Read Online Always Summer by Nikki Godwin - Free Book Online Page A

say,
stepping onto the pier. “It’s where he comes to think, to get away
from the crowds and the craziness. Tourists don’t really know about
this spot. They’re all out on The Strip. The pier is great there,
but this one is more Zen.”
    I cringe upon the use of the word Zen. I
can’t believe it even came out of my mouth. I swallow the lump in
my throat – and the memories of my ex-boyfriend – and focus on the
matter at hand – Logan's career.
    “I know I should ignore the tabloids and
gossip sites,” Logan says as we stroll along. “I have a terrible
habit of Googling myself, but most of what I see are things I wish
I hadn’t. Even with all that’s happened, Colby still has a huge
following. People like Miles because he’s edgy, and your boyfriend
is crazy popular online.”
    “Really? I didn’t know that,” I lie.
    But the truth is, I totally know it. During
those sixty-three hours after the awkward kiss-and-run incident, I
searched Topher’s name online a few too many times. I wanted to see
what people were saying about his sponsorship. I wanted to read the
surf forums and see who was excited about it, who thought he
deserved it.
    Instead, I found a ton of girls who thought
he was hot, who were bummed that he had photos posted of himself
with Emily and me, and who basically wanted to be his surf
girlfriend. It was all about Topher Brooks, not Drenaline Surf. No
one cared about Shark’s legacy and how he was like Topher’s second
brother. No one cared that Vin was gone and Topher was a wreck over
it, even if he tried to hide it. It was all about Topher, in a
sense that wasn’t even Topher as we all know him.
    Topher had just landed his dream surf deal
with his dream sponsor yet the only thing that mattered was that he
was swoonworthy? Poor Alston had to sit through my hours of panic
that people only saw Topher as a hot guy and not a professional
surfer. I’m not sure if it was the possible girlfriend who was
panicking or the PR girl panicking. I’ll stick with the PR
girl.
    “I just don’t want to be that guy,
you know?” Logan says, pulling me back in. “I want to be known for
surfing, not being an outcast. I want to do what Drenaline Surf was
meant to do – continue Shark’s dream. I know I never met the guy,
but I felt like I did, you know?”
    He gives me the detailed story about his
journey to sponsorship, the story that Vin never elaborated on.
Logan’s dream to move to the west coast is what triggered his
search of surf companies in California.
    “I figured maybe I could transfer out here
with a job, but none of the Florida stores had chains out here. I
think they are all just too small. They can’t compete in this
area,” he says. “I was browsing websites when I saw Drenaline
Surf’s site. I didn’t think much of it at first. Just another surf
site. But then I clicked on the ‘about us’ section and saw Shark’s
picture and read the story about him. It just hit me.”
    He tells me about his initial e-mail to Vin
and how nervous he was sending it. He inquired about job positions
and if Drenaline Surf was hiring.
    “I’m not sure if he was honored or just
freaked out by the whole thing,” Logan says. He looks out across
the water, like he can see the memories playing out on a large
screen in front of him. “He was chill, though. He asked about who I
was, what my ambitions were, why I wanted to move to California. So
I was honest with him. I wanted to be a pro surfer, and I needed a
surf-rich environment. But Drenaline Surf felt right compared to
the bigger stores. I felt like it was based on something real.”
    Shortly after, Vin flew out to Florida to
meet him, checked out some of his surf clips, spent a few days
talking with him, and ultimately decided to sign him. Logan didn’t
even know until Vin flew him out to Crescent Cove. I crack a smile
that I knew before Logan did. I was in that loop.
    “But it was different after I got here,”
Logan says. “It wasn’t a