Page 86 of You Met Me There

The boys talk over one another.

“Really?”

“Can we, Daddy?”

He kneels down to the kids’ level and whispers, “Want to jump in the lake in our clothes?” Cam’s tired smile turns into one of pure glee and mischief.

Levi stares at him. “Really? In these clothes?”

I look over at Juliet, but she’s still talking with Nat about the pictures, totally oblivious of the plans the boys are making.

Cam nods, and then he takes off running down the dock, fully clothed and with his dress shoes on.

No, man, no. Not the nice shoes. I cringe.

Levi and Archie race after him with squeals of pure joy. Juliet turns, finally hearing the commotion, and yells “NO” while racing after Archie. Cam makes a running leap into the water first, going under with a mighty splash. Levi cannonballs into the lake. He must be a good swimmer, because Cam didn’t seem worried about him following him to the water’s edge. A second later, Cam pops out of the water, then Levi is meeting him at the surface.

Archie’s still running, his little legs no match for Juliet’s. She catches him with an arm around his little waist just before he reaches the end of the dock and lifts him from his feet. He squirms like the whole summer’s fun depends on this moment of joining his dad in the water.

“What was all that?” Nat stands by my elbow, placing her camera back in its protective bag.

“Cam told them they were going swimming in their clothes.”

She looks up. “Really?”

“Care to join them?” I ask in my most persuasive voice.

“What? In our clothes?”

I shrug. “Why not?”

The look she gives me isn’t one that says no. Instead, it looks like a challenge. She slowly lowers her camera bag to the grass.

“Well,” she says, putting a finger to her chin, “I have an extra swimsuit in the car. I can probably—” She takes off running for the dock.

Surprised, I lunge after her. Her head tilts back as she laughs toward the blue sky above, and the dock loses inches as we near the drop at the other end. My boat shoes pound on the wooden planks, but, like Cam, I don’t stop to kick them off. They’re not as nice as Cam’s, and they’ve gotten wet plenty of times before.

“Watch out!” Nat screams through her laughter, dodging a confused Juliet and a very squirmy Archie.

Natalie, in her neon-orange dress, makes a running jump. She flies through the air in slow motion to the soundtrack of lapping waves and Archie giggles. I follow suit and splash down next to her.

The water is cold, shocking my system as I sink under the surface. Below the water, it’s silent. I keep my eyes closed, and when I feel my downward momentum slow, I kick my feet to resurface.

Nat is already waiting for me above the water when I emerge. I swim to her, pulling her close to my body, and she wraps her legs around my hips. Cam swims in place a few feet away, Levi’s arms hooked around his neck.

“Nice of you to join us,” Cam says. He gives me a smile and a chin nod, and I do the same. He calls back to Jules, “Come on in! Bring Archie!”

“No, that’s okay. I don’t want to get this outfit ruined,” she shouts back.

“It’s just water.”

“Dirty water.”

Cam chuckles.

Nat turns in my arms toward the dock. “Come on, Jules. You’ve missed this, remember?”

Juliet bites her lip, fidgeting with the long sleeve of her lace shirt. It reminds me of a crocheted doily, but it looks nice on her all the same.