The water weaves around me. Through my fingers. Between my toes. It soothes my flushed skin, burnt from the sun. The board floating next to me- the same one Tyler gave me my first lesson on- is the only thing keeping me afloat. My cheek is pressed against its cool surface as my chest rises and falls heavily.

"How do you do this?" I ask breathlessly.

Tyler comes up from behind me, wrapping his arms around my torso. The softness of his skin against mine makes me want to never leave this moment. He chuckles before pressing a kiss to my shoulder. My head rolls back onto his, finally feeling like I can breathe properly with our bodies pressed together.

His hands move to grip my sides and before I realize what he's doing, I'm lifted out of the water with a gasp. "Up you go." He lifts me onto the board, only letting go of me when I'm safely on top. Even then, his left hand still rests on my calf.

"You tricked me," I pout, looking down at him. I tuck my hair behind my ears when it falls over my face.

"You're not a quitter, Phoenix. Try again."

He gives me a push in the right direction, and I groan, watching him float further and further away. I've tried countless times to ride a wave with no luck. Tyler always laughs at me when I fall into the water, slapping the board out of anger, which earns him a glare. But he's right, I'm not a quitter. And I'm not going home until I ride a wave. Even if it takes all night.

"Get ready!" He shouts, cupping his hands around his mouth to project his voice. "There's one coming up."

A shiver runs across my skin. I'm not sure if it's from the breeze circling around me or nerves. Either way, I lay flat on the board and get ready to go. My heart pounds in my ears. My labored breaths can probably be heard from a mile away.

When the board is pushed forward by the current, I use my arms to keep me on track. Then, I wait for Tyler's signal. In the distance, I see him raise his thumb in the air. The thought of all my failed attempts, ending with me coughing up water on the sand gives me a sudden burst of energy. My aching arms push me up onto my feet. My legs wobble beneath me but I don't fall.

A beaming smile tugs on the corners of my lips. Tyler hollers in the distance as laughter bubbles in my chest. The breeze tickling my skin feels different now. Before, it was irritating. All I wanted to do was wrap myself in a towel and sit on the sand. Now, it feels freeing. My hair flails behind me.

Once I'm back on dry land, Tyler wraps me up in his arms and spins me around. A squeal escapes my lips. "You did it!" He says, pride shining in the ocean of his eyes.

The wave might have been small, but I still did it.

"Can you believe it?" I beam, pulling on the straps of my bikini top to readjust it. Before he can answer, I rush over to the bag I left lying on the sand. "Wait, let me get a towel before I turn into an ice cube."

I return to him moments later, wrapped in a fluffy white towel. When I notice what he's holding in his hands, I stop in my tracks. My hands fall to my sides and if the towel wasn't wrapped tightly around my body, it would've dropped to the ground.

In his hands is a necklace. A pure white shell is looped through the middle. An almost exact replica of the one sitting around his neck.

"Phoenix," he starts, edging closer to me.

"When did you make that?"

His eyes crease in the corners when he laughs. "Will you at least let me put it on you first?"

My feet shuffle me forward until my back is to his chest. He sweeps my hair over my shoulder, planting another kiss on my flushed skin. A hum of electricity spears out from the contact. It doesn't take him long to secure the necklace around my neck and when he does, my hand comes up to cradle the shell. It's smooth beneath my fingertips.

When our eyes meet, he smiles. "I made it that day. The first time I taught you how to surf," he reveals.

"You've had it all this time, even at the lighthouse?" I ask in disbelief.

"Even at the lighthouse."

Staring up at him fills me with so much adoration. It swells in my chest, igniting a storm deep in my stomach. His eyes fall to my lips, and for the first time, I interlock my hands behind his neck and pull him to me.

Our lips collide as the waves crash against the rocks behind us.