The last thing on Heath's mind before he fell asleep was kissing Murphy. Murphy of all people for Christ's sake, what the hell had he been thinking? The first thing on Heath's mind when he woke up was kissing Murphy. And the slimy bastard had kissed him back, why the hell would he do that? Murphy had no right to be so...involved in it, no right to make Heath feel so desirable or so good about it and definitely no right to enjoy it...fuck this. It was early, but Heath grabbed his surf board and headed for the beach, it would be the best way to get his mind off this.

It was a brilliant morning for surfing, the sky was clear and the water was rough, it'd take all his concentration to ride these waves, perfect. Heath paddled out, quickly growing used to the cool water and by the time he reached the big breakers the water felt warm. He watched the waves roll in, not bothering to wait for the best ones, just riding each wave he was back in place to catch. He rode wave after wave, revelling in the wipe-outs, he deserved them.

xxx

Liam woke from one of the worst night's sleep he'd had in a long time. He felt tired and groggy and knew there was no hope of falling asleep again, his memory wouldn't let him. Liam hauled himself out of bed and got dressed. On a morning like this he needed to clear his head and a fresh ocean breeze was the best way to do that. Just stepping out of the house made him feel better, the cool morning air already making him more alert. He walked down to the beach, hoping to find it relatively empty, he needed time alone to think. He sat in the sand, well above the waterline and watched the waves roll in endlessly, the sound of the rushing water helped soothe him at first but after a while their ceaseless movement became disconcerting, no matter how much he wanted them to stop, they never would, never could. Liam moved his attention from where the white foam rolled up the sand to the cresting waves further out, where a lone surfer rode the waves, attempting to ride every wave that came his way. It looked exhausting but Liam envied him the abandon of it. Eventually Liam could distract himself no longer and memories of last night played over in his head and he was at a loss as to what to think of them. It all felt kind of unreal, never in a million years did he think Heath would kiss him. Or that he'd kiss back, not that Liam put too much stock in that. It wasn't that he desired Heath, it was a just a spur of the moment reaction to their rivalry, he wanted to get the upper hand on Heath in any way he could. That must be it because the alternative was too crazy to even contemplate. Liam's attention drifted back to the surfer who was heading into shore. As the man emerged from the water, the moment had an odd, dreamlike quality to it. You didn't sit on the beach alone thinking of someone only to look down and see them gliding out of the water, glistening with saltwater in the early morning sunlight, looking positively alluring. No, that didn't happen in real life, except this was real life and Liam was watching Heath Braxton do just that. Liam found he couldn't look away and he hoped Heath wouldn't notice him, but it wasn't to be. Liam knew Heath had seen him because he saw him tense, saw the contentment brought on by an early morning surf drain away and then Heath was walking towards him.

"What are you doing here?" Heath asked suspiciously, looking down at Liam.

"I needed to be alone, there was something I needed to think about," Liam said with a wry smile.

"Probably the same thing I came here not to think about." So it was playing on Heath's mind as well. Liam stood, wanting to be on level terms with the other man.

"Heath," Liam said, hoping Heath would see that he was sincere when the asked this. He didn't want to push the point but he wanted Heath to know he was here if he needed him, what had happened between them was important, or at least had the potential to be. "Should we talk about last night?" And as Liam said the words he was struck by the memory of how he'd felt when Heath pulled away and he realised that he wanted to talk about it, wanted to understand it.

"There's nothing to talk about," Heath said, putting a definite end to the conversation. For a moment Liam was hurt by Heath's dismissal but he should have known better than to think he could have a meaningful conversation with him, or that Heath was even capable of such a thing.

"Be a jerk about it then," Liam said, his temper getting the better of him. He was frustrated at Heath for closing down, frustrated at himself for not understanding this whole situation better and even more annoyed that he wanted to.

"I will," Heath shot back, "beats being a little bitch about it like you." And with that Heath walked off, leaving Liam alone with that fiery feeling that Heath was so good at kindling in him.

xxx

Heath couldn't get Murphy's stupid face out of his head. The look in his ridiculously blue eyes when Heath shot him down, the blazing light in them when he'd called Heath a jerk. There was no denying the thrill he felt when Murphy was fired up. Even the memory of it did things to him that it shouldn't, God help him. What Heath needed was a distraction, and a bloody good one at that. Commitment had never been a strong suit of Heath's, he didn't like having to show up to work every day, it was part of the reason he lived the life he did, but right now working seemed like a good way to take his mind off other things.

"Brax, I need a job," Heath told his brother. Brax always had solutions, he'd have something for Heath to do. Brax gave him an amused smile, obviously he didn't think Heath was serious.

"You mean something at Angelo's?"

"God no, anywhere but there..." Heath said maybe a little too quickly. Brax's smile vanished, he was all business now.

"You mean a job job." Heath hadn't actually thought about it but now that Brax mentioned it, it was perfect.

"Yeah, that's exactly what I mean." Brax considered for a moment before he spoke.

"Alright Heath, but I want you to remember I'm serious about this whole going legit thing," Brax said it in a way that left no doubt he absolutely meant it. "But there is still a bit of left over stuff I need to move. I'd rather it was all gone in one lot and I think Adam's our best bet to unload it all at once."

"Ok, what do I need to do?"

"I'll set it up, just show up when and where I tell you. For now go pack up the gear and I'll call you. It's in the usual place."

"Alright," Heath agreed, his mind already running through what he'd need and how best to go about this.

"And Heath..."

"Yeah."

"Don't get caught." Heath gave his brother a scowl, as if Brax needed to tell him that.

AN: Hello…ello…ello… Is anyone there…ere…ere? If anyone is there, I'd love to know what you think…leave a review maybe? Thanks for reading.