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The guys start snickering at his response, but he doesn’t seem to care. His eyes are locked on mine, and he’s offering me his hand. I take it without thinking twice, without caring that everyone is watching us. Right now, I need the comfort he’s offering me.
“Drinks!” he announces loudly as he wraps his arm around my waist and guides me to the tiki bar that was set up for us when we arrived today. “What’s it gonna be?” he asks as he releases me and slides behind the counter.
“I think I’d like a Lusty Lady if you don’t mind,” I say with a wink.
“Hell yes!” Drake hollers behind me, and then there’s a splash before water sprinkles me down my back.
“I have a feeling things are going to get crazy with the cameras off for the day,” Lennon says appearing next to me and leaning against the bar with one arm. Jace is busy making my drink, so Lennon takes advantage of the situation and reaches down, taking my hand in his and giving it a light squeeze.
Twenty minutes later and I’ve been thrown in the pool and Jace is lifting me onto his shoulders. “Let’s go!” he hollers, challenging Lennon and Drake again.
Bella climbs on Lennon’s shoulder, causing a pang of jealousy to course through me, while Courtney is hoisted onto Drake’s shoulders, a sinister smirk on her face.
Well, hell. Lennon may have been onto something. No cameras. No inhibitions. Let the games begin. It may be the last day I get to play.
Courtney and Drake go down first. I have a feeling they were both preoccupied. Bella, on the other hand, seems to be a strong player when it comes to water fighting. She doesn’t back down, and Lennon and Jace are more than happy to let us do all the work. In fact, neither of them helps.
We wear ourselves out, declaring it a tie instead of continuing on. Tipping myself backward off Jace’s shoulders, I sink to the bottom of the shallow end of the pool and then float there for a few minutes, staring up at his face as he watches. When I finally emerge, pushing my hair out of my face, he pulls me close to his body and wraps his arms around me.
“I want to kiss you, Presley,” he whispers, his lips brushing against my ear. “I won’t do it in front of everyone else, but I’m warning you that I will kiss you before either of us go home, even if that’s all I get.”
A shiver runs up my spine at the thought of Jace’s lips against mine. Would they be warm? Soft? Would I invite him in without thinking?
I’ve been kissed before by multiple people. Gage wasn’t the best, but he wasn’t the worst either. I can only imagine Jace would be more skilled, more in tune with how to sweep a woman off her feet with nothing more than the brush of his lips against mine.
And I want to find out exactly how skilled he is. Here and now. I also know it isn’t a good idea for a reason. Sure, the cameras aren’t rolling, but there are still eyes on us. Ten sets to be exact, one of those belonging to Lennon.
I can feel his stare boring into my back as Jace holds me. Jace is making his move, in front of Lennon, and taunting him in the process. Which only means one thing.
Lennon will make his move as well. Maybe not today, but soon, if he’s given the chance. If I’m not sent home.
The rest of the afternoon is more laid back. Jace keeps the drinks flowing. While the guys play basketball in the pool, the girls sunbathe and relax, enjoying the show. Because let’s face it. Each is beautiful in his own right. All toned abs and taut muscles. Smiles that know what they do to a woman.
Laughter and taunting float across the water, the music of the afternoon. Until it comes to an abrupt halt, catching my attention immediately. Pushing my sunglasses to the top of my head, I watch as all six guys slowly swim across the water, then push themselves up on the ledge and out of the pool. Lennon heads my way, a look of determination in his eyes and a sinister smirk on his face.
Looking left and right, I notice they’re all wearing devilish grins, but only his is focused on me.
“Pres,” Kyra whispers from next to me as they stalk toward us. “What are they doing?”
I know exactly what they’re going to do, and nothing is going to stop them. “Pool time,” I state, my voice rising as my breath hitches in my chest.
Callen swoops in first, scooping Kyra up into his arms as she lets out a startled screech. The rest of the girls are picked up in quick succession, some laughing while others protesting. Lennon stands at the end of my lounger and stares at me, drinking me in.
His eyes travel up my body, grin growing wider, pausing briefly when they reach my chest. I’m breathing heavily at this point, my chest rising and falling rapidly knowing what’s coming next. When our eyes meet, I plead with him not to toss me in the pool as the first splash sounds. The water is going to feel ice cold after bathing in the sun for so long.
With the slight shake of his head, Lennon bends down, slides one arm under my legs and the other around my back, and picks me up as if I weighed nothing at all. His skin is still wet from the pool, feeling cool against the heat of mine.
His eyes never leave mine as he walks us back over to the pool and jumps in the water, still holding me in his arms. The water steals my breath as my head goes under. I open my mouth to gasp, and Lennon tugs me closer, pressing his lips gently against mine before pulling away just as quickly and swimming to the surface, still holding on to me.
“You guys suck!” Teegan hollers as I break the surface.
She’d refused to get in the water earlier when the guys wanted to play chicken. So had Natasha. Something about not wanting to get their hair and face wet. My immediate reaction was to roll my eyes. Wet hair can be dried. Makeup can be reapplied.
Looking over my shoulder, I watch as Natasha swats Milo in the chest as he shares a fist bump with Drake who’s pushing himself out of the pool, attempting to get away from Teegan. He’s almost escaped her wrath when she reaches up, grips his swim trunks, and tugs.
His pants come down, giving us all a view of everything he’d been hiding, right before he falls in the pool. To my surprise, Teegan apologizes profusely for the next ten minutes with her arms wrapped around his neck. I think someone liked what she saw.
My first thought is I’m grateful the cameras aren’t rolling right now. We’re all letting loose, having fun. Laughing and actually enjoying ourselves for a change. Even Kyra has seemed more relaxed today than when she first arrived. It could be the Lusty Ladies she’s been drinking, but I also think she’s finally becoming more comfortable with the situation. It can be overwhelming at first.
