A professional surfer struggles to reclaim the Championship when a travel writer is assigned to observe his journey between events. What seems like a dangerous diversion, both in and out of the water, forces him to accept that there's more missing from his life than another trophy.
When he won his first World Title at eighteen, they said he’d be the greatest professional surfer to ever compete. Fourteen years later, Dean "DeBaz" Bazner is inching towards retirement having never clinched another Title. This year he’s pushing limits to prove his beginning wasn’t a fluke, and it’s working. Until she comes along.
You don’t have to know anything about surfing for it to change your life. Travel writer Azure Thomas can attest to that. She was navigating the changing world of freelance journalism when she took this gig. She wasn’t prepared for a man that connects to her profound loss and sacrifices everything, except his soul, to live his dream. He’s more than a hot magazine cover, and surfing is more than a hobby. The dangerous diversion, in and out of the water, forces Dean to accept there's more missing from his life than another trophy.
Amongst tropical breezes, in the most beautiful locations on earth, CHASING SWELLS is an absorbing journey about riding the waves of life, overcoming childhood loss, and letting go of the mistakes that barricade us from our potential.
Loved it! A. L. Goulden knows how to keep you turning pages. The characters are fully developed and don't fall flat.
- aclaremont, Amazon Reviewer
Catching waves has never been sexier! This story is beautiful because you have a woman that is not confident doing a job where confidence is key to getting what you want and a guy who has all the confidence for both of them.
- The Book Fairy Reviews, Amazon Reviewer
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The glass of water is waiting for her, and the sliding glass door is open, so she steps out. The ocean glows from a nearly full moon, but she doesn’t see Dean. The waves crashing are hypnotic though, drawing her closer. By the edge of the grass and sandy berm she shivers from the crisp air sending goosebumps down to her bare toes. She turns to find Dean handing her a new glass of wine before he lays a blanket down.
Seriously? Is he being that forward? No. Not after all the times he’s left me hanging. What does he-?
“What do you think?” he says looking back towards the house. “I’m thinking of selling it.”
“I don’t understand this place,” she says, taking a gulp to warm her bones.
“What do you mean? You don’t like it?”
“It’s beautiful Dean, but it doesn’t fit. I get the ocean right here, but the house is so big and sterile. It feels like a hotel or a museum. The library and den feel like the only traces of you.”
He looks back and shakes his head. “I thought it was what she wanted. I guess I was just trying to make her happy.”
The last thing Azure wants to do is turn his focus on a heartbreak, but she has her answer. He bought this house for a rock star she could never compete with. “You loved her that much, huh?”
He stares at the picture windows of pristine white furnishings and shakes his head slowly. “No she needed everything big; her lyrics and venues and headlines.”
Please stop talking about her…“I’m sorry. It’s completely not my business and I shouldn’t…”
He reaches over and gently turns her face to his. “I was trying to force something that wasn’t right. It wasn’t love. Not even close.” His eyes are so honest and vulnerable. Her heart races as he moves in. “You really don’t like it?”
She studies his lips as they get closer. “It’d be great for croquet.”
His smile hovers within an inch of her mouth. “What planet are you from? I’ve never met your kind.” His warm breath tickles her lips as their breathing syncs.
“I’m the only one,” she says.
He whispers, “I believe that.”
His lips melt into hers slowly as he wraps his arms around her. The taste of sweet wine on his tongue brings an instant buzz that she welcomes. If this is another dream she doesn’t ever want to wake up. He glides his lips slowly across hers, as if reading them like braille. Azure can sense that he’s nervous, like he’s afraid she’ll run from him at any moment. He’s as gentle in rhythm as the waves behind them, but her pent up passion builds quickly and he’s more than capable of keeping up. Dean tosses his glass of wine a distance into the grass, doing the same with hers. He grips her hips as before, gluing their bodies together, and when his hand moves up her back, that same animalistic need hits Azure hard.
A. L. Goulden has a BFA in Film Production from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. Her love of a good story came way before college, but when numerous instructors and peers praised her dialogue she realized her creative writing hobby was a skill worth honing. Her 18 year career in interior design, production design and art direction for film and television have spun a unique perspective on visually emotional tales of relationships and the thread that ties all things together.
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