“Oh, you’re going to pay for that,” he promised.
She laughed hysterically and dove into the water, but he was already after her. He caught her foot, and she squealed.
Their “bath” was a squirming, tickling, poking fight for the soap interspersed with Jake reminding them both to hush their splashing and laughter.
He wanted to stay with her in that water forever, hearing her muted snorts and hushed, sparkling laughter, feeling her smooth limbs tangle with his and her hands on him, pinching and poking sometimes, flickering and sliding against his skin at others . . . making him ache.
It was like he stole those delicious moments from another world, as if they existed in some magical in-between space where Emmitt Tharp couldn’t enter, or Harper’s parents.
No one. No one, but them.
The fourth time he took note of the sun’s position, he regretfully spoke, shattering their golden, fragile little private world.
“We gotta get back,” he said, his fingers in her long, wet hair, wiping away remaining suds. She splashed water on the side of his head, rinsing away soap from his ear. He sputtered and rolled his eyes when she splashed him again. “I’m serious, Harper.”
She sighed, deflated. Regret swooped through him. Suddenly, she brightened.
“Race you to shore,” she said in a rush before she heaved face-first into the water.
“Hey, wait. That’s not fair,” he called, but she was already showing off her smooth, strong crawl, impervious to his excuses. He watched, enthralled at the vision of her pale, kicking thighs and bare lower buttocks flashing just beneath the surface of the water. She was so pretty, yet so easy to be with. So incredible.
So untouchable.
How could he think that, he wondered numbly, when he’d just had his hands all over her? But that had just been them fooling around. Playing.
That wasn’t the real thing.
Instead of taking off after her, he treaded water until she stood on the sandbank. He needed the moment to bring his spiraling, uncooperative body under control.
When he stood and slogged toward shore a moment later, she waited at the edge of the water, wringing out her wet hair and wearing a golden smile.
“Too slow, sucka,” she teased.
“You got that right,” he grumbled, ducking his head to hide his dark look.
He had an uncomfortable thought that he’d always be too slow—too wrong—to ever fit into Harper McFadden’s world.
twenty-five
Present Day
Harper thought maybe she swam faster than she had for her varsity swim meet finals to get away from Jacob, but there was no real competition. He caught her ankle almost immediately, yanking her backward in the water. She broke the surface, snorting with laughter and wiping water out of her eyes.
“Too slow, sucka,” Jacob murmured. Seeing his smug smile, she splashed water in his face.
“Hey,” he said, brows furrowed in an expression of mock offense. He grabbed the arm she’d been planning on using to splash him again. Then he grabbed the other, bringing her closer to him. She squirmed, trying to get away and laughing at her failure.
“Stupid to resist,” he said, still grinning even wider now. She loved seeing that smile.
“Cocky bastard.” She deliberately bumped her forehead into his, clunking their skulls. She saw his eye go wide in disbelief before she took advantage of his loosened hold and heaved her body away from him. He grabbed her again on the shallow end, and she surfaced, choking with laughter.
“That look on your face,” she gasped as he hauled her against him.
“You could have really hurt me.”
“Oh, poor baby,” she crooned, rubbing his forehead as if to soothe him.
Their faces were only inches apart, their naked bodies sliding and pressing together. She circled his arms around his neck, her legs tightening around his hips. Water droplets clung to his long, dark lashes, highlighting his beautiful eyes.