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Bella Swan lay back on her surf board, the easy sway of the water lulling her into a relaxed state of mine. The warmth of the early morning sun caressed her skin, and she felt like if she reached up, she could pluck it out of the sky. It reminded her of the first time her father took her out onto the water. She'd barely been four years old and he put her on his shoulders while he rode the waves. She held her arms out and pretended she was flying.

Bella loved the water, loved the freedom it gave her, the clarity when her heart was heavy. It was her sanctuary, her safety net.

"Bella! Bella, get your ass back to the shore!"

Groaning, she sat up on her surfboard, turning her attention back to the edge of the water where her sister stood with a mega phone pressed against her lips. She'd been enjoying the peace and quiet that only the ocean brought. There was something about catching the first wave in the morning that Bella loved. Like for those few hours, the ocean belonged just to her.

But with a sigh, she turned her board back toward the shore and began paddling back. Once she was close enough to touch, Bella slipped off her board and wadded through the rest of the water. She stuck her board into the sand with force and brought her hands up to her hair, trying to wringing out as much water as she could.

"Why do you insist on making everything so hard?" Esme asked, placing her hands on her hips in a very mom-like way. If that's what mothers did. Bella wouldn't know.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Bella pulled her board out of the sand and headed back up to the house, leaning it against the side of the house. Esme followed her to the outdoor shower and waited while Bella rinsed off.

"You're not supposed to be in the water alone," Esme said, quietly — almost as if she knew Bella was going to be upset, which she was. Not at her sister. Esme was only doing what she thought was best, but Bella didn't care. She loved being in the ocean too much. "Bella!"

"What, Essie?" Bella cried out, exasperated. She turned off the shower. "You saw the surf. How could I resist?"

"You should have woken me. I'd have gone out with you."

"I tried," Bella lied.

"Bullshit, little sister," Esme scoffed and followed Bella up onto the front porch, where her towel lay. She dried off her arms and legs before wrapping it around her torso and turning to face her sister.

"You were snoring too loud to hear me," Bella teased. "Pretty sure you were drooling, too. Must have been dreaming about someone sexy."

"I was not!" Esme declared, but Bella just laughed as she turned and walked into the house and into her bedroom. Picking up her hairbrush, she sat in front of her dressing table and began brushing her hair, but had barely gotten started when Esme pulled it from her hand.

"Side braid?"

Bella nodded and watched her sister through the mirror as she began a sideward French braid. Though only a handful of years older than her, Esme had an old soul. She was caring and sweet, loving and protective of her family. Too protective at times, but that was just her. She was a stunningly beautiful woman with soft, caramel colored hair that hung in loose curls down her back and warm, welcoming brown eyes. Like Bella's. Their eyes were the only trait they seemed to share.

Bella's hair was darker, more of a dark chocolate and unlike Esme who had naturally wavy hair, Bella's hair was a straight as could be.

Esme finished the braid, letting it drape over her shoulder and placed her hands on the top of Bella's arms.

"I'm fine, Esme," Bella assured her.

"I know, but you know how much I worry."

"I do, but I feel great. Just let me live, okay?"

Esme nodded and tried to smile, but Bella could see the sadness in her eyes. "You'd better hurry before you're late. Don't want peanut to come looking for you again."

"Yes, ma'am."

Bella laughed and stood up. She pulled on the khaki shorts and black tank top she'd laid out the night before and a slipped them over her red and black bikini, ignoring the grimace from Esme for not putting on a pair of real underwear or a bra. Bella didn't see the point when she planned on being back in the water as soon as she could. Just one of the perks of living on the beaches of Hawaii, right?

Grabbing her backpack from next to the door, Bella slipped her feet into her favorite pair of Toms. She waved goodbye to her sister before rushing out of the small bungalow they shared and climbed into the rundown jeep she drove. It was a piece of junk, but her father had spent a year fixing it up for her sixteenth birthday and she loved it. Turning the radio up, she laughed as she pulled onto the highway and headed into town.

After stopping and picking up a coffee for herself and a tea for her best friend/business partner, Alice Brandon, Bella drove down to Waikiki Beach, parking in the lot just down the street from the studio she and Alice owned together: Swan Photography. Bella had been obsessed with photography since she was a little girl, when her father gave her a Polaroid camera for her fifth birthday. She took it everywhere with her, expect into the ocean.

Surfing was the only thing she loved more, but after she blew out her knee during a competition, she had to give up her dream of becoming a professional surfer and turned to her camera. Now, she was the woman behind the lens.

Alice ran the business side of their operation. She took care of everything from updating their website to making sure the rent got paid. Alice had a flare for business and knew how to manipulate a contract better than anyone Bella had ever met.

They'd been best friends for as long as Bella could remember. Esme teased that they'd been friends from the womb. Bella and Alice's birthdays were only three weeks apart. A tiny woman, Alice was barely five foot, but what she lacked in sized, she gained in spirit. She had long, black hair and bright, blue eyes that sparkled. She was incredibly beautiful, but it was her heart that Bella found so endearing. Alice was the type of woman to give you the shirt off her back if you needed it. She was incredible caring and loving. They'd been friends since their first day of Kindergarten.

Their office wasn't much. Basically, just a showcase of Bella's work. Their desks were located in the back corner, but the walls were covered with photographs that Bella had taken — everything from area shots of the islands to hidden spots that only the locals knew about. They were a reflection of her life, of her passion, her vision.

She found Alice perched up behind her computer, her chin resting on the palm of her hand and her bottom lip sucked between her teeth. She shifted her attention from the scene to Bella, smiling widely.

"Cutting it kind of close, weren't you, Bella?" Alice laughed as she accepted the cup of tea. "Thank you! I was going through withdraw."

"You're welcome. Sorry I'm late, but I was distracted," Bella said, smiling.

"Let me guess: you just had to be on the water this morning," she scoffed, turning her attention back to the computer in front of her.

Bella couldn't deny the truth in Alice's accusation. "Maybe. What's on the schedule for today, peanut?"

Alice sucked her bottom lip between her teeth again as she turned and faced Bella. The fact that she didn't make a face at her use of a nickname told her that whatever Alice had planned wasn't good.

"Don't be mad, okay? I wouldn't have said yes, but . . . the offer was too good to turn down."

"What offer?" Bella asked, warily.

"I got a phone call this morning from Felix."

"What'd he want? I told that after last time, I was done."

"I know, sweetie," Alice said, standing up and putting her hands up, "but their photographer got a better offer on another job. He left them without notice, and the tournament starts tomorrow."

"So, they want me to do what exactly?"

"Oh, you know, the usual." Alice waved a hand in the air. "They've offered twice what we normally charge and they're adding a portfolio to the deal. We'll make more in two weeks on this job than we did in the last three months alone. It's too good to turn down."

Bella sighed and closed her eyes before forcing them open and looking at her best friend. "Fine. I'll take the job, Alice, but I'm not happy about it."

"I know, and I'm sorry."

Nodding, Bella tried to smile. "Don't apologize, peanut. You're just doing your job, right?"

"Yeah," Alice murmured and sat back at her desk.

Bella grabbed her camera from her bag and kicked off her shoes before, heading toward the front door. "I'll be back in a bit, okay?"

"Sure thing, sweetie."

It only took Bella a handful of steps to find herself on the beach. Being so close to the ocean had been the catalyst when deciding which office to rent for their business. Barely nine in the morning and the beach was already crowded with tourists. Families who had come from the main land to escape reality for a bit. Bella felt that freedom every time she was on the water, every time she felt her board under her feet, and the spray of the water washing over her. She felt that freedom every time she captured an image through her camera. Well, almost all the time. She wasn't sure how she was going to get through the next two weeks.

Bella brought her camera up to her eye to snap a picture of a seagull that was skimming across the water, but before she could capture it, someone bumped into her and knocked her to the ground.

"Son of a bitch," she snarled, trying to keep her camera from landing in the sand as she rolled onto her back.

The man who'd run into her, stopped and looked back. He was tall, muscular, tan. He had wild auburn hair and green eyes, and he wasn't wearing a shirt. His chest was glimmering with sweat and his red shorts hung loosely on his hips.

"You should watch where you're running," she quipped, and stood up.

"You shouldn't be in my way," he countered and turned to continue to running up the beach.

"Sorry about him."

Bella looked behind her, to find another man. He, like his friend, wasn't wearing a shirt. He had on a pair of black shorts, and his blond hair had been pulled back into man-bun, which Bella usually hated, but it suited him. His blue eyes sparkled as he smiled and reached for her hand.

"Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"

Bella opened her mouth to respond, but was interrupted.

"Whitlock, move your ass!" shouted the asshole.

Whitlock sighed, gave Bella a look, and took off down the beach after his friend.

Shaking her head at the nerve of people, Bella shifted her eyes down to her camera, groaning when she saw the crack in her lens. Just what she didn't need. Not only was she being forced to take pictures for the Pro Volleyball's Beach Tournament of Champions, but she's cracked her favorite lens.

Fuck her life, it was going to be a long two weeks.

If you've read this far, thank you! Hope you enjoyed the first chapter! I'm excited about this new fic. I plan to update every two weeks. If you've been reading my other fics, you can find them over on The Writer's Coffee Shop under the same pen name. I'm taking a chance by putting this here. Let's hope FF doesn't pull it. Do me a favor and drop me a review.