I realize from her dead weight in my arms that she’s passed out.
“Oh, fuck.”
My heart lurches in my chest and all I can think is that I have to make sure Ayla’s okay. Still holding her up, I manage to climb out myself and then lift her into my arms. I stride to a lounge chair and carefully lower her there, then jog over to the chair where we left our towels.
I cover her with one towel, then the other, crouching beside the chair.
She blinks her eyes. “What…”
I push hair off her face and let my hand rest on her forehead. “You fainted.”
She makes a small noise, opens and closes her mouth, and swallows.
“You need water. Just give it a minute and we’ll go back to the cottage.”
She closes her eyes. Christ, she’s white as the snow.
My heart is jackhammering in my chest. I stroke her hair again, then cup her cheek. I think she turns into my hand.
This happened once before, when she stayed in the hot water too long. I should have remembered that and made sure she got out sooner. I was distracted by seeing Ayla in a little red bikini and my resulting hard-on, and by our stroll down memory lane.
Shit, shit, shit.
“Sorry,” she says thickly. “I’m okay.”
“You will be.” I try to look reassuring despite the wild antics of the organ in my chest. “Let’s get you back in the cottage. You’re gonna freeze here.” I help her sit, then stand, and then pick her up again.
“I can walk,” she protests.
I ignore that and stride along the sidewalk. I also ignore the way my leg hairs are freezing.
Back in the cottage, I take her straight to the bed. I push a pillow beneath her head. The towels wrapped around her are all twisted up, revealing her pretty tits in the bathing-suit top and her slender calves. “Let’s get rid of these.” I tug the towels away from her, trying not to stare. My hands want to touch her bare skin and I have to force myself not to.
I toss the towels aside and grab the soft blanket from the end of the bed. I tuck it around her. “Be right back.”
I hike into the kitchen for a glass of water for her, then help her sit with my arm behind her shoulders so she can drink. “Better?”
She nods, still pale, and pulls the blanket tight beneath her chin. “Yeah. I’m okay.”
“Good. Jesus, you scared the shit out of me.” For the second time today.
“Sorry.”
“No, don’t apologize; you couldn’t help it. I didn’t realize how long we’d been in there.”
“And it was so nice.” She sighs.
“It was.” I glance down at myself. “I need to get dressed.”
“You must be freezing.”
“I’m a little chilly, yeah.” I pause. “Will you be okay if I jump in the shower?”
“Oh yeah. I need a shower, too.”
Of course she does. “Come on, then.”
Her eyebrows tug together. “What?”
