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“I…I think I need to cool off, too,” I say finally, ignoring the shake in my voice.
Davis gestures to the water around him. “Mi cascada es tu cascada.” I’m spellbound by the wicked grin he flashes me. He’s like a man-mermaid, luring me toward the water’s edge.
Taking that as an invitation, I turn away from him, stripping down to my underwear and tossing my clothes on the tree stump. I’m not brave enough to dive headfirst like Davis, so I slowly lower myself into the water at the grassy edge.
“Holy hell!” I yelp, sliding into the icy pond, inch by inch, goosebumps surfacing from neck to ankle. “It’s freaking freezing!”
The man rolls his eyes at me.Rude.
“Don’t be a baby,” he goads. “It feels fine once you go under.”
“You’re full of shit,” I accuse, shivering.
“My gosh. You’retotallya baby.” He swipes his fingers through his dark hair and gives me another man-mermaid smile. And there I go, sinking deeper into the pond.
But once I finally let myself relax and swim into the little basin beneath the waterfall, I realize it’s not so bad. Soon, we’re both splashing and swimming and laughing at each other. And shivering. Always shivering.
I swim close and lightly nudge Davis in the shoulder. “This kind of reminds me of the road trip we went on that spring break before I had to take my vet exams. When we had planned a picnic in the forest. Except we forgot the completely packed cooler at home in the driveway. You remember?”
A wry smile moves his lips. “I remember that…”
I find myself giggling as I recall the situation. “We had to stop at that sketchy little convenience store in the middle of nowhere and load up on potato chips and chocolate and beef jerky.”A flood of happy memories swoops into my chest. “You were hungry the whole time. More like ‘hangry’, actually.”
We both laugh. But the sound is a little sad.
“It was such a disaster.” I shake my head, rambling on. “But I’d say it was worth it.” I recall. “The way the enchanting forest had seemed to welcome us, the beautiful views, the—”
Mid-splash, I catch a glimpse of one of his tattoos. More likethetattoo.The one along the side of his ribs that spellsAlanain Roman-style script.
My breath catches.
Oh my god—he kept it?
He seriously kept it?
I thought for sure Davis would have had my name covered up or removed or carved off his body somehow.
But, three-plus years after our divorce, and he’s still walking around with my name inked into his skin…
Standing in waist-deep water, my knees go weak. I slip. Davis’s hands shoot forward, grabbing me and keeping me from going under.
“You okay?” He yanks me back to my feet. I end up spinning off balance and before I know it, we’re face to face. Wet skin to wet skin.
His chest rises and falls. It brushes against me each time he breathes, my thin, pale pink bra the only thing between us.
It’s too much.
It’s not enough.
My heart beats loud enough to deafen me. I can’t look away from his stare. Temptation knocks against my door, begging to make an entrance. Every fiber of my common sense is yelling at me to walk away. Hell, torunaway. But…
I. Want. Him.
And I don’t fucking care anymore.
Davis squeezes his eyes shut, dropping his forehead to mine. He’s fighting it.
I’m not.
