Chapter Four
Roux!” Juliette called, one arm looped over her board as she watched her dog swim off, legs kicking at full speed.
He did this occasionally: set his sights on something on the other side of the lake and just .
. . went for it. He had a mind of his own, and well, that made two of them.
She turned to check on Morgan. “Are you okay?”
Morgan gripped her board, her expression frantic. “Are there snakes in here? Or fish that bite?”
Juliette wasn’t sure whether to laugh or roll her eyes. “That’s what you’re worried about right now? Nothing’s going to bite you. Take a deep breath, and I’ll help you get back on your board.”
Instead, Morgan shrieked, thrashing her legs. “Something’s got my ankle! Is it a snake? Oh god. Help!”
Juliette swam closer, spotting the culprit through the churning water. “It’s your ankle tether. Remember? The strap that connects you to your board so it doesn’t float off in exactly this situation.” Her own ankle tether kept her board behind her as she treaded water near Morgan.
“Get it off me!” Morgan kept thrashing. In her effort to crawl back onto her board, she lunged too far, and the board tipped, pitching her face first into the water on the other side.
This wasn’t good. Panicking in the water was never good, but panicking while wearing a tether carried a risk of getting tangled, and the water here wasn’t very clear, which would make it harder to locate Morgan if she went under. Juliette should have insisted she wear a vest. Dammit.
And where was Roux? She couldn’t risk looking for him until Morgan was safe.
He was a strong swimmer, so he was probably fine, but knowing it and believing it were two different things.
Roux was basically her child, and right now, she’d lost sight of him in an open body of water.
At the very least, he might come ashore somewhere far from their house.
This lake had so many little inlets. If she didn’t find him soon, who knew where he might end up.
“Morgan,” she called, attempting to get her attention as she moved closer, but Morgan’s arms and legs were still flailing wildly, making the board thrash too.
Juliette couldn’t get close enough to help her.
A frisson of fear slid through her system.
This could turn dangerous so easily. “Stop moving. Just . . . stop.”
Morgan’s eyes met hers, wide and desperate, and she was still flailing. “Help.”
Panic wasn’t rational. Juliette knew this.
Once they were safely back on their boards, she might even find Morgan’s fear of snakes endearing.
But Juliette was the experienced paddleboarder here.
She’d accepted the responsibility of giving Morgan a lesson, and now she was afraid she’d let her attraction to Morgan affect her judgment.
Morgan had been visibly uncomfortable with going in the lake from the start.
Juliette probably shouldn’t have brought her out here at all.
Seeing an opening, Juliette lunged forward and looped an arm around Morgan’s waist, momentarily submerging them both in the process. They surfaced with a splash, Morgan’s arms and legs now wrapped tightly around Juliette.
Their eyes met as Morgan finally stilled.
Juliette sucked in several deep breaths while she treaded water to keep them afloat.
Morgan’s panic was finally abating, thank goodness.
Now Juliette could begin to relax, too, but she needed to get Morgan back on her board.
And she was desperately trying not to notice the warm press of Morgan’s body against hers, a shocking contrast to the chill of the water.
“Are you okay?” she asked, her voice breathless.
Morgan nodded. Rivulets of water ran down her face, glistening in the sunshine so that her eyelashes seemed to sparkle. “Sorry,” she gasped. “I panicked.”
“I know. Let’s get you back on your board, okay?”
Morgan nodded, eyes still wild as she glanced at the paddleboard beside her. “How?”
“Grab that handle in the middle to steady yourself while you let your legs float to the surface behind you, then kick to slide onto the board. Then you’ll just need to get your knees under yourself and stand up the way you did at the beach.”
“Okay.” Morgan blew out a breath, then released Juliette, who missed the warmth of Morgan’s skin against hers immediately. “The sooner the better, because I still feel like something’s going to bite my toes.”
Juliette chuckled, fighting the urge to make a totally inappropriate joke about biting Morgan.
She stayed in the water in case Morgan needed help but used the opportunity to sweep her gaze over the lake, looking for Roux.
He was nowhere to be seen, at least not from this vantage point.
Hopefully once she was standing, she’d be able to spot him.
She looked back just in time to watch Morgan kick her feet and scoot her torso onto the board, splashing Juliette in the face and simultaneously providing her with an up-close view of Morgan’s ass. Juliette forced herself not to stare, even though she wanted to.
She really wanted to.
She hadn’t thought about that kiss in years, but now that Morgan had splashed back into her life, she couldn’t seem to stop reliving every pulse-pounding moment.
It had been one hell of a kiss, and Morgan’s vivacious personality had captivated her then as much as it did now.
She couldn’t figure out why someone like Morgan was still single.
She was pretty, funny, sexy in a nonintentional way—which was Juliette’s favorite kind—not to mention those dimples.
She was pretty damn close to Juliette’s idea of the perfect woman. Not that Juliette was looking for the perfect woman, at least not anymore. And anyway, Morgan’s irrational fear of lake creatures was a pretty big turnoff.
Juliette had grown up on the coast of Nova Scotia, spending most of her free time in the ocean.
She was at home on the water, and paddleboarding had become her favorite activity, although these days, she’d traded the ocean for smaller bodies of water.
Her house was within walking distance of a lake that she paddled on nearly every day during the warm months.
Morgan was on her hands and knees on the board now, breathing heavily. “Thank god,” she muttered, casting a wary glance into the water as if she still expected a creature of the deep to lunge up and bite her.
Juliette had a brief, irrational urge to kick her foot and bump Morgan’s board, except her idea of a joke would probably just terrify Morgan all over again.
Instead, Juliette pivoted in the water and swam off to retrieve both of their paddles, which were floating nearby.
After handing Morgan’s to her, she slid onto her own board.
Juliette drew her feet under herself and stood, her gaze fixed in the direction she’d last seen Roux.
His ginger head was visible in the distance, and she exhaled in relief to have visual confirmation that he was okay.
He wasn’t swimming toward the buoy anymore, thank goodness, but given his current trajectory, she had a sneaking suspicion she knew exactly where he was headed, and it wasn’t their rental house.
“Roux!” she called, knowing even as she did so that he was probably too far away to hear her, or at least too far away to want to change his course.
“Is he okay?” Morgan asked.
Juliette glanced over her shoulder to find Morgan on her feet, looking concerned. “Yes, but he’s swimming in the wrong direction.”
“I’m so sorry. I got all dramatic, and distracted you from helping Roux.”
“He’s fine, really. He’s a great swimmer.” Juliette sighed. “He’s just decided to go on a little field trip of his own, and now I’ve got to go and fetch him.”
“Um.” Morgan’s brows knitted as she gestured toward the dark clouds on the horizon. “We aren’t expecting bad weather, are we?”
“Chance of scattered showers, like usual this time of year. Listen, I’m pretty sure Roux has his sights set on that island over there.
” She gestured toward the cluster of trees visible past Roux’s bobbing head.
“It’s been our spot this week. He probably assumed that’s where we were headed, so now he thinks he’s just leading the way. ”
Morgan squinted at the island. “Oh. Was that the plan?”
“No. It’s too far for your first time. I was going to keep us close to the shoreline, but now I need to go get Roux. I’ll guide you back to the house first, though.”
“You don’t have to do that,” Morgan said. “I’d like to help. It’s my fault he got separated from us anyway.”
Juliette considered that, then shook her head. “You don’t really want to spend your one afternoon here chasing my wayward dog across the lake, do you?”
Morgan’s expression changed, flicking from concerned to determined. Then she smiled as if she were in on some sort of private joke. “Yes, I would, actually. I’m new to paddleboarding, but I’ve spent plenty of time on the rowing machine at the gym, so I’m fine to keep going.”
Indeed, now that Juliette was paying attention, she saw that Morgan’s back and shoulders flexed with an impressive amount of strength.
Juliette still had reservations about this, but she needed to catch up to Roux—the sooner the better—and she didn’t mind Morgan tagging along nearly as much as she probably should have. “All right, then. Let’s go get Roux.”