Sea Magic:
A Tale of the Deep
Chapter One
Adina watched the soothing pink waves rock back and forth in the setting sun, over joyed by the fact that she now called this place home. "This place" was a sleepy, fishing village off the coast of Florida called Gull Cove. It was a half-hour ferry ride from Atlantic Beach, Florida. She dug her toes into the moist, grainy sand and leaned back in her plastic beach chair. There was no one around to disrupt the tranquil peace of the early December evening.
Something was bobbing up and down in the waves, catching her attention. At first she thought that it was a dolphin or some sort of marine life, but then she saw the cerulean board pop out of a wave with a dark- haired surfer attached to it. Adina frowned, upset that her peace had been disturbed. She watched the surfer catch a small wave, maneuvering about skillfully. He was really quite good, she mused, daftly tugging on a strand of brassy hair. He plunged into the fifty-something degree water and emerged, shaking out the lanks of long hair. His hair was the color of driftwood that had been soaking for months at sea, with lighter shades of highlight the color of sea oats. From where she sat, she could see that he was actually quite good looking, with his Roman-esque face and bronze skin. And he was coming up out of the water, right in her direction, the board tucked under one arm while he unzipped his wetsuit with his free hand, revealing a body better suited for an Olympian God.
Stop it! she mentally chided herself, dropping her eyes to the pale sand. She shouldn't let herself think such thoughts. For all she knew he could have a girlfriend and not be interested in some loner like herself. Adina shifted her eyes back out to the water, watching as something poked its head out from the waves.
"It's a dolphin!" She exclaimed loudly just as the surf god walked past her.
"Pardon?" He asked, backing up to get a better look at her.
Adina, who hadn't realized that she had spoken out loud, blushed and pointed out to where the gunmetal grey head was poking out of the water. "Dolphin."
"Oh!" The surfer laughed, giving her a lop-sided grin. "Yeah, that's Wilson, he's my surfing buddy." Surf god waved to the dolphin before sticking his board in the sand and plopping down next to Adina. "So, I haven't seen you around these parts before."
"That would be because I just moved here," she explained burrowing her feet further into the sand. She felt awkward actually talking to an attractive member of the opposite sex.
"That's cool," he said. "I'm Alex."
"Adina." She introduced herself, holding out her hand.
"That's a pretty name." She blushed deeper. "So what brings you to Gull Cove?"
Adina had been anticipating this question since she signed the lease on her house, but that didn't stop her from taking a minute to remember why exactly she did move here. She couldn't help it-- cute guys just left her flabbergasted. "Well," she began, "I'm from Jacksonville originally, but every summer when I was little, my family brought me here for a week. I was just so enamored by the town that I decided that when I graduated from college I would live here."
"I can dig that," Alex said, nodding. "Well, it was really nice to meet you, but I have work in like ten minutes, so I gotta run."
She watched him as he got up, removing his board from the sand, and ran up the beach.
"A pleasure," she whispered into the wind.