Letting My Brother's Best Friend Take My V-Card

HELP

LUKE

The grains of sand bit into my back as I lay sprawled out, limbs. heavy and aching. Every inch of me was soaked, raw, like I'd been dragged through a wave of razors. I tried to focus on breathing-one sharp, salty breath after another- but each inhale scraped down my throat.

To my right, Josh flopped beside me with a grunt, looking just as beat as I felt. He let out a long sigh and stared up at the sky, his chest heaving as he caught his breath. "Never... flying... again," he muttered, half under his breath as if the words themselves took too much effort.

I chuckled, my voice rough. "Yeah, and the company better pay us overtime for this...assuming we live to collect it."

Josh gave a tired laugh, the sound barely there, but it still managed to make me grin. "If we make it out of this alive, Jess and Laura will probably kill us anyway. I might just stay on the island. Laura has good aim. I don't feel like a paintbrush in the eye." Josh checked, and For a moment, we just lay there, staring at the endless blue above us, both of us too exhausted to care about the sand itching under our backs or the sun baking down on our soaked clothes. Just breathing. Just...existing after whatever the hell had happened out there. 14:03

HELP!

204 Moucher

Then, the quiet was broken by a high-pitched scream, faint but unmistakable, slicing through the air like a knife.

Josh and I jerked upright, every ounce of exhaustion shoved aside as adrenaline kicked in. Out on the water, a pair of hands flailed desperately, fingers clawing at the surface as the figure. sank and rose again in the rolling waves. "Shit," I breathed, pushing up on my elbows. "Someone's drowning."

to our feet, but the

turned around and noticed my leg. "That looks worse than your face,

"It's gotta be you, man," I managed, gritting my teeth. The words came out a little rougher than I intended, but there wasn't time to worry about it. Josh looked over at me, his face twisted in frustration. "I just dragged you out, man." He cursed under his breath, scanning the water again, but he didn't hesitate for

a hand against my thigh, trying to stop the blood, but finally tore off the

ras!

his form moving against the pull of

18

they disappeared beneath

pooling in my stomach. But then Josh's head reappeared, his arm wrapped around the other person as he struggled to keep them both above water. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, they got close enough for me to see them clearly, and I dragged my ass up to meet them halfway. The person he'd rescued was a woman, her head drooping against his shoulder, her face pale and

just as I got

my leg gave out

beside him, eyes closed, her breaths shallow. For a moment, neither of them moved, both of them looking

to catch my breath. Josh leaned over to look at her and nodded, barely able

shifted to a sitting position, eyes flicking between me and the woman, his gaze

of pain through me. "It's fine."." I gritted my

1. it.