Page 55 of Hell House
“Not in the least.” I tug at my lifejacket that wraps around me like a corset, pushing my boobs up uncomfortably.
Walker comes around putting his arm around Salem’s shoulders. “Do you want to ride with me?”
“Oh! Um.”
“Actually, I invited her out and was hoping she’d accompany me.” Salem looks between the two devilishly handsome males who are vying for her attention.
“You riding with me, blue eyes?” Graham asks, juggling his backpack full of food.
I give him a smile, “Sure.”
I was surprised when he’d shown up last night at the Battle of the Bands, asking to dance with me instead of being at the frat party. We’d had so much fun, laughing and dancing together until my legs could no longer handle even one more song. He’d graciously walked me back to the house, making sure I had a piece of cake before I went up to bed. Lukas was fast asleep in his bed by the time I crept in.
Things with Graham were fun and easy as opposed to how crazy Lukas drove me sometimes. I mean he had my panties in his hands! I feel my face warm as I think about how he felt with his hands on me, teasing me, violating my personal space. I didn’t exactly hate it. Gah. I shut down my thoughts about Lukas and focused on the man in front of me.
We carry our two-person kayak down to the water meeting up with the group. Salem chose to go in a single instead of choosing between Emmet and Walker. That girl had so many eggplants pointed in her direction it was unreal.
We get into the kayaks and follow the guide who sets an easy pace for beginners like Salem and I. She takes to it easily, whereas I send Graham and I into a circle before finally finding a good rhythm. The sky is thankfully clear today, devoid of it’s usual doom and gloom I was slowly becoming accustomed to. The wind was absent, making for an easier time on the water. My shoulders and arms start to burn the longer we paddle along the coast. Since the day is clear, I’m granted a gorgeous view of the high cliffs dotted with foliage. There are several twisted trees with bright orange bark that a younger version of myself would have loved to climb. The group is quiet considering how boisterous they tended to be. They each seem lost in their own thoughts the closer we get to the first stop. Possession hosts tons of caves and inlets that are hidden from plain sight. Rumor has it that pirates used them to their advantage as hideouts and a place to burry their treasure. The guide fills us in on local lore while pointing out several groups of wildlife. An eagle dips into the ocean ahead of us, snatching a large fish that fights with all of its strength to be dropped. But the talons are in too deep and the fish stops flailing as the eagle flies off into the trees with it’s prize. The sight fills me with sadness, even though I know it’s the way of the world. As we paddle closer to one of the caves the guide begins to tell us of a local legend, similar to the one Salem told me about a few weeks ago.
The guys seem to shift uncomfortably as he talks.
“We could skip this stop, don’t you think?” Sloan pipes up.
“Yeah, I second that. I’m not tired, we can keep going.” Graham agrees from behind me.
The guys all nod in agreement, but the guide isn’t budging. “Sorry guys, you might not need a break, but we have two first timers here and I’m not as young as I used to be.”
They seem to silently communicate to each other across the water, I catch Salem’s annoyed expression.
“Well, I’m down for a break. My arms are shaking.”
That seems to settle it, all of us working to push our kayaks up to a flat part of the beach that sits right outside of a massive cave. I pull out my phone from my waterproof pocket and snap a picture. I’m already picturing how I could recreate this on canvas. The deep gray spikes hang precariously from the mouth of the cave almost resembling a large monster’s teeth. I can see why a place like this would garner a host of myths around it. It looks perfectly ominous.
We pull our boats out, setting our oars down out of the way of the incoming tide. I join Sloan in his stretches no longer finding them so crazy now that my back and arms burn. This place had a habit of pointing out all the ways I wasn’t as fit as I thought I was.
“The trick is to use your breaths.” Sloan says, coming over to adjust my poor attempt in copying his yoga stance. “Now really sink into it here. Tighten your core. Yes. Now breathe in. See the difference?” His hands linger on my hips as I stretch. I catch Graham’s eyes on me, taking in Sloan’s hands on me. I stand up and thank him for his help, smiling at him. He’s cute in a hipster woodsman kind of way. It was absolutely working for him. He goes to lay down next to a patch of sandy grass, putting his hat over his face like an old man. I join Salem on a picnic blanket, Graham lays out the box of snacks he packed having the other guys hovering close by. They seem deep in conversation, Emmet and Walker giving several glances at the mouth of the cave.
Salem too, seems unsettled. Giving the same area a look of concern. I feel like I’m missing something. I pop a salty olive in my mouth with a frown. This outing is far more subdued than I thought it would be. Maybe they’re all just tired from the past couple of days. I know I’m still a little sluggish from last night’s excursion.
“What’s up with you, Salem?” I ask taking a piece of cheese spread and placing it on a cracker.
“This place. I don’t know. It feels weird.”
“How so?” Emmet says taking a spot next to Salem on the blanket and snatching a small sandwich.
She shifts, biting her lip. “I don’t know, it just… It feels like I’ve been here before.”
I don’t miss the way Graham, Walker and Emmet all seem to zone in on her. I look at the guys wondering what’s up with them and why they wanted to avoid this place so much. Almost like… this place meant something to them. And maybe not in a good way.
CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
Salem
I’m lightly sunburned and completely wiped out by the time we make it back to the house. The guys perked up after that weird stop at the cave. That place made my skin crawl, but also it almost called to me, like I needed to walk straight into the darkness and see what was waiting for me. I couldn’t shake the sense that I ‘d been there before, as crazy as that sounds.
I climb up the steps to my room, feeling dead on my feet. I wish this place had a bathtub that I could sit and soak in and forget about the craziness of the last few weeks. But no. All that awaits me in the bathroom is a sausage fest that I’d learned how to avoid seeing surprise penises. It was worse than the DM section of my Instagram in there. If I woke up early enough, I could sneak in a shower before it became eggplant city. But now? I need a shower desperately after kayaking around the island. My arms and back feel like they’ve been put through a meat shredder, then sewn back onto my body. I want nothing more than to pelt my skin with hot water until it’s an angry pink and my fingers are pruned.
I peel off my sweaty clothes and pile them into the small laundry basket I have stacked next to my bed. I wrap myself in a white fluffy towel and head down to the bathroom. I listen at the door, thankful that it seems empty. Most everyone else is still downstairs talking about the pod of whales that popped up next to our boats. I was slightly worried we would have aMoby Dickmoment, but they passed us without taking us down. The wake they left though had managed to flip the guide’s kayak. Thankfully Walker and Emmet were able to turn him right side up. And fine, yes, I absolutely ogled their muscles as they worked him right side up. It was hot. But I was starting to feel like a shiny new toy amongst some of the guys. All testosterone and seconds away from peeing on me to mark their territory. No thank you. I made my own rules. I wasn’t one to be tied down to one guy.
