"On the contrary, I'm really hoping a big, strong, handsome fellow like you isn't scared off that easily."
Justin's smile widened. "You think I'm handsome?"
"And strong." She nodded. "Oh … and sexy."
He beamed.
It was her turn to take a deep breath and hope for the best. Talk about pushing too far, too fast-
She knew he liked her, but was her next demand going to be too much? There was only one way to be sure, and it was better now than later when she'd just be hurt or disappointed.
She looked him in the eyes. "Justin, the things I want to do might seem ordinary and silly, but this relationship … "
Oh boy.
He smiled encouragingly, catching her hand in his again and carefully squeezing her fingers. "Go on. I won't think poorly of you if you say it wrong."
A warm, happy glow blossomed inside as that tiny seed of hope she'd held tucked away inside was finally allowed to sprout. Uncertainty clouded her future-this new life could vanish in an instant, and she had to take advantage of every moment.
She spoke softly, trusting him to understand what she meant to say, even if she screwed up the words. "I don't expect you to follow along behind me like a trained puppy, but I need to warn you I'm going to be selfish and expect you to not take control. I've had control out of my hands for so long, it's time I called the shots."
He leaned back in his chair as much as was possible in the tiny space he'd been allotted. "I'll try my best," he promised, "as long as you remember I'm a hardheaded bear. When I screw up, you'll need to kick me pretty hard."
"I can do that."
He wiggled in his chair uncomfortably. "I should warn you, I might have an issue with giving up control in the bedroom."
A delicious shiver raced over as he mentioned bed. "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it," she promised.
"When do we start?"
"How about right now?" She checked her watch. "In about thirty-five minutes."
Chapter Three
Justin had glanced at her sheet of paper, but honestly, he'd been more than a little distracted by the items he discovered toward the bottom of the page.
The first one that caught his eye and made him do a double take was give a blow job, and after that …
After that …
Good grief, was it really reasonable to expect him to remember anything that had come before or after that point on the page?
Which was why he wasn't sure what he was in for at the moment, other than she'd told him to bring a swimsuit and meet her at the Canada Games Centre.
He was smart enough to put two and two together and figure they were going in the pool, but when he strode onto the deck and discovered pumping music and a gaggle of women of all ages, it was only memory of the dirty things on the list that kept his feet moving forward.
Mandy reached to take his towel. "Right on time."
He took an up-and-down glance, appreciating how her one-piece swimsuit hugged her curves. "I've never done one of these before," he admitted.
"Since that was kind of the point, that makes two of us." She dropped his towel on top of hers then guided him toward the ladder. "I think if we stand in the back that will help."
His warning instincts shot to high. It seemed every eye in the place was on them, which was probably true. The female population vastly outnumbered the men. All the lifeguards but one were women, and the lone male was admiring him more than Mandy, which simultaneously made Justin happy and wary.
"Everybody ready to shake it up?" The woman on the deck shouted the question, clapping her hands as she bounced enthusiastically.
A loud response roared back from the women in the pool.
Justin examined the Aquasize instructor a little closer, positive he'd seen her before-probably a wolf by how high energy she was. Before he could figure it out, Mandy was guiding them through the water to a spot in the back corner.
The class began, a surging wave of energy.
This was so not-his-thing, but after a few jumps and twirls, a single peek to his side showed Mandy was grinning from ear to ear as she splashed through the instructions, half a step behind at times, and he let his amusement rise.
A sense of rhythm wasn't her strong suit.
She twisted to face him, the rosy glow in her cheeks and her satisfied smile all the reward he needed as she wiped water from her eyes. He didn't even have to ask if she was having fun.
It was clear, and happy looked good on her.
"Lift those knees, ladies … " the instructor's gaze jumped to him, " … and gentleman. Get those hands in the air, and let's make some noise."
Perhaps if he hadn't lived at the pack house for the past couple months the pandemonium would have been more of a shock, but as it was, Justin found himself moderately amused as he willingly went through the motions.
He was watching the instructor prance back and forth on the deck, toes rising in the air as she did a series of high kicks that he attempted to copy when a sudden splash hit him on the side of the face.
Justin snapped his gaze to the left, but Mandy was energetically moving to the beat, eyes fixed forward.
He got back into the rhythm just in time for another wave to hit, this one perfectly timed with him taking a big breath, which was the equivalent of having his head shoved underwater. He coughed and sputtered as he glanced again to the side.
Mandy was busy with her high kicks, focused intently on the instructor.
It was too unlikely of a scenario to be an accident.
The third time he turned just as the splash hit to discover Mandy grinning widely, her hands cupped together after tossing a load of water his direction.
Her mouth opened in an O of surprise as he marched closer to tower over her.
"Really?" he demanded.
She ducked down just far enough to suck up a mouthful of water before standing on her toes and hitting him full in the face with it.
She wanted to play it that way? Fine by him. He picked her up, careful to keep his grip light as he lifted her high and sent her flying into the open water to their right.
Mandy landed with a squeal and a splash, disappearing under the surface to come up sputtering and laughing at the same time.
They grinned at each other.
"Hey. No horseplay."
Justin and Mandy glanced guiltily at the lifeguard standing in judgment over them.
"I'm so sorry," Mandy offered. "I … slipped."
Justin bit back a snicker as the guard gave them both dirty looks before walking away.
They were both on their best behavior as they got back into the class.
When all the bumping and jumping was over, Mandy slid next to him. "Hot tub?"
Oh, he could do that. Although, he'd really prefer if they were heading to a private hot tub where clothing would be optional instead of here with all the humans around.
He consoled himself by letting her climb out of the swimming pool first, enjoying how her hips swayed as she made her way up the ladder. The fabric of her suit clung to her as she turned and waited until he joined her.
They stepped down into the heated water together, and Justin let out a sigh of happiness.
"That wasn't so bad," he told her.
"It was fun. And we didn't even get thrown out of the class." Mandy batted her lashes.
He snorted. "Not for a lack of trying. Brat."
"Hey, we successfully accomplished one task. Maybe we should put 'get in trouble' on my list so we've got more incentive to follow through."
She pushed him ahead of her to the bench, and Justin settled in place, shoulders rising out of the water as he watched her and wondered what she was going to do next to drive him crazy.
They sat side-by-side, the force of the bubbling water enough to push her toward the middle of the pool.
"You don't have enough weight to keep yourself in one place," he teased as she threatened to float away completely. She didn't expect the hand that crept over her back before wrapping around her waist, and Mandy tensed.
Justin pulled his hands away immediately, holding them at the surface of the water. "Sorry."
She shook her head. "You didn't do anything wrong," she said firmly. "I'm a little jumpy, that's all."
She put her feet flat on the bottom until her shoulders rose above the surface of the water, increasing her weight so she could make her way back to the sidewall. More people were joining them, and the small, circular pool became crowded.
A man who'd been swimming lengths joined the crowd, and Justin tensed. Mandy glanced at him, but there seemed to be no reason-
Oh. He was was fighting to stop from putting himself as a buffer between the stranger and Mandy.
She moved instinctively to ease him, pressing herself against his side. "Lift your left arm," she murmured. "I need something to hang on to."
He chuckled as he raised his elbow to the surface, and she slipped her arms around it, pressing her torso against his triceps. Her knees bumped against his thigh, and the entire time the motion of the water rubbed her against him …
A low noise escaped before he choked it off in mid-rumble.
Mandy glanced down, and that's when she realized men's swimsuits were absolutely zero help when it came to hiding erections. Big, bear-sized erections, and if she wasn't in the pool and all, she'd have had to find an excuse to explain the sudden rush of heat and moisture that hit between her legs.