“Fine,” I said, glaring at Mason as he smirked at

me.

As I lay there on the rough bench, wishing more than ever that I were back home at the beach, I could feel everyone’s eyes on focused on me.

“It might be hard to pretend you can’t breathe with all the air in your head,” Mason quietly mocked for my ears only as he leaned over me.

I fought the urge to smack him in his nose. I figured it wouldn’t win me any brownie points to bloody Rick’s star pupil’s nose in front of everyone.

“Enjoy the moment, pretty boy. I’m sure this is the most action you’ve gotten in a while,” I added, lacing my voice with sweetness.

His eyes narrowed and I couldn’t help smiling in satisfaction.

Everything changed when he moved into position over me. My smile quickly disappeared and I felt a tingle as my body reacted to being so close to him. I was expecting to be disgusted, considering he blatantly thought so little of me, but I found myself lost in his blue eyes as they focused on mine. I continued my gaze down his face and settled on his lips, anticipating how they would feel on mine. I could hear Rick going over the procedures again, but his voice seemed to trail off in the distance as Mason placed his hands between my ribs. My pulse quickened at his touch and my confusion-laced eyes met his. What was happening here? I hated him and yet, I wanted the heat of his hands to never leave me. Using the techniques Rick had given us, he pushed on my torso three times before moving up to pinch my nose closed. I was surprised at his gentle touch and couldn’t stop my body from tensing as his lips moved closer to mine. I nervously moistened my lips with my tongue and watched as his eyes followed, focusing on my mouth. He was a breath away and I parted my lips, ready to know if his were as soft as they looked. He paused above my mouth, blowing out slightly before abruptly moving away from my face. Confused, I felt him place his hands on my torso again and push down three more times before lightly pinching my nose and blowing on my face again.

I waited for Rick to criticize him for cheating on the breathing step, but it slowly became obvious to me that I was the only one dumb enough to think Mason was actually going to place his lips on mine.

I wanted to die I was so mortified, and my red face made it obvious. Our eyes met and he flashed me a grin, making it clear he knew what I had been expecting. I mentally kicked myself for dropping my guard and giving him the upper hand like that.

“Very good,” Rick proclaimed, cutting through my mental meltdown. “Okay, now switch positions and Mason, you be the victim.”

I bolted upright at his words and swung my legs over the side of the bench, anxious to put a little distance between us so I could gather my wits.

“Okay, beach bunny, don’t forget, it’s three breaths,” Mason mumbled as he laid down. “Wait, did they teach you how to count that high in Beach Bunny 101?” he asked.

I glowered down at him, debating if smothering him would be frowned upon in a lifesaving course.

Ignoring his verbal jab, I placed my hands on his rock hard abs, trying to ignore the way he felt beneath my hands. Now it was payback time. I pushed harder on his stomach than was needed and smiled when he grunted. In quick succession, I did the three pushes on his torso and then moved up for the mock breath. I roughly pinched his nose closed, challenging him to protest. His only response was to grin at me. I completed the motions three more times before turning away in disgust for letting him get so completely under my skin as Rick called our turn to a halt.

“Good job, Kimmie,” he said, slinging an arm around my shoulder. “Of course, next time a light pinch will sufficiently cut off the airflow,” he added, indicating Mason’s beat-red nose.

“Oops, I’ll be more careful next time,” I said, trying to look remorseful.

Rick chuckled, clearly not buying my halfhearted apology. “Right,” he said, patting my back.

I sauntered back to my seat, not sparing Mason another look. I was still embarrassed that he had made me feel so stupid, but I pasted a smile on my face like nothing had happened.

“Talk about sizzle,” Amy whispered as I sat next to her.

“What?” I asked, trying to act like I didn’t have a clue what she was insinuating.

“Please, I saw the way you two looked at each other. I swear I thought he was going to make a move or something,” she whispered as Rick called up another pair to do their demonstration.

“No, he was trying to make me look like a fool,” I whispered back.

“Whatever helps you sleep at night, chica. To my eyes, he was definitely getting a lay of the land, if you catch my drift.

I shook my head in denial. “I think the mountain air is muddling your brain. The only thing Mason would like to do to me is throw me off a cliff,” I said, ignoring her dubious expression.

Chapter 4

My words appeared to be true as Mason and I continued our verbal battle over the next few days. He criticized everything I did. My first aid skills were “as helpful as a man with his hands tied behind his back and his eyes blindfolded.” He openly mocked me when I stumbled over starting my first campfire in the survival training, and joked that I couldn’t tie my own shoes in knot-tying class. He always seemed to be ready and willing to point out my many flaws. By the time my second full day came to a close, I was ready to either dig a hole and bury him in it, or pack my bags and leave. Only the thought of disappointing Rick held me back. Instead, I decided to just ignore him like he wasn’t alive.

I was lying on my bed, contemplating Mason's death when Amy strolled into our cabin.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

"Wondering what would cause more damage, a paintbrush in the eye or a putty knife shoved up someone's nostril," I answered, scowling at the ceiling.

Tags: Tiffany King Romance
Source: readsnovelonline.net