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“I didn’t have family.” I shot at him, then took a slow breath, looking up ahead at the trail. “You said there’s a waterfall?”
He stared at me for a long moment, like he was deciding if he should push me or not.
“Yeah. Another ten-minute walk. You ready?” He reached for my bottle, but I held on to it.
“I’ll carry it,” I said and started walking up the trail.
The path narrowed after the next hill, and Dmitri walked behind me. Birds flew through the treetops, and small critters scurried through the underbrush. The fresh air filled my lungs.
“Just around the bend here, it opens up to a small pool with a waterfall.” Dmitri pointed over my shoulder when I stopped walking as a light breeze crossed my face.
I nodded and pushed through, already hearing the cascading water ahead of us. Just after the turn, the foliage and trees spread further apart, opening to a scene I had read about in books but never believed actually existed.
Wildflowers grew everywhere. There was greenery around the clear pool of water being poured from a wide waterfall. A mist carried from the falls, wetting my cheeks. Sunlight streamed through the opening of the trees as though to put a spotlight on nature’s beauty.
“Where does that cliff go?” I pointed to where the waterfalls began.
He took his bag off and dropped it. “There’s a stream up there that’s fed by a larger river. Never bothered following it, though.” He took out another bottle of water and unscrewed the cap.
I moved closer to the pool. It looked almost manmade in nearly a perfect oval shape of large boulders before it narrowed. The water poured out into a thin stream.
Squatting down, I scooped up some of the clear, crisp water and splashed my face to cool off.
“It’s not deep, maybe up to your chest.”
“I know how to swim,” I said, looking at him over my shoulder. Getting me into the water could be step one. The next step could be to push me under it and let nature take its course.
“I’m not going to kill you. Stop looking at me like that.” He ordered, stashing his water back in the bag.
“You’ve killed before, though, right?”
His exasperation arched his eyebrow. “C’mon. We swim.” His shirt dropped on top of his bag. When I looked back at him, he was already stripped down to his boxers.
And holy hell, and fuck. No wonder I couldn’t fight him off. The man was nothing but hard muscle. A family crest covered his left pec muscle that rippled with his movements. When he hooked his thumbs into the waistband of his boxers, I turned away, my cheeks once again hot.
“Strip down, Aleksandra,” he ordered.
“That’s all right.” My voice barely made it out of my mouth.
“I’m not asking.” The underlying threat was well understood: if I didn’t do it on my own, he’d do it for me. He moved past me to a narrow opening among the bushes and flowers to sink into the pool. My eyes fixated on his ass, his thighs, the movement of his back muscles as he lowered himself in. I could stare at him all day and all night and still not get enough.
“Aleksandra!” He called to me once in the water.
“Fine.” I grabbed hold of the hem of my shirt and made fast work of stripping out of my clothes, keeping myself folded over to hide as much as I could. Once I had everything off and folded on top of my shoes, I made my way to the same opening he’d used.
My foot slipped across the rock, and I ended up gliding right into the water, dunking myself completely before finding my footing. Dmitri grabbed my arms, pulling me back up to the surface.
“I got it.” I sputtered, blowing out the water I’d sucked in. Nothing like a graceful entrance. I swiped the wet mop that was my hair from my face and blinked away water droplets.
“You should be more careful.” He frowned.
“Yeah.” I nodded, easing myself out of his grasp. Even with the sun beating down on the pool, the water was cool. If I stood, the water wouldn’t have covered my breasts, so I kept crouching and maneuvered toward the waterfall.
Once I was on the other side of the falls, I stood up, crossing my arms over my chest. Dmitri’s eyebrow arched even higher when our gazes met.
“I’ve seen breasts before.” He walked through the pool. Droplets of water slid down his muscular chest and over his washboard abs.
“Yeah, but not mine.” I retorted.
