Hard(31)

“It’s no fun sitting on the side.”

“It’s plenty fun.”

I doubted that. A little bikini like that was begging to get wet.

Along with other parts of her.

“Just dive in. You can sunbathe on a raft.”

“And you’ll tip me in?” Now she did peek at me, her eyebrow raising as she considered the lengths I’d go to touch her caramel skin. She had no idea how low I’d sink. “I’ll take my chances right here, thank you very much.”

She returned to her book. Like the conversation was done because the little princess decided it was over.

Nope.

I hauled myself out of the pool, shaking my head to clear the sudden muffle to my ears.

Waterlogged. Christ, I was out of practice.

I loomed over her chair—a ridiculously expensive, imported, island-style cushioned chaise. Completely impractical for pool-side shenanigans.

Shay was onto me. She kicked as I approached.

“Come on,” I teased. “You look like you’re done. Golden brown and delicious, just the way I like ‘em.”

“You did just not say that to me!”

I scooped her into my arms before she could untangle from her beach towel.

“Zach, don’t!” She flailed. “I swear to God—”

“Come on, Shay. The water’s fine…”

I edged closer to the pool. Her squirming did nothing to free her. She only ground the best parts of her into the most flattering parts of me. Shay smacked. I tightened my hold.

“Don’t! Zach! I will never forgive you!”

That was a given. She hadn’t forgiven me for fucking her brains out the night we met, and she wasn’t about to forget that I was named in her father’s will. I’d take my chances on earning her mercy before Judgement Day.

I jumped. She screamed.

We hit the water with an epic splash that would have gotten my ass laughed out of the SEALs. The heated pool was still cooler than the August air, and we submerged in a blitz of bubbles and churning water.

Shay flipped her fucking shit.

Her flailing elbow jutted into my stomach, and her leg nearly crushed a part of me already too swollen for effective swimming. She panicked with the grace of a flapping goose and shouted under the water.

I touched the bottom and kicked us to the surface. She sputtered, coughed, and twisted before wrapping her arms over my neck and shimmying up my body to get higher out of the pool.

“Holy shit, Shay. Can’t you swim?”

I ignored the flurry of profanity. I probably deserved it for nearly drowning the object of my affections.

“Easy, wait,” I said. “I gotcha.”

I wrapped my arms over her, pulling her closer and holding her firm, well above the water. She clutched me tighter, slamming her chest against mine.

I wasn’t about to complain. She could bitch all she wanted, at least she didn’t dare raise an arm to hit me.

“You are such an asshole!” She buried her head in my neck.

“I didn’t know you couldn’t swim.”

“What the hell possessed you to toss me in?”

“It looked fun.”

“Get me out of here.”

I grinned. “But we just got in.”

“Zach, come on.”

“I’ve got you. Nothing’s gonna happen. I’m trained in water rescue.”

“Who’s gonna save your ass though?”

“You’re not sinking. Enjoy it.”

Her nails tapped against my shoulder. “Nothing to enjoy.”

“You sure?”

I edged into water deep enough for me to stand. She hadn’t uncurled her legs from my waist. In a perfect world, she never would.

“Please take me to the stairs.”

“Take you on the stairs?” I glanced at the Mediterranean styled tile. A couple pool jets bubbled close to the ramp. “I’d never refuse a lady.”

“You are such a pervert.”

I was getting tired of being called that. “I said lady, not sister.”

“Zach!”

“You really don’t know how to swim?”

“No! Get me out of this deathtrap!”

I grinned. “You should learn. You never know when you’ll need that skill.”

“Like when an asshole drops me into a pool?”

“Exactly.”

I spun her around. She panicked like I tried to dunk her. My arms crossed over her tummy, and she arched, touching as much of my chest as she could fit against her back.

I liked it, but I wasn’t about to hold a woman hostage just to feel that perfect ass grind against my straining cock.

“Get used to the water,” I said. “I guarantee you’ll love it.”

I pushed her toward the wall. She couldn’t touch the bottom and freaked. I eased us through the ripples, holding tight so she didn’t kick an unfortunate area keeping us afloat. We reached the wall, and she grasped the edge like a cat shredding through curtains. I didn’t let her escape, only moved behind her and kept her still in the lapping water.