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“Yes!” I yell, jumping up, making him chuckle. “Do I get pants too?”
“No, you don’t. Not until I know you won’t run.”
I roll my eyes at him. If he thinks the risk of flashing my ass would stop me from running, the man is sadly mistaken. The only thing keeping me here is that I’m miles away from anything else, and in this heat, I’ll keel over from sunstroke before I find civilization.
Sitting back down, I hold my hand out for my running shoes, but he drops to his knees and lifts one of my feet, sliding my sneaker on and setting it against his thigh. He laces it up before doing the same for my other foot.
Standing up, he holds his hand out to me. “Ready?”
Not wanting to risk him changing his mind, I slip my hand into his much larger one and let him pull me up. When I try to pull away, his hand tightens around mine as he leads me down the steps to the dusty driveway and towards the tree line.
“Won’t Creed wonder where we’ve gone?”
“I left him a note.”
It all feels so domestic. It’s almost easy to pretend everything is normal, but nothing about this situation is normal. I need to remember that. I fell for this bullshit before. I forgave myself because I didn’t know any better. This time around, I know exactly what they’re capable of. If I let them in and they tear what’s left of me apart, I’ll have no one to blame but myself.
We walk into the woods, which provides us with a little protection from the sun, and he keeps his hand wrapped around mine as I take in the beauty around us. No matter the reasons they brought me here, I can’t deny that there are worse places to find myself stranded.
Wildflowers grow in abundance, enticing bees and butterflies to flit from flower to flower. When the light brightens, I notice a large gap in the trees and stop to look up. The huge trees still surround us, but it’s as if they grew around this spot. I look down and try to figure out why, when Hawk steps to the side and reveals a large pond.
“Oh wow. I think I just found my new reading spot.”
“Pretty, right?”
“Peaceful.”
He looks over his shoulder at me before nodding. “You wanna swim for a bit?”
“What, here?”
He shrugs. “Yeah sure, why not?”
He’s already kicking off his sneakers before shoving his shorts down his legs. He leaves his boxers on, thankfully, and walks into the water. “Come on, it’s warm.”
“Of course, it’s warm. It’s a million degrees out.” I bite my lip, already knowing this is a stupid idea, but the thought of heading back to the house makes me hesitate.
“Fuck it.” I kick my sneakers off and walk toward the water.
“Aren’t you going to take your T-shirt off?”
“I’m not wearing a bra.”
“I’ve had your tits in my mouth, Avery.”
“That doesn’t mean anything.”
“Then it shouldn’t matter if you swim topless or not, right?” he taunts. “Besides, once that T-shirt is wet, it’s not going to leave anything to the imagination.”
I narrow my eyes at him, knowing he’s setting me up. But the truth is, if I get this T-shirt wet and they don’t give me a clean one, I’ll be forced to sleep without one at all. And we’re both aware of how dangerous a situation that would be after last night.
“You’ll keep your hands to yourself?”
“I’m just here to swim.” As if to prove it, he flips to his back and floats farther into the center of the pond.
With his attention elsewhere, I slip the T-shirt over my head and fold it, placing it on my sneakers before stepping into the water. It’s warm, like Hawk said, so I don’t waste any time sinking down into it so that it covers everything below my collarbone. I close my eyes for a second and let the quiet wash over me. All I can hear are the insects and the occasional splash from Hawk.
The water helps the tension leave my body as I start to swim. My arm feels like it’s on fire, but I don’t let it stop me. I keep my distance from Hawk. If he attempts to make a move on me, I’ll be out of the water before he’s within touching distance.
