Sitting up on the field now, Merit looked over at me and smiled and rolled his eyes.

“You’re okay?” I whispered.

“Yeah. The not-breathing for a second was kind of scary, but I’m okay.”

“Promise?” I asked.

“Promise.” He paused. “Hey, you’re pretty fast when you want to be. Have you considered trying out for the football team?”

I smiled, half basking in the glow of his attention and half freaking out that he had seen how I broke Olympic speed records to get to him. But he had said my name, only mine, in his blacked-out, oxygen-lost moments. That had to mean something, didn’t it? “I wouldn’t want to show you up,” I said. “I know how important this quarterback thing is to you.”

“And you ran to me so quickly because…”

“Because I was nervous my surf lessons might get canceled,” I said smoothly.

Merit laughed.

“Okay, big guy,” said Dr. Montgomery, whom I’d seen a couple years ago for a sprained ankle. “Let’s get you checked out.”

Two of Juniper Shores’ biggest football players helped Merit up, and he put his arms around their shoulders. The crowd went wild. It was only then that I noticed both teams’ players were down on one knee. They all clapped as Merit got up.

“Well, this is embarrassing,” he said. “And, hey, could you please keep Mom and Sophie from coming into the field house.”

I shrugged. “Come on, Merit. I’ll do my best, but we both know that might be impossible.”

I walked over to Grace, unable to resist turning to look at Merit one more time. “Hey,” I said, “I think he’s okay. He doesn’t really want anyone in the field house.”

Ignoring me, Grace turned and made a beeline for the field house anyway.

“What are you, like, his spokesperson…” Sophie gave me the up-and-down, then added, “… freshman.” If she was mad about his saying my name, not hers, she wasn’t hiding it well.

I put my hands up. “Just passing along a message.”

Two other cheerleaders ran up beside her. “Yeah, and that’s all you’ll do with him, if you get my drift,” Sophie said.

Great. Just what I needed. To be on the entire cheerleading squad’s hit list.

“That’s practically all you do with him,” said Franklin, one of the girls.

Sophie shot her a look.

“What?” the other cheerleader asked.

“Never mind,” Sophie said. “I’m going to go check on my boyfriend.”

She said the word with special emphasis in my direction, as if half my thoughts weren’t centered on the fact that he was her boyfriend. Please. I was aware.