Page 65 of The Love You Fight For
I look around again. I can see houses and lights on the other side of the lake, but when I look from side to side, it’s nothing but trees. His dock’s on a little inlet, jutting off from the larger spans of water, and I feel...safe. Secure. Like it’s just him and me right now, and nothing else matters. No one is watching my every move. No one is scrutinizing me. No one is expecting anything from me.
“Did you ever swim out here? When you were little, I mean.”
“Yeah. All the time.”
I smile to myself, then set my pizza and water on the dock beside me.
“Close your eyes,” I say as I stand.
Instead of doing what I told him to do, he glances up at me with his lips pursed, fighting a smile.
“What are you doing, princess?”
I shrug and strip off my T-shirt. I feel his eyes on my chest and my nipples harden under my simple white lace bra.
“Going for a swim. Now turn around, Christopher.”
I make a twirling motion with my finger, and slowly, he turns his back to me. I push off my shorts and underwear, nudging them next to my shirt with my foot, then I unclasp my bra.
“It’s going to be cold,” Chris says.
“I can handle the cold.”
“It’s deeper than it looks,” he adds. “’Bout six to eight feet in the center.”
I smirk to myself as I drop my bra onto my pile of clothes.
“I can handle six to eight.”
His back shakes with a laugh, and then I jump.
The water envelops me, and he’s right. It’s cold. Colder than Iwas expecting, but it feels good too. I stay under the water for a moment, willing my body to adjust, and then I swim up. When I break the surface, I run a hand over my face, wiping away the lake water, and take a huge breath of the night air. When I open my eyes, Chris is standing at the edge of the dock with his arms folded across his chest. It’s too dark to make out his features, but I can see his white teeth.
“Cold?” he asks, and I laugh.
“Yes. Very.”
I dip back under for a moment, then float on my back so I can see the starry sky. I drift farther from the dock. Farther into the center of the inlet. My nipples are peaks, but every light breeze adds to the thrill, adds to the excitement and arousal. I’ve never skinny-dipped before. I should have done it sooner.
I feel Chris’s eyes on me, so I tilt my head back to the dock. He’s taken off his shirt and has his thumbs hooked into his shorts.
“Are you going to come in?” I call out, and he shrugs.
“I’m considering it,” he says slowly. “I just don’t know if I want to risk waking the alligator.”
“What?” I shoot my knees to my chest, making my body smaller, and dart my eyes around. It’s so dark. I can’t see anything clearly. “Are you joking? You’re joking.”
“Haven’t seen him in a while, but the neighbors have. He could be sleeping.”
Oh, Jesus Christ. I am going to fucking kill him. If I don’t get eaten by a goddamn alligator, I am going to murder Chris Casper.
I start to swim quickly back to the dock, my breaststroke rusty as hell, and I curse myself for not going to the pool more. I hear a crash of water behind me and swim faster. I feel the wake rushing over my body from the crash, and then I’m grabbed around the calves and jerked back. I scream and try to kick, try to throw an elbow, but my naked body is wrapped up, my arms pinned to my sides with a hard, warm chest pressed to my back. I freeze.
“There are no alligators in the Blue Ridge, princess. I thought you were smart? You think Georgetown will give you a refund?”
His chin rests on my shoulder, his soft lips brushing against my ear as he speaks, and despite my irritation, I shiver and sink into his hold. My heightened emotions, my racing heart, and the contrast of the heat from his body and the cold lake water sends my senses into a tailspin. Goose bumps cover every inch of my skin and my pussy aches.
“You’re an asshole,” I force out, still trying to catch my breath. “I should kick you in the balls for that.”
