I close my eyes, take a deep breath, and allow my lithe form to slip beneath the surface. The cold water envelopes all of me just as another wave rolls by. I sink down, relaxing my arms and legs as I go. This is what I wanted. This is what I came into the water to get. This is complete weightlessness. I crack my eyes open. The water is a dark blue. My hair is floating all around me like a billowing, ominous rain cloud. I look upward toward the sky. The sun shines clearly on the surface and seems to dance as the movement of the water reflects its light in all directions.
My mind is occupied with nothing but the sensations of the water. I’m consumed with the feel, the taste, and the sound of the ocean instead of the all consuming grief that never gives me a moment of rest.
Just as my breath is about to run out, something wraps around my arms, sending fear racing through me. I’m not sure what the hell it is, but I thrash and flail in the water, fighting hard to free my arms. The last of my air goes flying from my mouth and nose in huge bubbles that rise to the surface, leaving me to drown. The grip it has on me tightens and I’m lifted from the water only to come face to face with the culprit.
A man.
Well, we aren’t exactly face to face. It’s more like face to ass. I gasp, drawing in air like it’s a luxury I wasn’t privy to.
Goodbye, weightlessness. Hello, embarrassment.
He’s hauled me up over his shoulder so all I can see is his ass, and while it’s a nice ass, it’s still an ass. A stranger’s ass.
Chapter Five
Silent Mantra
“Put me down! Now!” I snarl, trying to catch my breath and sputtering saltwater.
“What the hell are you doing, lady? Trying to get yourself killed?” The would-be lifeguard goes on tromping out of the water, toting me on his shoulder.
“W-what?” I stammer through the seawater dripping from my hair and onto my face.
“This water is cold enough to cause hypothermia. Not to mention the undertow in this area. You have no business here. This is a private beach, anyway,” he nags on and on while dragging me from the water, my legs dangling and my hair stuck to my face and neck.
The nag sets me to my feet on the sand and I teeter as my blood pressure tries to adjust to the upright position and the heaviness that I had already forgotten during my brief reprieve in the water.
Forgotten.
“Easy,” he says, reaching out to hold me by my shoulders.
My vision goes blurry for a moment, but it quickly clears. I wish it would go hazy again. Mr. Would-be Lifeguard is gorgeous. My already ragged breathing becomes nonexistent as I take the sight of him in. I feel guilty almost instantly, but there’s no denying that this man is beautiful. Even though Jake is gone, I still feel very much taken, so admiring the man in front of me feels wrong and dirty and it makes me dislike him for even being attractive.
Tall. Sculpted. Impossibly handsome. Perfection.
“Let go. I’m fine,” I snap, suddenly completely aware of the nearly transparent sundress sticking to my wet skin. “Oh, God,” I mumble, peeling it away from my skin. I look up, feeling so embarrassed.
He’s watching me, but not my body. He’s looking at me, at my face. “What were you doing out there? Are you insane?” He props a big hand low on his hip and I ogle like the dumbass that I am. His shirt is clinging to him like my sundress is clinging to me. I can see right through the fabric and his hand draws my attention to the muscles hidden beneath the soaked cotton. A divine, narrow, sinewy waistline complete with those lovely little, or shall I say bulging, oblique muscles that seem to point directly to what’s concealed in his pants.
Kill me now.
“Ah, swimming, well, floating, or sinking…actually…I guess.” I shrug, feeling a tad lightheaded, though the reason for my faintness is unclear. Cold water, holding my breath for a little too long, embarrassment unmatched, or the exquisite man in front of me. Maybe it’s a dodgy blend of all of the above. Whatever it is, it has me feeling like a colossal idiot. I’m sure I look like a colossal idiot too.
Mr. Lifeguard seems unimpressed with my answer. His face is vacant and expressionless despite the body language that quite clearly spells out irritation.
“Okay, then, um, see ya.” I turn away with full intentions to walk slowly back to my things, then walk even slower back to the Beachcomber in hopes that my dress will have dried a little by the time anyone else sees me.
I grab my hair in my hands and wring out the excess saltwater, then toss the tangled mass over my shoulder so that it hangs down my back.
“Wait a second,” the man says.
I stop in my tracks, only a few feet from him, and turn around. His face is curious and still insanely…flawless. Even with that tiny scar on his cheek. He’s flawless.
“What’s your name?” he asks in a way that comes out more of a demand than a request.
My insides tremble with delight and the self-abhorrence that it spawns doesn’t go unnoticed. “Um, Sadie. Yours?”