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Chapter 7
Journi
Crunching leaves and twigs have me looking to my right. Oh shit. Cruz. “I’m sweating so I think I’ll hop in the water to cool off.” Before Jan can even respond, I all but flop over the side of the dock as though it’s on fire.
I begin swimming away as I hear Cruz greet Jan. He yells out something, so I suck in a breath and submerge my head underwater. The voices are muffled, so I wait until I don’t hear anything. My lungs are beginning to protest when I hear a splash. Hopefully that’s Jan coming to join me. I spin around and open my eyes to see a bare male chest collide against me. Arms wrap around me and hoist me to the surface. What the hell?
When my head breaks the surface of the water, I inhale sweet oxygen. Cruz struggles to catch his breath between words, “I’ve got you. You’re safe. I won’t let go.” He huffs and puffs as he tries to swim with one arm around me. I push back to get free, but he only tightens his hold. “It’s okay, Journi. I won’t let you drown. You’re safe with me.” Is this guy for real? Why is he comforting me?
“Cruz, let go of me. I can swim, you moron.” He stops but doesn’t release his hold on me.
“You were underwater for a long time.”
“Yeah, I can hold my breath.”
“Why didn’t you come up when I called your name?”
“Because I was underwater. I didn’t hear you. There’s not a clear signal down there, ya know.”
He lets go and looks mildly embarrassed. “Sorry. Just wanted to tell you that the food’s ready.” Cruz turns his back to me, but before he swims away, I can’t help myself and I grab his arm.
“Hey, thanks for looking out for me, though. That was really sweet.” Only Jan has ever done that for me. Jan! I quickly look for her on the dock. She’s standing on the edge with her arms crossed and her head tilted.
I wave my arm to her, “I’m fine! Sorry if I scared you.”
She waves back and then cups her hands around her mouth to yell back, “I told him you like to dive down deep. But he flipped out.”
“I’m a doctor. It’s my job to save people. I didn’t want to risk it. Do you know how many people drown a year?” Cruz mumbles.
I reach under the water to give his hand a squeeze. Hopefully, Jan can’t tell what I’m doing. “I mean it. Thank you. Only Jan has ever looked out for me like that.”
“Your parents?”
“They were older by the time they had me. They weren’t really the beach-lake type of parents. They were amazing people, just older…like people mistook them for my grandparents rather than my mom and dad.”
The water droplets trail down Cruz’s handsome face. I want to chase each one with my tongue. His brown eyes have turned a honey color in the sunlight and my muscles tighten at the memory of his kiss.
Jan’s voice rings out, breaking the spell I’m under. “You guys coming?”
I dive back into the water and quickly swim away like I’m some kind of fucking mermaid that must flee the human race. Why does life have to be so damn unfair? I have to stop being attracted to him. He has to stop invading my space, even if it was to save me. Save me! I didn’t need it, but it’s the thought that counts. It was a really nice gesture. And how pathetic is it that I’m swept off my feet by common decency. Wasn’t it nice that he didn’t stand by while I sank to my death? Although, the opportunity for him giving me CPR is quite enticing…
I pull myself up on the dock and accept the towel Jan has for me. We dry ourselves off and I’m so lost that I giggle at the awkwardness of everything. I don’t giggle. Jan looks over her shoulder at Cruz who is taking his time getting back to the dock. “We’ll meet you there.”
My eyes can’t resist a peek. I can’t see all of him as his uses his lean muscles to pull himself up and onto the dock. What I do see are those damn water droplets that trail down his body. The sun shines on every facet of the liquid beads. The rise and fall of his chest from his body’s exertion calls to me. He doesn’t move to grab his shirt. No. He stares right back at me as my eyes get their fill. I swallow the lump in my throat and force myself to look away.
Jan loops her arm through mine. “I’m thirsty.”
So am I. God help me, so am I.
Chapter 8
Cruz
We’re all sitting at the table outside. Two strings of bulb lights are hanging above us, providing extra light as the sun sets into the lake. When Journi picks up her hot dog, I have trouble swallowing. The night we first met and her bizarre comparison of the cucumber and hot dog comes slamming back into me. She must feel my eyes on her because she pauses from pouring the ketchup to look at me. I raise my brows and enjoy watching her struggle to keep a straight face.
When she meets my stare with a challenge in her eyes, I know I’m in trouble. Slowly, she adds a strip of ketchup to her hot dog. “Adding this to the wiener helps it slide down my throat easier. Nobody likes a dry frank.”
I choke out a cough. Larissa notices me and asks if I’m okay. “I’m good.” But I’m far from it. Journi takes a decent amount of the hot dog in her mouth, her eyes watching me the entire time, and then she closes her eyes in bliss as she chews. “This is so good,” she moans. The noises she is making is borderline indecent. The little minx is careful to make sure I’m the only one who hears so I’m the only one suffering.
