17. Chapter Seventeen #4
“Not sure the extra-terrestrial E.T. ever looked that pissed,” I muttered, but my amusement faded as I glanced back at the water. Trasier had closed the gap, and he wasn’t yelling, but the tight set of his jaw said plenty.
“Maybe not,” he admitted. “I doubt he’s pissed that she's in the water. More because she didn’t think. He hates reckless plays.”
“She’s been in and out of the water since the start,” I said.
“True,” Shep said, his tone calm and steady. “Just like the rest of us. But ET has different rules for Scout.” He flashed a cocky grin. “He might look like he’s about to breathe fire, but he’ll get them back to the deck in one piece. Clyde included.”
I blew out a breath, forcing my muscles to unclench. “That dog is over two hundred pounds. Imagine trying to steer him while his paws churn the water like a motorboat.”
Shep shifted behind me, and suddenly his chest lined up flush against my back, solid warmth against the chilly breeze rolling off the lake. The heat of him bled through his wetsuit, seeping into my bones, making me too aware of just how close we were.
“Relax, Merr.” His voice dropped lower, teasing and intimate. “You’ve got enough to worry about without playing lifeguard for ET and his dog.”
I should have stepped away. I should have put distance between us.
Instead, I stayed right where I was, even leaned back ever so slightly.
My body betrayed me, my mind wandering to places it shouldn’t.
I didn’t trust my hands to behave. All it would take was one tug on the zipper of his wetsuit to find out just how much heat was hiding underneath.
I rolled my shoulders, desperate to shake off the desire sparking between us. My gaze flicked to the bickering pair in the water. “What’s their deal, anyway? Are they together?”
Shep snorted, his hand brushing along my waist, so light it felt almost unintentional. Almost. “Not exactly.”
I narrowed my eyes at the two of them, watching as they argued between ushering Clyde toward shore. The mastiff wasn’t having it, his massive paws slapping at the water in a leisurely doggy paddle. “They’re something.”
“Scout helps Coach out with Clyde. Always has. Some couples have kids; they have Clyde.”
“They bicker like an old married couple,” I said.
Shep’s lips brushed close to my ear, the smile in his voice unmistakable. “Maybe. But I think that’s just foreplay for them.”
“Merri!” Nat’s shout cracked through the air, sharp and urgent. “Catch!”
The spell Shep had me under shattered. I jerked away from his hold, my attention snapping to the ball arcing toward us.
I lunged, fingers outstretched—but Shep was faster. His longer reach snatched it midair, a triumphant laugh spilling from his lips as he spun and leapt off the cube. He landed with perfect ease on the lower platform, barely a wobble as the inflatable absorbed the impact.
“Damn it, Shep!” I scrambled after him, clawing my way over the edge of the cube. I dangled for a moment, my muscles burning, before dropping onto the bouncy platform below. I was brave, but I didn’t have Shep’s effortless athleticism to guarantee a landing that didn’t end with another dunking.
He was already halfway to the deck, but at the last second, he pivoted. I didn’t have time to stop—I slammed into him, and we tumbled down to the surface, with me sprawled over his chest.
For a heartbeat, we just lay there, the chaotic shouts of our teammates fading into background noise.
Shep grinned up at me, his eyes bright with mischief, water dripping from his tousled hair. He reached up, flicking a loose strand of my wet hair where it clung to my cheek. “You’re getting faster, Merri-bean.”
Before I could respond, he slid me to the side and leapt to his feet, smooth and annoyingly quick. He held a hand out, and when I took it, hauled me up with ease.
Then, with a grin so smug it made my blood simmer, he held the ball out toward me. “Go on, then. Take it.”
I froze, narrowing my eyes. “What are you doing?” Suspicion laced my words, but my fingers tightened around the ball all the same.
“Saving you from having to streak the arena, that’s what.” His grin widened as his gaze swept over me. He reached out, flicking the zipper of my wetsuit where it rested on my chest. “No way these assholes get to see what’s under here.”
The nerve.
I wanted to snap at him for his arrogance.
I wanted to curl up in the possessiveness of his words.
But more than anything, I wanted to win this dang obstacle course.
I put a little distance between us, ball lodged against my hip. “I was a step away from a badass tackle, Landon. Don’t act like you’re doing me a favor.”
His grin unleashed a swarm of bees in my belly, buzzing and humming and sending a thrill into my bloodstream.
A dizzying swirl of anticipation and excitement that mirrored the thrill of winning a challenge on the ice.
Or the call when Sellers said the organization had agreed to hire me for his absence.
A potent mix of satisfaction, adrenaline and anticipation.
Shepherd Landon’s grin made promises.
Terrifying promises I wanted him to keep.