  “Yes, set your sights on a weaker target,” Lina taunted. “You’re not ready to reel in the big fish yet.”

  “Lina! Why are you antagonizing me?”

  Lina laughed. She got up too, and we went to go find Zeph and Kayo. We watched their game for a while until enough people left for us to join.

  We played for about an hour and a half until they complained about being hot, tired and in dire need of fluids. We all headed back to our home base and rested a bit in the shade while we decided what to eat.

  There were a few places nearby: the country club’s bistro, a cabana that served a variety of handheld foods, a seafood restaurant farther down the beach, or there was food to be made back at home.

  We settled on fish tacos from the cabana, and we sent Zeph and Kayo off to get them while we relaxed on the blanket. Lina took a short nap while Sera and I checked out the guys on the beach.

  Once the guys returned with all our food, we feasted on tacos, chips and empanadas. The cold beer went down nicely afterward.

  “Sera,” Zeph said from the chair after he finished with his food and put his garbage to the side.

  “Yeah?” She sucked down some of her milkshake.

  “Let’s go kayaking.”

  “Lina, can you pass me my tab?” I asked, not paying the other two much attention.

  She rooted around in her bag lazily, then handed it over and went back to reading a DIY home design magazine Sera had brought.

  “Do we have time?” Sera clicked on her screen and showed the time, 3:45 PM. “How long are we staying?”

  “We should. The rental place closes at 5:00.”

  My magi-tab reconnected to my magic and then buzzed in my palm. Only one notification popped up.

  Dark Arts Mafia | Laz: On my way +50 new messages!

  I skimmed the chat before throwing the glass back into Lina’s bag and cut into Zeph and Sera’s conversation. “Let’s all go. We’re going to be having a late dinner, anyway.” I hopped up.

  “I’ll stay and watch our things,” Lina offered, continuing to flip through the magazine.

  “How about you, Okeke?” I asked.

  Kayo looked up from his tablet. “Huh?”

  “Want to come kayaking with us?”

  “Oh, no thanks. I think I have a minor heat stroke.”

  “Do you want to go back to the house?” Zeph asked.

  “No, it’s fine. I’ll stay here in the shade.”

  “I can heal you,” Lina offered.

  “Okay, we’ll leave you in the lovely Lina’s care.” I checked in with Sera and Zeph. “Just us three, then?”

  Sera nodded and put her tab away before following after me and Zeph.

  “Have fun,” Lina called.

  Sera and I enjoyed the eye candy on our way to the rental building. It was ten glorious minutes. A couple of them offered a greeting in passing. Sera typically didn’t return them, but I did.

  We fell in line, and Sera’s long white ponytail swished in front of me. Her transparent, iridescent wings shimmered in the sunlight.

  Zeph left us unattended while he went to pay for the rentals, and while he was gone, a couple of older guys approached.

  “In coming,” I warned Sera and flicked my head to my left.

  She took a gander as inconspicuously as she could. “The tall one is kind of cute. I have more muscle than the other one.”

  I chuckled and let a lull follow when they reached us.

  “Hello,” the cuter one said.

  Blond wasn’t often my typical type. I’d only been attracted to one blond guy in my life, back in high school. And though the other one had darker features and skin, I had way more muscle mass than him as well.

  “Hey,” I said, while Sera kept quiet.

  “My friend and I were about to go for a ride on our jet skis. Wanna join?”

  Sera’s eyes sparkled. She’d been dying to get on a jet ski since I mentioned coming here for my birthday two months ago. And if she was getting on one, there was no way she’d settle for getting a ride on the back. She wanted to drive it herself.

  Her attention strayed up to the top of the stairs. Zephyr sauntered down to us, glare intent on whoever had the audacity to talk to us.

  The blond guy’s gaze followed Sera’s. “Oh, sorry, is that your boyfriend?” His hands rose.

  “No,” she said.

  “But you still may want to escape while you have the chance,” I teased.

  He faked a laugh but didn’t take me seriously. “The invite is still open. We can rent a third for your friend.” He waited for Zephyr to join us. “Hey, man.”

  Zephyr jerked his head for me to explain, then nonchalantly handed Sera a popsicle. She accepted it reflexively. And so did I when he offered me one. It was of a cartoon character. We used to eat the same ones as kids.

  “They offered to take us on a ride on their jet skis.”

  “Ah,” Zeph said, and I smiled at him. “They don’t need a ride. We have our own. Thanks, man.”

  “Why the heck are we going kayaking then?” Sera blurted. “Let’s go jet skiing.” She headed back the way we came, sucking on her popsicle.

  “Sera, wait.” He went after her, and I shrugged at the guys.

  “Thanks for the offer. Try those girls. They look like they’d be really into it.”

  I pointed to a group of rowdy girls who were splitting a bottle of rosé amongst their stemless wine travel mugs.

  “Yeah…” The blond turned awkwardly and went back to wherever they came from.

  When I caught up with Zeph and Sera again, he was in the process of explaining that the jet skis needed some maintenance before they’d be delivered. We wouldn’t get them until tomorrow.

  Her pout was only so potent with a pig shaped popsicle in her mouth. We then went to the kayak area and waited for a group of three to return while we ate our popsicles. Zeph, as inconspicuously as he could, scanned the area to make sure no one else got it in their mind to approach us. I stepped farther away from him in case someone more my type wanted to introduce themselves.

  Unfortunately, I was out of luck. Or Zephyr’s aura was just that intimidating—might’ve also been my own aura; who was to say?

  We set out forty-five minutes before we had to be back to the shore. I set out first, leaving Zeph to help Sera get into hers and then catch up with us.

  Sera glided in line with me and smiled. Our ores accidentally hit each other as we paddled, and I heckled her. She heckled me back, then splashed me lightly. I gasped and splashed her back.

  Before she got it in her mind to start a war, I paddled ahead. The deep blue water shone against the saturated yellow-orange sky. I headed for the horizon.

  Sera sped to catch up with me. “I saw a fish!”

  “Don’t go so far!” Zeph shouted to us, so we paused.

  I watched the boats pass slowly in the distance. A couple zoomed by, a few jet skis too. My kayak rocked gently on the waves.

  “You’re good, right?”

  “Yeah, I’m fine.” I gave her a warm smile, until I jerked forward as Zeph banged into me from behind.

  I whined at him and threatened to hit him with my ore. He countered with his own.

  “I hope you two flip over,” Sera droned. Her hand shot out. “Look a fish!”

  A dark shadow passed between us but quickly disappeared.

  “We should go fishing. I’ve never been.”

  “We’ve never been either,” I said.

  “Can you imagine our parents fishing?” Zeph laughed. I smirked at the thought.

  “Dad does not have the patience.”

  “He wouldn’t get past rigging the fishing rod or whatever.”

  “It’s a wonder how Mom trusted him enough to partner with him on the business.”

  “Give Zenzatsu a break,” Sera cut in. “He’s trying his best.”

  We scoffed, sharing a look. But we stopped with our digs. I turned my attention to Zeph instead.

  “Why did you tell him I snuck off, you nark?”

  “What?”

  “He said he wants to talk to me when we get home.”

  “Yeah, he messaged me that too…”

  “Oh. So, you didn’t tell him about my booty call…?”

  “In what fresh Hell would I tell him about that?”

  I shrugged. “What does he want, then?”

  He shrugged back. “He said it’s something to talk about in person when I asked him about it.”

  “Hm… curious.”

  Sera smiled while she listened to us go back and forth.

  Zeph’s eyes narrowed at her. “Don’t even think about it.”

  “What?” she asked innocently.

  He tried to paddle backwards. “You’re scheming to flip one of us. I can tell.”

  “What! No…!”

  I panicked and paddled away from her. Keeping an eye on her, I gradually turned around just in case I had to rush back to the shore.

  “Zeyna, I’m not going to flip you!”

  Even if she tried, with her dexterity, she’d end up flipping herself in the process.

  We all watched each other with skepticism. “I’m out of here. I don’t trust either of you!” I cut my ore through the water.

  “Coward!” Zeph called after me, but he should’ve been glad that I left so he didn’t need to third wheel anymore.

  I rowed all the way to shore. When I looked back, they were still on the horizon. They had maybe fifteen minutes left, so I decided to wait for them with the others.

  Lina and Kayo hit a volleyball back and forth when I returned. Calling a hey to them, I got another beer and took a seat on the blanket. I watched them hit the ball while I reconnected to my tablet.

  Like last time, a single notification appeared on the screen. This time, it wasn’t a bunch of messages from the Mafia.

  Private | Zai’len Vash’ta: IMG2305163031.pic

  My heart jumped. Intrigued, I opened the conversation right away, and the image appeared. An excited little shiver went through me.

  It was a monochromatic picture of his… lap. Dark dress pants tightly wrapped his thighs, with his light dress shirt and a tie just visible. A belt buckle and watch shone where his hand hung at his crotch, and glossy shoes rested against patio stone.

  On the wooden table before him was a drink: an old fashioned—potentially. But what really mattered—beyond how sexy the simple picture was—was the glimpse of a menu in the corner. Montoku Bar & Bistro.

  He’s close. He’d sent the photo only twenty minutes ago.

  I jumped to my feet and slipped on my shorts, buttoning them to my waist. “I’m going to the washroom at the country club!” I called to the others while I strapped on my sandals.

  “Okay,” Lina said.

  I borrowed her sheer cover up so I wouldn’t look too out of place while venturing through the club. I actually did end up going to the washroom first. I’d been in the sun for a while, so I wanted to make sure I didn’t look like a crazy person. I reapplied my tinted lip balm, then went out to the patio.

  Beach goers weren’t generally welcomed to walk through the place, but a general rule of thumb was that no one would stop you if you walked with confidence. I pretended as if I had a table to return to.

  Based on the photo… I kept an eye on the east facing seats, where the sun might light him from behind. Then I saw him.

  His messy blue-black hair was smooth back into a much neater style. He looked slightly bored by his company, three other men. All of them were much older. One was a Demon, the other two human.

  I slowed my pace as I passed his table, but I kept my stare blatant. Three of the four caught my eye, and I smirked as my attention drifted to Zai’len. He shifted in his seat when he noticed me.

  At the next table, I circled around and headed back inside. I caught a glimpse of Zai’len getting up in the reflection of the windows, so I stopped at the bar to wait for him. The bartender served me right away.

  “An old fashioned and a tequila and tonic.”

  He gave me a nod.

  “Quick question,” Zai’len said as he appeared beside me. “Did you come all the way here to stalk me?”

  I gave him a pitying glance. “You happened to be close by, so I figured I’d see for myself just how busy you were. I thought not busy enough if you had time to send me pictures.”

  “You couldn’t have been that busy either to have come here. What happened to your barbecue?”

  “There’s still time for you to make it. We haven’t started yet. My preoccupations are of the leisure type. Seems yours are more of the business variety.”

  “You must’ve had a fun-filled day. You didn’t have a single second to get back to me.”

  I laughed. “Were you waiting?”

  “Hoping, actually.”

  “For what?”

  I didn’t get to be soft Zeyna with him anymore. It hadn’t lasted long.

  “For you to stop acting hard to get. For you to make a compromise for tonight instead of trying to bend me to your will.”

  So Zephyr was right after all. What a surprise.

  “And when you didn’t get your way, you cracked?”

  “No, I was wondering if you could guess which designers I was wearing.”

  I chuckled. “Sure…”

  The bartender set the drinks in front of me, and I held out my magi-tab to pay him. He tapped it with the bistro’s tab, then went to help the next person. I slid the old fashion over to Zai’len.

  “Best get back to your business.” I clinked my glass to his and stalked off.

  “Zeyna,” he called softly.

  “Sorry,” I said over my shoulder. “I have a barbecue to go prepare for.”