Page 38 of Marring an Athlete

“You can always call a girl sexy,” she breathed out as she kept her gaze steady with his.

“You. . .” he steeled his expression as he stared down at her. In one swift movement, he pulled her closer to him until she was inches away. His gaze lingered on her lips before making their way back to her eyes. “Anna Short, are. . . cute.”

Anna’s head swam and for a moment, she didn’t quite process what he had just said. As the words sank in around her, she pulled back and cupped her hand and splashed him.

He attempted to duck away from the water, but it was too late. It splashed all over him, leaving him sputtering.

When he wiped his eyes, he swept his gaze around until he found her.

Oh crap.He was going to get her back.

She hopped back as quickly as she could, narrowly missing Michael’s hand as he grabbed for her.

“Oh, you’re mine, Anna,” he said, stalking through the water toward her.

She squealed and ran as hard as she could away from him. There was a splash, and when she turned back around, he was gone. Suddenly, a hand grabbed her ankle. Screaming, she wiggled free and joined him in the water. She was a much faster swimmer then water-walker.

After a minute, she popped up and sucked in her breath. While she was above the water, she glanced around. Michael was nowhere to be found.

“Looking for me?”

She yelped as she turned around to see him standing inches away from her. His blue eyes sparkled as he wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her up, throwing her into the water a few feet away.

She screamed until she entered the water and then pressed her lips closed to keep the salty taste away. When her feet landed on the ocean floor, she pushed up and gasped when she broke the water’s surface.

Michael was standing next to her with a smirk on his face. “Do you surrender?” he asked, holding up his hand as if to taunt her.

She nodded as she inched closer. That seemed to relax him.

“Good.”

When she was a foot away, she planted her feet firmly on the ground and swept at the water’s surface with her hands. “Never surrender!” she yelled as she sprayed him.

He sputtered as the water hit his face. Anna squealed and dove into the water, kicking as hard as she could to get away from him. The feeling of his hand surrounding her ankle stopped her, and she was pulled back. She wiggled to get away, but he was too strong.

He pulled her out of the water and wrapped his arms around her. She squealed and twisted.

“I’ve got you now,” he said as he leaned closer to her ear.

Tingles shot down her body from the feeling of his chest against her back. His arm muscles were taut as he kept her close and began walking through the water. She shouldn’t be having the feelings that were racing through her, but she couldn’t help it.

They treaded water for a moment before he let her go, pushing a few feet away from her. Anna turned to see his gaze had turned serious. He squinted at her and then off toward the expansiveness of the ocean.

“How do you think McKenna and Sam are doing?” he asked.

Anna glanced over to the restaurant and shrugged. “Who knows? The building is still standing so that’s positive. They haven’t burned it to the ground.”

Michael laughed. It was uninhibited and familiar. “True. Always a positive when it comes to McKenna’s cooking.” He sighed and glanced back at her. “I talked to Sam today.”

Anna dropped her jaw in an exaggerated movement. “What? He talks?”

Michael rubbed his face and then ran his hand through his hair. “Shocking, I know. But I actually communicated with him. Words and everything.”

Anna smiled. This was a good thing. “And?”

“Well, he didn’t cheat on McKenna. So, we don’t have to jump that hurdle.”

Sam never had seemed like the cheating kind.

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