I threw my body in the opposite direction and slammed against Alexander. Filippa nearly kicked me in the face and the whole world reeled, but an idea sparked at the very same time. I lunged headfirst at Alexander again, and when I saw the white flash of Filippa’s foot, I risked letting go of Meredith’s leg to grab it. We leaned hard to the side but I shouted, “Meredith, now!”
I flung Filippa’s foot upward and Meredith shoved her hard. She tilted immediately backward, pulling Alexander with her, and after one brief suspended moment, arms windmilling at their sides, they both crashed down in the water. Meredith and I careened to the right and I clamped my free hand on her thigh again. The spectators clapped and hollered, but I could barely hear them because Meredith was hugging my head with her legs, one hand clutched in my hair. I turned dizzily on the spot and tried to smile.
Filippa and Alexander came up from under the water, choking and sputtering.
“Right,” Alexander said. “Some’n gimme a drink, I’m done.”
“I think we’re all done,” Filippa said.
“Oh no,” Meredith said, to my dismay. “Wren said she’d play winner.”
Colin smacked the side of the canoe. “Hear hear!”
“I’m up for it if James is,” Wren said.
I wiped the water from my eyes and looked at him. He sat fidgeting in the sand with a sheepish half smile. Suddenly I wanted him to play. “C’mon, James,” I said. “Let us make a fool of you and we can all go home.”
“Go on, get some revenge for us,” Filippa said, standing on the beach, wringing the water out of her skirt.
“Well,” he said, “if I must.”
Wren climbed to her feet and offered James her hands to help him up. She tied her skirt in a more modest knot than Meredith’s and started into the water. Some of the spectators had wandered off, but there were about ten of them left and they called out reassurances. Meredith had begun to feel heavy on my shoulders, so I jostled her a little farther forward. She combed my hair back out of my eyes with her fingertips and said, “You okay down there?”
“I’m too drunk for this.”
“You’re my hero.”
“Just what I’ve always wanted.”
Wren waded out to where we were and said, “God, it’s cold!”
“’Tis a naughty night to swim in.” James winced as he trudged in after her. “Let me help you up.” He crouched down as I had done, taking one of her hands as she put her leg over his shoulder.
But before she could finish climbing on, a voice we’d barely heard all night said, “Actually, I think there’s been enough of this.”
I turned, slowly and carefully. Richard stood on the beach, scowling.
“You didn’t want to play,” Meredith said. “Why do you get an opinion?”
“It’s just a bit of fun,” Wren said. She had only made it halfway up and was perched, parrot-like, on James’s shoulder. His eyes were fixed on Richard.
“It’s fucking stupid and somebody’s going to get hurt. Get down.”
“Come on, Rick,” Alexander said from where he was sprawled in the sand with another drink. “She’ll be fine.”
“Shut up,” he said. “You’re drunk.”
“And you’re not?” Filippa said. “Mellow out, it’s just a game.”
“Fuck off, Filippa, this has nothing to do with you.”
“Richard!” Wren said. Filippa glared up at him, mouth slightly open in surprise.
“Okay, I think the show’s over,” Colin said, sliding off the canoe. “C’mon guys, clear out.” The few onlookers left grumbled their disappointment and began to trickle away. Colin hesitated, looking from Richard to the rest of us like he wasn’t sure whether we still needed a referee.
“Would you both stop screwing around?” Richard said, his voice carrying across the water as if it had once again been magically magnified.
“Oh, I see,” Meredith said. “You can’t stand us having a good time because you’re busy pouting? Because you didn’t get the last bow for once?” His face went white—livid—and I squeezed her knees hard, trying to warn her not to say too much. She didn’t feel it, didn’t understand, or didn’t care. “Fuck that,” she said. “It’s not always about you.”
“That’s rich coming from a world-class attention whore.”
“Richard, what the hell?” A flash of anger made my head feel suddenly hot. My grip on Meredith’s legs tightened reflexively. The instinct to defend her was unexpected, unwarranted, but I didn’t have time to be confused about it. She was dangerously quiet.
Richard started to say something else, but James interrupted. “That’s enough,” he said, and there was a bite in his voice I had never heard before. “Why don’t you take five, and come back when you’ve cooled off?”
Richard’s eyes burned black. “Take your hands off my cousin and I’ll—”
“And you’ll what?” Wren splashed down but stayed close to James. “What is the matter with you? It’s just a game.”
“Yeah, okay,” Richard said, striding into the water. “Let’s play a game. Wren, move, it’s my turn.”
“Richard, don’t be an idiot.” Meredith swung one leg off my shoulder and I grabbed her around the waist to help her down. Without her extra weight I felt like I was filled with helium. I blinked hard, trying to clear my head.
“No, I want to play,” Richard said again. How much had he drunk? He was speaking clearly, but his movement was loose and reckless. “Wren, get out of the way.”
“Come on, Richard, he hasn’t done anything,” I said.
He rounded on me. “Oh, don’t worry—I’ll be with you in a minute.”
I leaned back. I didn’t like my odds if he was determined to start a fight with someone.
“Leave him alone,” James said, sharply. “He only played because you didn’t want to and he was trying to be nice.”
“Yes, we all know how nice Oliver is.”
“Richard,” Meredith said. “Don’t be an asshole.”
“I’m not, I want to play now. Come on, I thought you wanted one last game.” He reached around Wren and shoved James backward. There was a soft splash as the water caught him.
“Richard, stop!” Wren said.
“What’s the matter?” he asked. “One more game!” He pushed James again and James knocked his arm away.
“Richard, I’m warning you—”