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She nodded and left, because she didn’t know what to say when he went and said something nice. After telling her yesterday they’d be doing things his way, the apology was right up there with the luggage.
7
Reyes crossed the lawn toward the guest house later Thursday evening. He’d debated this move for most of the afternoon, but thinking back over Raine’s morning riding session, he knew he needed to get through to her sooner than later.
Halfway through the session, he’d put her on Taz. Or tried to. She’d gotten pissed off and left early—because she knew if she got up on his horse and still didn’t make it over the jump, he’d know for sure it was her who kept refusing, not Diamond Fire. He already knew for sure, and none of her blustery, logical excuses changed his mind.
Coming up on the side of the house, he angled toward the front until a splash from the back patio made him pause. Doing his best to block the immediate memory of a little red bikini, he switched direction. Landscape lighting lit the way around back, where the in-ground pool glowed an inviting Caribbean blue in the dark night.
Clad in a black one-piece, Raine’s slim form cut sinuously through the water, her movements sure and swift as she swam from one end of the pool to the other. He watched for a moment, wondering if a nighttime swim was part of her daily workout, or if she was driven by something else. A need to be completely exhausted just so she could catch a few hours of sleep before the dreams woke her up?
Stop projecting.
He moved to the edge of the pool, lining up with her before taking a knee to swish his hand in the water to get her attention.
Her fingers brushed against his when she reached for the wall. She simultaneously jerked to the side and shoved away, the move sending a wave rolling across the pool. Surfacing with a sputter, she ripped off her swim goggles and glared up at him.
“Damn it, Reyes, you scared the hell out of me!”
He pushed back into a squat. “I wasn’t sure how long it would take for you to realize I was here, and I didn’t want to be all creepy by just standing and watching.”
“Yeah, well, you failed.”
When he grinned at her disgruntled tone, her glare intensified.
She swiped a hand across her face, brushing aside the wet strands of hair that had escaped her long braid. “What do you want?”
“To talk.”
She huffed and rolled her eyes. “If this is about earlier, I’ll make up the time tomorrow.”
“It’s not about earlier.”
“Then what could you possibly want to talk about?”
“Your accident.”
Her head jerked up. Panic flashed a second before her expression shuttered, and she averted her gaze with a shake of her head. “Nope.”
“I’m not leaving until we talk, Raine.”
“Gonna be a long night for you then.”
Before he could say anything more, she put the goggles back on and swirled around to resume swimming. Reyes blew out a loud sigh as he rose from his squat. Raine reached the far end, executed a rapid turn underwater, and swam back toward him. At his end of the pool, she flipped and started another lap without slowing down.
The way she attacked the water confirmed she was doing her damnedest to out swim her demons. Problem was, his mind was starting to wander off task. Instead of considering how to get her to open up about the accident, he was thinking about his hands gliding over her pale skin instead of the water.
Or better yet, his lips.
You’re here to train her, not maul her.
Right. Stay on task.
Except she was right. If he waited for her to give in, he’d probably end up sleeping out here in one of the deck chairs.
Fuck that.
Reaching up behind his head, he grabbed a fistful of T-shirt to drag it over his head. He bent to pull off one boot, then the other, then stripped off his jeans and socks. When he was down to his boxer briefs, he dove into the water and swam after her. The temperature was warm enough to not be a shock, but cool enough to be refreshing.
