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320 pages, Paperback
First published May 28, 2002
“Come in and play.”
“Too old for games.”
“I’m not.” She slid into the water, skimmed through it like a mermaid. “But I forgot. You’re nearly nineteen. Too dignified to splash around in the water.”
“I’ll give you dignity,” he said, and dunked her.
“You said it was a tie, and I said I’d crushed you. When you got huffy, I dunked you.”
“When I protested your bad call, you dunked me,” she corrected.
“You retaliated, as I’d anticipated, by locking your arms around my knees and hauling me under. Whereby, I could engage you in the sort of battle that allowed me, at last, to get my hands on your excellent ass. It was a moment for me. Then you giggled.”
She made a derisive sound. “I’ve never giggled in my life.”
“Oh, yeah, you did. You giggled and squirmed and wriggled around until I was so worked up I thought I’d explore.”
“Foolish, foolish boy. When you wrestle naked with a female, she’s bound to discover just where your brain cells have gathered.”
“You were fifteen. What did you know?”
Now she smirked. “Enough to wriggle and squirm until I obtained a satisfactory result.”
“You did it on purpose?”
“Of course.”
“That better be a lie.” He reached across the water, grabbed a handful of her hair. He tugged at her hair until their bodies bumped. He trailed a fingertip down her torso, back up again. “I bet I can still make you giggle.”
Before she could evade, he nipped her by the waist and turned her facedown in the water. Taken by surprise, she flailed for a moment, then rolled when his fingers moved unerringly up her ribs. “Stop it.” Her hair was in her face, saltwater in her eyes.
“Giggle,” he insisted, tickling ruthlessly. “And squirm and wiggle.”
“You idiot.”
She couldn’t see or catch her breath. Despite her struggles the helpless and foolish laughter escaped. It rolled out of her and over the waves as she slapped at him and tried to wiggle free.
“Don’t sit on the–” She bit off a sigh because he’d already lowered himself to the coffee table facing her. “I see you never have figured out the difference between a table and a chair.”
“They’re both in the furniture family. There, you’ve got some color coming back. Good thing I came along to annoy you.”
“Just my lucky day.” He took her hand again, warming it in his. “What scared you, baby?”
“Your neighbor isn’t gullible or naive.”
“No, she’s just the most beautiful woman I’ve ever known.”
“Touch me. Don’t stop touching me.” He’d have cheerfully died first.
"Did you make all the right choices, the best choices, the wisest choices, when you were twenty?"
She slapped on the hot water, squirted soap under the stream. "I never deliberately hurt someone."
"And if you had, deliberately or otherwise, how long would you expect to be punished for it? Damn it!" He swore as she ignored him, then switched the water off himself.