Page 41 of He Loves Me Knot

And she’d learned the hard way that other women could be just as vicious to each other even when they couldn’t find easy prey—a fact that had just about made her want to never try to seek friends again. Maybe that was why Granny had learned to be brash and tough. People didn’t mess with you if they didn’t see you as soft and vulnerable.

After what seemed like entirely too short of a lesson on what to do in the water, they headed out into the waves. The water was surprisingly warm, despite how early it was, and Callum was right—the waves were mild, at best.

“All right. First, we practice get on the board. No too far, not too low,” Victor said, demonstrating by climbing toward the nose of his surfboard, then moving toward the bottom.

Liddy glanced over her shoulder at Callum, who was clearly doing his best not to appear bored. “How do you know if you’ve gone too far up on the board?”

“Here, I help,” Victor said, wading through the waist-deep water toward her. He held out a hand and helped her slide onto the board. “Right here.” His hand settled on the small of her back. “Excelente.You’re a natural.”

“Oh, for Christ’s sake,” Callum muttered, paddling past.

Liddy smirked. It could be the fact that he was supposed to be her boyfriend, but either way, she was enjoying the attention.

Then in true cock fight fashion, Callum waited for one of the larger foamy waves, before popping up on his board and riding it in toward the shore.

It could be his muscular physique. Or maybe the water dripping from him.But my God, he looks hot doing that.

Granny’s eyes twinkled from a few feet away, where she was struggling to get onto the board. “See, I told you. Nice buns on that one.”

Victor, clearly aware that Callum wasn’t an inexperienced beginner now, tilted his head. “Oh, you surf?”

“Un poquito.”Callum responded with a shrug.

“Perfecto. Come, you can help with laseñora.”Victor waved Callum over toward Granny.

“Oh, lucky me.” Granny grinned.

Kyle waded closer to Liddy. “I’m considering going and taking a nap on the beach. Watching my eighty-year-old grandmother act like a horndog is fun and all, but I’m definitely the fifth wheel around here.”

The feel of the cold board against her stomach and torso was surprisingly freeing as Liddy paddled near Kyle. “I’m oddly enjoying this more than I thought I would,” she confessed, watching as Victor and Callum struck up a conversation in Spanish—who knew about what. Callum didn’t entirely seem friendly, but Victor was smiling.

Kyle climbed onto his own board. She wouldn’t be surprised if Kyle turned out to be naturally gifted at this—he’d played sports and been athletic his whole life. That’s how it had always been in their family. Elle was the artist, Liddy, the overachieving bookworm, Kyle, the athlete. “So this Callum guy.. .isn’t he Quinn’s friend that you hated?” Kyle asked in a low voice.

Liddy gritted her teeth. She couldn’t lie to Kyle. They’d been close all their lives. Told each other everything. Even though Liddy considered Elle her best friend, in some ways it had taken longer for them to reach that point. Elle had been popular and busy and older. Kyle was always there for her, and they’d played together from infancy, since he was only a year younger. Somehow, he seemed more mature at twenty-three than other guys she knew that were his age.

The water was so calm that they were both practically just lying on their boards, parallel to the shore. Callum was helping Granny, while Victor, who seemed intent on supervising, continued to watch over them. Liddy set her forearms on the board and leaned her chin against her arms. “Can I tell you a secret if you swear not to tell anyone?”

Kyle raised a brow. “If you tell me you’re pregnant too . . .”

Liddy laughed, wondering just how many people Elle had told her “secret” to. “No, nothing like that. It’s just that I was in charge of picking up Elle’s wedding dress from Logan in Littleton, who’s been staying at the estate. And then I brought it here to Costa Rica—except it was stolen at the airport.”

Kyle’s eyes widened. “What?”

Liddy gritted her teeth in a tight, chagrined smile. “It gets worse.” She summarized the situation with Callum quickly, finishing as Victor waded back toward them to resume the lesson.

“What happens if you don’t get the dress back?” Kyle asked as Victor helped guide them farther out into the water.

“Okay, from here, watch for the wave. When it’s about five meters away, you start and paddle toward shore. Ride the wave on your belly,” Victor told them, then demonstrated.

She watched Victor, barely paying attention to what he’d instructed.

“I have no idea what happens. But especially after I found out about the baby, I just didn’t feel like I could tell Elle.”

“No, I get it. She’s on edge. Burst into tears when she saw me last night, but Quinn says she’s been doing that a lot lately. Hormones or something.”

Yeah, exactly.Elle was all over the place emotionally.

“Well, I’m glad I told you,” Liddy said, sighing as Victor swam back. “I might need your help covering for me today when I go try to find this guy.”