Page 26 of Dibs
“Guilty.” I shrug. “Can’t believe your move-in day is tomorrow. What are we going to do with all the extra furniture you have? Come to think of it, I have plenty of space in the garage, and there’s room in the basement for a living room set. I just haven’t put any time into that yet. We could make it a cozy family room down there.”
“Sounds good. I’d love that. Jesus, I hope we don’t run into Sean tomorrow or the next day as I move out. I unplugged the Ring camera because, well, fuck him.”
I snort and take a long pull from my beer. “Fuck him for sure.”
We fish, and I rake in more than she does, but she’s a good sport about it. When I think we’re about to leave, Beck runs a few docks down where we haven’t seen any sign of people, and she sheds her shorts and top and jumps into the water with a screech.
I’m pretty sure it’s that moment when she realizes the distance between the dock and the water, and the fact that there are no ladders to help her pry herself out of the cold waves. She grimaces for a second, and then she’s all smiles.
“Water’s nice!” Beck calls.
She floats on her back wearing a lacy navy-blue bra and matching panties, but at least these have material over the ass, so she’s in the equivalent of a bikini.
“I’d jump in, but then neither of us will be able to get out.”
“Come on, you’re strong. You’ll be fine.” Beck splashes the water next to her. And because I’m insane and in love with the girl, I shed my cargo shorts and cannonball in. The water feels like being pricked with tiny needles all over, and my face flushes with surprise.
“You didn’t tell me it was so c-c-cold,” I chatter as I reach for Beck. “Y-you’re crazy!”
She does a back flip in the water and comes up sputtering with her hair all over the place, and I get a glimpse of the nineteen-year-old Beck I’d met the night of the frat party. In the water, she’s youthful and free, and I like the way it looks on her.
I pull her up to my chest and wrap my arms around her. “You remind me of how you looked when we met the first night. Minus the pink hair.”
Beck presses her face to my shoulder, and her lips are freezing as she rests against me. “You’re the only one who loved the pink hair on me. Other than me.”
“Who cares what anyone thinks? If you liked it, you should do it again.” I cup the back of her head and then lean to press a kiss to her forehead. “You know I’ll back all your plays.”
“That’s sweet, but I’m fr-freezing, so how about you start with getting up to the dock and pulling me out of here?” Beck’s teeth chatter as she speaks.
It’s an impressive feat, but I manage to get up on the dock thanks to brute strength alone. I carefully extract Beck from the water, and when I pull her, she ends up on top of me, sprawled across the dock. She giggles, and I can’t help but join in, and we become a mass of appendages and laughter under the last day of September sky.
When we return to our things, Beck turns her back to me and unclasps her bra, facing the setting sun. She sits on the dock facing away from the couple of stragglers we’d passed on our way in; they’re far enough behind us that they won’t see her.
“You can sit with me,” she calls casually.
“No, I can’t.” It sounds like a confession.
“Ah, yes, Deac. I remember you once telling me to ‘put my tits away.’” Beck giggles.
“I was trying to be a good guy.”
“You are the best guy,” Beck tells me softly. “Will you hand me my hairbrush? It’s in my purse.”
I reach into her small purse and find what she's looking for. Instead of tossing it and it possibly ending up in the lake, I hand it to her and finally sit down beside her.
“It’s tough not to look,” I admit as she works her brush through her hair, starting at her tangled ends. “You’re gorgeous, Beck.” It feels like a dangerous admission.
“I think what you’re saying is my boobs are gorgeous.” She giggles. “And I never wear a bra around the house. You’ll be bored with them after I’ve been living with you a while, I promise.”
With her face turned away from me, I trace a fingertip up the top of her thigh, electricity jolting between us as I creep ever higher. “No, Beck, believe me, that day will never come.” I let my hand rest on her thigh, not too high up, but not on her knee either.
Goosebumps give her away.
I close my eyes and try to breathe. Her soft skin under my fingertips distracts the hell out of me, and I really should pull my hand away, but…god, just touching her is heavenly.
When I open my eyes, Beck is staring at me. There’s curiosity in her gaze, like I’m a puzzle she’s trying to put together but can’t quite remember how it’s supposed to look.
I reach for her chin and tip it upward, and I whisper, “You’re beautiful, Beck. All of you.” Hand still on her chin, I glance down and take in those full, perky breasts, the light pink of her pebbled nipples, and I can’t hold in a groan.
