Page 62 of Reckless Hearts

I swallow hard. Not even the spring-fed water cools me down as they circle me.

“Stay back,” I warn, palms smacking against the surface, spraying them as I kick my feet, swimming into deeper water, putting some space between us.

“Chicken?” Colt calls out, but I don’t rise to the bait.

Instead, kicking my feet, I lean backward until the lake cups the back of my head.

The last rays of sun cling to the sky, painting it in deep reds and oranges.

A calm weight settles over me, making my limbs feel heavy as I tread water, even as the cool depth calls me under.

Maverick’s a few feet ahead of me, his body haloed in the fading amber light.

His mouth is parted, chest rising and falling like he’s trying to steady something unruly inside him.

I follow his gaze.

Colt’s floating on his back, the water lapping softly around his waist, hips just beneath the surface.

Every movement is effortless, slow and deliberate, like he knows he’s being watched.

Like hewantsto be.

The tension crackles across my skin like static before a storm, humming through the space between them.

Colt turns his head, locking eyes with Maverick.

There’s no animosity, no challenge.

Just something slow and charged. Curious. Open.

Something that makes it hard to breathe.

Maverick glances away, and I can’t tell if the pink covering his cheeks is from the sunset or him blushing, but for the first time since I’ve been back, I think they really will be okay.

Colt swims up to me, a lazy smile curving his lips, as he grips my foot under the water and tugs me to him.

I gasp as skin touches skin from my hip bones along my side, pressing into the curve of my breast.

My entire body ignites, flames branding where we touch.

Maverick cups the back of my neck with one hand, startling me, and splays his fingers along my stomach with the other.

Unable to stop it, I moan, turning into a whimper when their hands begin to move. Realizing where we’re heading way too fast. I’m not quite ready for lake sex.

That doesn’t mean I can’t have a little bit of fun.

Shoving them backward, I use the force to propel myself to the dock, gripping the edge, and pulling myself up and out of the water before they can do anything.

I don’t look back as I lean over and grab my thrown-off clothes from the ground, giving them a nice view.

“Fuck,” echoes from the water, the sound rough and wanting.

My grin grows into a smile, so wide it takes over my face.

Who’s the loser now?

Chapter 19

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