Page 97 of Steal My Heart
“Do I have a choice?” I grip the ledge of the pool for dear life.
“No.” He positions the goggles over my eyes, yanking down the strap over the back of my head.
“Oww.”
Silently, he extends his hand, and I take it, and I’m hoisted out of the pool.
“Can I at least change into my bathing suit?” I say, my dress feeling like it weighs a ton.
“If you have lungs, you can float,” he says, ignoring me. “You say you don’t get it, so let’s demonstrate the inverse. Take the deepest breath you can and hold it.”
“I don’t want to,” I say childishly.
“I am not concerned with what you want.”
“Charming,” Alessandra appears dressed in her bathing suit.
“If you insist on being involved, you can show Remi how to sit at the bottom of the pool.” He switches over to Italian, and he and Alessandra say something back and forth.
“For once, I agree,” she says, switching back to English. Diving in gracefully, she shoots to the bottom of the deep end and is now seated cross-legged.
“How is she doing that?” I wonder.
“Our turn.”
“No!”
I go to run, but Maks grabs my wrist.
“I hate you,” I grit.
“Take a deep breath or struggle when we’re down there sitting on the pool floor, your choice.”
My heart in my throat, I inhale until I feel like I’m an overinflated balloon, and he grabs me and we dive head first into the deep end. Down we go like a rocket to the bottom, where Alessandra is still casually seated. Maks releases me and sits beside her. Trying to ignore the panic, I go to sit like they’re sitting, except I can’t. My body begins floating up, up, and up.
Arms grab me, assisting me to the surface.
I let out a breath, hanging onto Maks with one arm, Alessandra with the other. “Why couldn’t I sit down like you two?”
“We emptied our lungs, but yours were full of air. It was physically impossible for you to sink. If you have lungs, you can float,” he repeats himself, and it’s like a flip has been switched.
“I think I get it!”
“Lie on your back and let’s see,” Maks challenges.
“Why don’t we practice in the shallow end?” I say in a rush, panic reminding me that I’m in deep water. “Alessandra, let me,” I argue.
“I’m not Alessandra; coddling time is over.”
“Asshole,” Alessandra spits.
Monday can’t come soon enough.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Angelo
It appears an alligator attack is what killed a prominent New Orleans lawyer. A witness claims to have seen Mr. Bennett fishing in waist-deep water on the morning the lawyer went missing. Mr. Bennett’s boat was found empty, prompting a search by the sheriff’s office. The remains were found inside a 14-foot alligator’s mouth. No foul play is suspected…
