“I live for Oasis days,” Stassia says, arching backward to dip her hair below the surface before she wades back toward the beach. She sits down in the damp sand so only her legs are covered by the lapping water.
Fin’s cry peals through the air again, followed by an enormous splash. “That was so high!” he screams a moment later, and I giggle, imagining the huge smile on his face.
Water splashes everywhere as Sig comes sloshing toward us, her arms pointed over her head as she cuts through the surface, diving below and popping up far away.
“What took you so long?” Stassia calls out to her.
Jorn runs along the beach behind Stass, shedding his weapons and clothing as he goes. He takes a running leap directly into the larger pool, crowing as he flips through the air and soaking everyone around him.
“Some Voyagers were milling around in the area,” Sig says. “We didn’t want to leave until it was clear. Doesn’t seem like anyone is around now, so we left.”
I wade to the beach and sit down next to Stassia as Sig swims up to us.
My eyes dart over to the large pool and snag on Weston. It looks like the Castaways surrounding him are fighting, but laughter rings out as they try to dunk each other under the water. His face is bright with a smile as he watches them, all the anxiety from getting everyone to the tunnels safely completely gone.
His eyes flash to mine, and I look away instantly. Heat rises to my cheeks, as images of last night flicker in my mind, brought on by how similar he looks now, bare skin and wet, tousled hair. It’s hard to do on the ship, but I know I need to avoid him and get my bearings back. After last night, this facade of a friendship is starting to feel less fake and more charged than it should be.
I can’t start to care.
The day passes luxuriously. We spend it resting in the water, sleeping on the beach, everyone talking and laughing completely carefree. A large blanket piled high with food and drink appears on the beach at some point, and everyone meanders to and from it all day, the pile constantly refilling with different options as the hours go by.
The Oasis is a perfect remedy for the heat. I actually enjoy laying on the beach, my legs extended out into the water as it slowly laps back and forth. I could get used to this kind of water, but the thought of going into the larger pool or anything deeper still makes me a little uneasy. While I have the basics down after my lesson, I’m still not confident, and with all the ruckus and waterfalls, I’d rather keep it calm.
The suns beat down on my skin as the four of us lay lined up on the sand. I close my eyes and feel myself drifting off, still exhausted after barely any sleep, and truly relaxed for the first time in a while.
“Alright, time to spill,” Stassia says.
My eyes remain closed, but I listen, curious what her next rant is going to be about. I’m always amazed at how she can have so much to talk about with people she sees all day, every day.
“I’m talking to you, Lennox,” she says.
I don’t move a muscle. “What do you want to know, Stass?” I say lazily.
“Please tell me that man is good in bed.”
Laughter erupts from my chest, as her statement takes me completely off guard.
“Oh my gods,Stass,” Auralie says.
“What? Everyone wants to know. Except for Sig.”
“Ew, he’s like my brother. Please stop,” Sig says.
My laughter calms into a giggle, still shocked that she would even ask something like that. I shouldn’t be, not with the way she has implied things in the past, but I wonder if Sig or Jorn said anything about how we returned to the ship last night, or if this is just Stassia assuming. There’s no way she or anyone else knows how heated things got between us, how aroused he was at our bodies pressing together.
“You can’t tell me you’ve been sharing a bed all this time and nothing has happened. I don’t buy it,” Stassia says.
“Nothing has happened,” I say with a straight face, finally able to calm down my laughter.
“You’re being serious,” she says flatly, and I open my eyes and turn my head to see her, lifted onto her elbows and staring at me like I just grew another face.
“Yes, I’m being serious.”
“Damn,” she says as she lays back down in the sand. “I thought maybe that’s why you weren’t at each other’s throats anymore.”
“Sorry to disappoint you, Stass.” I close my eyes again and focus on the heat beating down on me and the cool water over my legs.
Not on the firm shoulders and hard chest. The muscular arms hoisting me up and pulling me closer. Gaze trained on my lips.
