Page 77 of Pumped

Ivy squeals and claps her hands, laughing at us.

When Owen surfaces, he shakes his head from side to side. Time slows again. Water droplets fly, catching the late morning sun and creating a glittering halo around his head.

My breath catches. My heart lurches in my chest like it’s trying to propel me toward him.

He turns toward me, heat flashing in his eyes. My pulse skyrockets and a shiver of pleasure runs up my spine. He advances on me, gaze focused and determined, like a predator on the hunt for his prey. I push off the bottom of the pool, swimming backward as I scramble to get away.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Owen growls. “Get back here.”

“Come and get me.” I taunt him, laughing out loud.

Okay, listen, I blame it on being high on love. Because, I’m supposed to be the athletic one, right? Like, I teach fitness classes and I know how to surf. So why the hell am I thrashing around like a drowning cat while Owen ducks under the surface and torpedoes toward me like a freaking otter?

He’s on me in an instant, grabbing me from behind and putting all of his weight on my shoulders. I immediately sink, but when I try to spin around and grab him, he’s gone.

I come up sputtering. “What the heck?!”

Owen’s already out of arm’s reach, grinning at me like this is the most fun he’s ever had in his life. Ivy’s propped herself up with a pool noodle under her arms and she kicks the water, sending it splashing into the air. She laughs, the sound high and bright.

Owen tugs on one end of her noodle, pulling her in front of him so he can hide behind her. “Come and get me!” Owen calls to me, throwing my own words back in my face. “Ivy’s going to protect me, aren’t you?”

“No!” Ivy squeals in delight as I swim toward them.

I try to go around her, but Owen swings in the opposite direction, using the two ends of Ivy’s pool noodle to keep her between us.

“Stop using our niece as a human shield!” I shout, trailing after them as Owen leads us around the pool.

Ivy reaches for me with both hands outstretched, laughing. “Uncle Ev!”

“Hang on, Ivy-poo! I’ll save you!” I suck in a deep breath and dive. Swimming under Ivy, spot Owen’s legs eggbeatering under the water. I tackle them, dragging him down with me.

We wrestle. Sun-warmed skin slides together. Greedy hands grab at waists, hips, thighs, shoulders. Hair floating out into underwater halos, then plastering themselves to our faces when we surface for air. We play like teenagers, dunking each other and tickling each other, grappling until we’re both exhausted and out of breath.

“Time out! Time out!” I eventually cry for mercy when it feels like I’m actually going to drown.

Owen smirks at me. “Giving up already?”

“Oh, screw you. So freaking competitive.” I turn onto my back, closing my eyes against the bright light of the sun.

“I’mthe competitive one?” Owen scoffs.

A second later his hand slips into my own. I open one eye to peek at him. He’s also on his back, eyes closed, chest rising and falling, half in and half out of the water.

“Me too! Me too!” Ivy abandons her noodle and pushes her way between us.

I give Owen’s hand a squeeze and we release each other to let Ivy in. She flips onto her back too and sighs with happiness.

I know how she feels.

I close my eyes, relaxing in the water. The sun is orange behind my eyelids. Water laps against the sides of the pool. Ivy’s small hand is inside mine. Everything feels so light, so bubbly, and yet so grounded and solid at the same time.

For so much of my life, having fun was the one rule I lived by. I chased fun from city to city, immersing myself in whatever felt good, whatever gave me that instant high. And when things got boring or tedious or just too real, I left. There’s a world of enjoyment out there, why stay in one place and put myself through something difficult and dull when I could be out there instead?

This life I’ve found myself in for the past few months, the little family Owen and I have created for ourselves, it’s so damn domestic. It’s traditional and old school and everything I once vowed I would never do.

And yet, here I am.

And I’ve never been happier in my whole life.

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