Page 35 of Sweet Summertide

The moment Holly had waited all day for had finally come. “WATER BALLOON FIGHT!” she yelled.

Between their chairs, she uncovered a bucket filled to the brim with water balloons. After the Ferris wheel situation, Alfonso tipped off Millie to the men’s impending attack. Millie told Holly. And Holly recruited some of her new friends to fight in the most epic clash of their lives. She grabbed two balloons and tossed them in the direction where the first one had come from. It hit the ground about twenty feet away and threw up a cloud of water droplets.

“Take the flank!” Millie shouted and pointed to a pre-positioned stack of chairs.

Holly loaded the crook of her left arm with as many balloons as she could carry and took off towards cover. Once in position and holding enough ammo to get a couple good hits in, shecried out, “NOW!” and a dozen children ran into the combat zone. Some bigger kids carried buckets filled with balloons while others lined up in the middle of the lawn.

In front of the children and teens, Teddy, Leo, Alfonso, and two other guys who she didn’t recognize prepared to face off with their own cache of water balloons.

Thandie, who Holly had met at America’s house for girl’s night, joined Holly behind the chairs. “This’ll be fun. I’ve been wanting to get back at Grant, the tall guy with his hat on backwards. He’s mine.”

The whole silly affair had the women giddy. “I haven’t had a water balloon fight since I was a little girl. Well, it wasn’t really a fight as much as it was me and Millie ganging up on one of the poor stable hands. I don’t know why this feels so good.”

Across the lawn, Millie gave the final order. “Attack at will!”

Holly and Thandie went straight for the two tallest guys, Teddy and Grant. Tossing one balloon after the other, they progressed their position with each explosion. Teddy ducked and dodged almost all of her balloons, but her last one hit him square in his chest. His hands covered his heart like he had been wounded, and the water caused his white cotton tee to appear translucent. She stopped, knowing she was in trouble. His head slumped down, but his eyes locked onto hers like a lion stalking prey. He snarled and ripped his wet shirt in half, discarding it onto the grass.

Standing broad and glistening in the sunlight, his toned chest and abs caught the shadows in all the right places. It was getting hot out there in more than one way. With her last ammo, she pointed at him and wiggled her pointer finger to call him over to her.

Teddy smirked at her invitation with a fire blazing in his eyes. He sprinted to her, closing the distance in only a few steps and allowed her no time to retreat. Not slowing down, his armcrashed into her midriff, and he lifted her off the ground like a line-backer making a tackle. The momentum had her swinging all the way around his body where he caught her against his chest once she made a full rotation.

“Hi,” he said and pecked her on the mouth.

With her arms around his neck, she matched his smirk. “Two points for me, none for you.”

“You only hit me once.”

“Maybe so,” she said as she squeezed her remaining ammo in her grasp, digging her nails into the thin rubber until the water balloon splashed over his head. “Two points.”

“We’re playing like that, huh?” He put her down near a row of baskets filled with outdoor toys. Teddy reached into one of the bins and came out holding a rather large water blaster the length of his arm.

“Teddy, no. Don’t you dare,” she said and was already running away. A steady stream of water hit her backside and sprayed outward, wetting her all over. “Theodor Black! You’re going to get it!”

He kept his distance behind her, probably for ideal viewing and soaking range. “Is that a promise?”

“You’re flirting right now?” she said and ducked behind a beach umbrella sitting low in the ground. “This isn’t a date, Teddy. This is war!” Balloons and water flew through the air above her, but there was more laughter than she’d heard in a long time. Holly really did love to laugh, and it had been too long since her stomach hurt from joy.

In the shade of the umbrella, someone had put a load of water balloons. She took one in each hand and tossed them one at a time in his direction. She heard them splash onto the grass, not his sculpted body. Needing a quick peek, she peered around the edge of the umbrella, but he wasn’t there. Across the lawn, Millie chased Alfonso with an open hose, and Thandie and herman were busy soaking each other with blasters. Children were running and jumping in newly formed puddles while others jumped off the end of the dock into the lake.

“Where are you, Teddy?” she searched all the spots where he might hide.

“Surprise,” he said from behind her.

Twisting to see him, she put her hands up in surrender as he doused her with whatever water remained in his blaster. “I give. I give.” She smiled while wiping water from her face.

“It’s not that easy.” He dropped his emptied blaster and fell to his knees in front of her.

Walking his hands out in front of him, he urged her to lay back in the soft green grass. His bare chest hovered inches above her bikini clad body. Her breath caught in her throat at his proximity. She wasn’t frightened, she was intrigued, and the tipped over umbrella gave them privacy to play.

“What do you want?” she said more breathlessly than she had wanted, but her desire for him overwhelmed her senses. Her heart drummed against her ribs and her pulse vibrated in her stomach. She wanted to stay in control, but she surrendered to him anyway. She craved his lips to be on hers, but she wouldn’t dare say it. She wanted him to be the one to declare his desire.

Reaching up, she removed his hair elastic. His shoulder length hair cascaded around his face and caused him to look more dangerous than he had before. The light filtered through the umbrella, casting a red glow in his eyes and shading his already dark stubble. He grinned, knowing what he was doing to her, and for a moment, she liked the freedom in being so wild.

He walked his hands forward; his hip bones grazed her inner thighs as he moved up her body until she was resting flat on her back and his face matched hers. The tip of his nose brushed back and forth on hers, and his lips glistened with moisture.

Holly was helpless to look anywhere else, pleading with him to satisfy her need to be touched by him.

“I like you in red,” he said into her ear and backed off without a single kiss, leaving her frustrated and wanting more. He stood and someone she couldn’t see but could hear with an Italian accent tossed a filled blaster into Teddy’s hands. “I’ll give you ten seconds.”

---