Page 22 of Worth the Risk
“That’s my favorite part.” I smirk.
“Are you hungry?”
“I could go for a snack. What did you bring us?”
“Don’t get too excited, this is just what I could find at the grocery store today in five minutes.” She smiles and leans down to where I’m pulling out a blanket.
“This is great, Rhett—and very sweet.” She tacks the last thing on like she’s suspicious of it.
“You sound surprised.”
“You have definitely surprised me. This is really sweet and I’m glad I came, even though I am starting to sweat and may have to get in the water to cool off before I can enjoy all this.” She motions to the small snack pile and I smile.
“I’m so glad you said something. I’m burning up.” I stand and slip my shirt off. She leans back onto her elbows and openly stares.
“You’ve got a little drool right there…” I use my thumb to wipe the corner of my mouth and laugh.
“I’m just enjoying the view, Holloway.”
“I am…okay with that, but I don’t want to swim alone so, up you go.” I grab her hands and pull her up. She unzips her small backpack and pulls out a green bikini top. It’s my turn to tease her. I cross my arms over my chest, looking at her and smile.
“Turn around…” She twirls her pointer finger in the air and I chuckle but do as she says. I look out over the lake and the mountains that I love so much. I have missed home. I didn’t hate Washington, but I hated being in the city so often. It’s always loud and noisy. It’s peaceful here. It’s peaceful being with Winnie. I didn’t realize how calming being with her can be. She would argue that her anxious energy isn’t calming but having her depend on me helps me feel grounded. I feel her light touch on my back, tracing one of my tattoos.
“Do all of these have significant meaning or did you just like them?”
“I’d say it’s a 50/50 mix. Some of them were more thought out than others.”
“And this one…?” She glides her finger over my forearm where I have a water scene.
“That one was thought out, done in three sessions. It’s clear creek.”
“I can see that now.”
“It’s one of my favorite places to be.”
“I remember this one. The hockey sticks are pretty self explanatory.” I can hear the smirk in her voice and turn to look at her and maybe it was better to not be looking at her while she’s touching me if I want to keep the slow pace that I’m trying to go at. Winnie Parker is a dream. She’s taken her hair out of its bun and it’s hanging over her shoulders in wild curls. There’s a spark in her eyes, knowing that she’s driving me crazy. I feel like I’m getting hit with wave after wave, again and again, with how impossibly beautiful she is. I swallow.
“I got that one the day I turned 18.”
“The same day Colt got his raft.” She chuckles. “Cute.”
“Yeah, you think that’s cute? You should see the best friend necklaces we got.” She laughs and I pick her up again and run towards the lake as she squeals and giggles. I run us into the cold water and then dive under, pulling her along with me. When I break the surface I hear her before I see her.
“Oh my gahh…it’s freezing!” I see she’s treading water a few feet from me and swim closer. I touch my feet to the bottom of the lake and stand next to her.
“Can you stand?” I nod and she grabs onto my arm. “Good, I need a break.” I snort.
“You’ve been treading water for less than 15 seconds.”
“That long?” I pull her around me and hook my arm under her legs to hold her bridal style. She leans back and closes her eyes, using my arms as a chair. She likes this, we spent a lot of time like this that summer. I just look at her. The sun hitting every perfect inch of her. I swing her back and forth in the water and watch as her hair floats around her.
“This is nice.” Her voice is soft.
“Yeah, it is.” I survey her face. The dark brows, upturned nose and the freckles that dot her skin like tiny constellations that I want to take a pen to and connect. That may sound like a serial killer move, but I don’t care. She has her head laid back so I look down the column of her neck to her collar bones and shoulders where more freckles appear. The tattoo on the right side of her stomach and…do I see another tattoo…?
“What do we have here?”
“Hmm…?” She sounds so relaxed. I see a fern frond on her left hip tapering off onto her thigh.
