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I grabbed her and pulled her close, planting a kiss on muddy lips. “God, you’re beautiful!”
She shook her head but smiled. “That was awful, but kinda fun.”
We began to jog again and both she and Stephanie waved when women they volunteered with began to scream encouragement.
My wife surprised me yet again when she didn’t even attempt to grab the rope that a spotter had swung across the pool. Instead, she walked into the water, took a breath, and executed a perfect belly flop. Coming up, she shook her head from side to side, sluicing water from her face and then her body. I could see her nipples going rock hard and knew it wasn’t from arousal. Huge chunks of ice floated in the water to discourage people from dropping off the rope. Standing, she ran her hands down her legs and then calmly walked out the other side.
I grabbed the rope and swung across, landed, and reached for her.
“No, you don’t!” she said, putting out her hands.
“I was just going to warm you up, babe.”
“I’d rather freeze than get all muddy again.”
Gary landed beside me and we turned to see that Stephanie was taking her own bath. Spectators cheered, and the soldier who was the spotter for the obstacle chuckled.
“I think you’ve started a new trend, ma’am.”
Hannah laughed. “Instead of ‘Rope Swing’, you can name this one ‘Arctic Bathtub’.”
When we finally staggered over the last wall and up the final hill, we linked hands at the top, all four of us grinning like we’d conquered the world.
“Ready?” Gary said.
“Ready!” we chorused and as a single line, our team passed beneath the banner signifying the end of the course. It hadn’t been easy, and several teams had passed us along the way, but we finished.
Hannah collapsed on the ground, and I worked to tug off her shoes. Dropping them into the huge pile, I added my own and then reached down and hauled her up. The four of us draped our arms over each other’s shoulders as we stood beneath an arch, our medals hanging from ribbons around our necks to have our photo taken.
“Way to go, ladies,” Jackson—the man who’d been at the club—called, additional accolades being called out by both participants, their families, and spectators.
We grabbed our bags and split up at the showers. When Hannah appeared again, it was obvious she’d scrubbed hard. Every inch of her skin was pink and her hair was shining. Our team joined others who were being treated to bar-b-que, various sides, and plenty of bottles of water or Gatorade. We’d hydrated along the way, but still managed to guzzle fluids and put away a great deal of food, including the biggest slices of chocolate cake that I’d ever seen. Hannah matched me bite for bite.
After hugging Stephanie and Gary, thanking both for their friendship and their training that enabled her to have the most incredible day of her life, my wife slipped her hand into mine as we walked back toward our car.
“I can’t tell you how amazing I think you are,” I said, helping her into the car and buckling her in. “You are not only beautiful; you have the most incredible spirit.”
“You helped me find that spirit again, Daddy,” she said, reaching up to cup my face. “You made me realize that we need to treasure every day we have together.” Pulling me down, she kissed me. Letting me go, she grinned. “And that is why, Major Griffith, I’m going to let you out of the bet.”
Chuckling, I pecked her lips. “Good try, recruit, but you lost that bet.”
“I did not! I finished!”
“Yes, you did,” I said, “But you did not complete all the obstacles. You didn’t even try to conquer the rope swing.”
“Wrong. The rules clearly state that to complete an obstacle, you must get from one side to the other. True, walking around doesn’t count, and I might not have swung on the rope, but I definitely walked through the water… not around it.”
I actually had nothing to say, realizing she was absolutely correct. My face must have shown my shock because she giggled.
After I slid behind the wheel, she turned to look at me. “I can’t wait for that massage. Full body, remember? Every finger, every toe, and definitely, every muscle.”
“Yes, ma’am. Far be it for anyone to claim I’m a sore loser.”
* * *
Once home, I went into the bedroom to grab the massage oils, looking from one to another, trying to decide which she’d prefer this time as I walked through the house to the patio door.
“Adam, I do believe you are slightly overdressed.”
