Page 40 of Undeniably Perfect

“Polar plunge!” Ward suddenly screams. I jump as he, Nate, and Amery grab a laughing Kent. They pull him out of the hot tub and toss him into the pool.

Lyla and I laugh hysterically as Kent shrieks from the shock of the cold water before all three guys jump in after him followed by more shrieks.

Lyla is doubled over when Amery pulls himself out of the water. “Oh, don’t think you two ladies are getting away without joining us,” he says with a devious grin. Lyla flies out of the hot tub and starts running toward the pool house.

“No running by the pool!” Kent calls out as he pulls himself up out of the water. I swear to god, all sound disappears, and time slows down as I watch him leisurely lift his body from the pool. His arm muscles are insane and ripple with each movement. He shakes his head and his wet hair flies in every direction, water droplets spraying around him. His eyes are on me like a feral beast as he stalks over to me. He’s enormous from his position, and I can’t help shrinking more into the warm water.

“Oh, no. You don’t get to escape the fun,” he says as he reaches down, and I try to swim across the short distance of the hot tub, but he’s too fast. He grabs me under my arms and hoists me over his shoulder in one fell swoop. I slap his ass.

“Put me down!” I yell, but my laughter gives away the fact that I’m not serious. His hand swats my behind, and he leaves it there. I admit I sort of like his enormous hand clutching my rear end. It’s a little barbaric, but there’s something primally sexy about it. And that’s my last thought as Kent tosses me into the pool.

The shock of the cold water nearly stops my heart, and I splash around at the surface gasping for air. I reach out for the edge of the pool, and instead, I find a warm, hard body. My eyes fly open, and I sigh with relief when I see Kent’s face in front of mine.

He’s grinning like a little kid. “You OK?”

I roll my eyes. “Yes, you ass.” I slap his chest.

His chest shakes with laughter. “Come on, the polar plunge is a time-honored tradition.”

I groan. My teeth chatter from the cold water.

Kent notices, and I’m suddenly enveloped in a giant bear hug as he rubs my back.

“The pool’s heated. You’ll warm up in a minute. I promise.”

“I-if I-I g-get a c-cold, s-so h-help m-me,” I stammer as I tremble against him. He’s unbelievably warm for someone who just jumped into a freezing cold pool.

After a minute of his hand rubbing my back, I begin to warm up slowly, I melt into his chest.

“Is Tabitha going to make it?” Amery yells as I hear a giant splash followed by cursing from Lyla.

“You suck!” Lyla screams after she emerges from the water.

“Ly, it takes one to know one,” Nate quips with a laugh.

I feel water rain down on my back, and I turn my head to see Nate and Lyla splashing each other. Ward jumps on Nate and Lyla jumps on both of them and pretty soon all six of us are in an epic water fight, which only intensifies when Amery breaks out water guns from the pool house.

I’m not sure how long we play like kids, but after a while, I feel myself getting sleepy. I stifle a yawn, but Kent sees me.

“Guys, I think we need to call it a night.”

Everyone looks over at a clock hanging on the outside of the pool house. It’s nearly dinnertime.

“You guys hungry?” Kent asks. The gang looks at each other.

“I should head back. Get my head in the game,” Ward announces.

“And, I promised Lyla a date night,” says Amery.

After a few minutes of goodbyes, the four of them leave.

“It’s so quiet now,” I say to Kent as I sit at a kitchen stool and watch him cook us pasta. I offered to help a few times, but he declined.

“I’m sorry they ambushed us.”

“No, it was fun. I can’t remember the last time that I just let loose like that.”

Kent chuckles as he stirs the homemade pasta sauce he’s been working on for the past hour.

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