Chapter 10
While I love my little condo and the comfortable space I’ve made it into, the place has one glaring flaw.
There’s no pool.
For a girl who grew up in the humid northeast, my body has yet to get used to the desert atmosphere even after living here for years. Which is why I finally give into Cat’s multiple invites to attend a gathering at her friend’s house. Apparently, this guy Damien has people over most weekends. She said I could socialize if I want, but I could also just soak in the refreshing water. Option number two sounded perfect, and I don’t regret my decision when I push through the tall gate into a lovely oasis.
Damien Cortez’s yard is full of lush greenery that still seems like natural vegetation for our arid climate. The pool is a sprawling blue heaven with two waterfalls feeding it from smaller, elevated pools. People collect in groups around the property and in the pool, drinking from sweating cans as they chat and laugh and fill the space with casual good cheer.
“Ava, hey.” The deep voice comes from my right, and I spy the security guard Aspen approaching carrying a cooler. “Didn’t know you were coming.”
Since I don’t spend any time on the floor, I don’t chat with the burly bearded man much, but I do know that he’s an Earth Elemental. Also, before Yasmin set up gated parking for us, he was always happy to act as a safety escort to my car, which I appreciated.
I smile and shrug, fiddling with my sunglasses. “Cat convinced me. I figure after the tenth invite, she’d think I have something against her if I refused again.”
“Cat convinced you, huh?” He sets down the cooler and pops open the top.
“Yeah. I hope it’s okay. That I’m here.”
The Pyro made it sound like anyone was welcome, but maybe she didn’t have the right to expand the guest list?
“It’s good,” Aspen reassures me. “Damien likes a big group. Want something to drink?” He tilts the cooler toward me so I can browse the offerings.
“What’s the fruitiest most basic bitch drink you have in there?”
The Petal Pusher chuckles, riffles through the ice, then pulls out a raspberry hard seltzer.
“Perfect.” I crack the can and take a sip, enjoying the cold, sweet, bubbly taste. This outing already has a thumbs-up from me. “Will people think I’m weird if I just chill by myself for a bit?”
“No. Go for it.” He closes the cooler then points toward a handsome tan-skinned man working the grill. “That’s Damien if you haven’t met him. Say hi at some point.”
“Will do. Thanks for the welcome. And the drink.” I raise my can to him, then enjoy a slow stroll around the massive pool as I sip my beverage, eyes on an empty lounge chair near the deep end. As I’m taking in the gathering, I spot when Aspen joins a group that includes Cat. He bends over—way over since she’s a foot or more shorter than him—to whisper in her ear. Her sunglass-covered eyes scan until her face points my way across the water. My coworker grins wide and waves. I wave back, glad she doesn’t gesture for me to join her. Maybe later after I enjoy some ‘me’ time. This week was all meetings and instruction and reference desk hours and more meetings. I barely got to retreat to my office at all. I need to decompress.
Luckily, the chair I snag has a sunshade. My skin does not absorb UV rays well, turning my normally paper pale complexion into painfully red tomato skin. One more small ailment I might not need to worry about if I didn’t have to use all my healing magic on my migraines.
Touch of sunburn? Spell it away!
If only.
After tugging off my sundress, I pull out my extra strength sunblock and give myself a good spray coating. Then I unearth my latest read and settle on the thick cushion with a happy sigh. Dressed in a bikini that would give the CFF administration heart palpitations, holding a tasty alcoholic drink in one hand and a historical romance in the other, I’m officially in my happy place.
My can is half-empty, and the rogue is kneeling between his love interest’s knees in the carriage, his hand inching up her skirts, when a sound tugs me out of my fictional world.
A laugh. The noise is deep, rich, and ends with a genuine snort that has me smiling before I glance up to see where the joyful sound is coming from.
When I spot the laugher, I’m hit with a full-body shiver.
Samuel Reyes stands on the opposite side of the pool from me, and the sight of him has me thirsty for a lot more than what’s left of my seltzer.
He’s in a set of swim trunks, the color a royal blue that makes his tan skin look gold in the bright midday sun. The Squid is tall and built, but in a lean way. He has the broad shoulders of a swimmer and a tapered waist that makes a woman want to tug those shorts down. He doesn’t have the perfectly defined six-pack of a guy who spends every free minute working out and refuses to touch carbs, but he does have a hint of that naughty V just above his waistband. And the way his arms are casually crossed on his chest makes a set of biceps bulge to the point where I want to bite them to test how firm they arm.
Wait. Hold up. NO.
He’s an overeager customer. Not a guy you’re going to bite!
Belatedly, I realize the guy Sammy is joking with is an Elemental I’ve seen at the club a few times, usually talking to Cat. Jade pointed him out as the Squid who caused the notorious sprinkler incident that briefly shut down the club last year.
My mind makes the connection.
Squids. Of course. Cat said Damien is a Squid, too. I should’ve known there was a chance Sammy would attend this gathering. I hadn’t thought to ask the Pyro about the guest list.
Sammy laughs at something else his friend says, and for whatever reason, that earns him a shove. One that sends him straight into the pool.
Unfortunately, it’s not until this moment I realize my lounge chair is situated directly in front of one of the pool ladders. The one that Sammy swims toward after he comes up sputtering and chuckling.
There’s nowhere for me to hide unless I want to dive behind some nearby shrubbery. And I’m not entirely sure I want to. At least, I know that I don’t want to be the one running away.
So I stay seated and watch the live porno that is Samuel Reyes climbing out of the pool.
His long fingers wrap around the metal of the ladder, and his muscles flex as he pulls himself upwards. Water streams over his bare skin and saturates his swimsuit. The material clings to every bit of him, leaving little to the imagination.
Sammy whips his head to the side so his wet hair flicks out of his eyes.
And that’s when he spots me.
One foot on the concrete, another on the top rung of the ladder, he freezes. His gaze takes in my face first, then drags over my body. In the wake of his attention, I swallow a decadent rush of magic. Like he held out a rich chocolate peanut butter brownie, and I took a massive bite.
I think I’d like to bite him.
I blink away the thought and try to force my brain back online.
“Ava!” The shout comes from across the pool, and I jerk my head toward my name, shocked when my eyeballs don’t topple out of my head in the process, since they were glued to Sammy a second ago.
Cat stands at the opposite edge of the pool and holds up a can. “Do you want another drink?”
I swallow hard, still tasting dessert, and slowly shake my head.
Cat grins. “Okay. Let me know if you change your mind.”
“Ava?”
I bite my lip to keep from groaning at the sound of my real name in Sammy’s voice. This was one of the many reasons I didn’t tell him.
Because I knew the syllables would sound too good in his smooth tone.
When I focus on Sammy again, I spy awe on his slack face. The expression clears, replaced by eagerness, and he takes a step toward me.
Then he stumbles to a stop again, water dripping off his body onto the sun-warmed stones. I watch as his face falls into chagrin, and he rocks back on his heels.
“Sorry,” he says. “I…sorry. I didn’t know you’d be here.” He clears his throat. “Not that I don’t want you here. I do. Gods I do. Too much.” He grimaces, huffs a dry laugh, and drags a hand through his hair. The movement sets the muscles in his chest and arm to flexing in a whole host of delicious ways. “Shit. I’m sorry. When I see you, I turn into a mess.” Sammy rubs a rough hand over his face, as if to wake himself up from a deep sleep. “But that’s my problem. You go back to reading. I’ll stay on the other side of the pool.” He pauses, glancing toward the tall fence that surrounds the yard, then nods as if coming to a decision. “Actually, I can head out.”
He’s going to leave?
Sammy just got here as far as I can tell, and he’s going to fully vacate the party because he thinks that’ll make me more comfortable.
As he moves to leave, I find myself making what could be a terrible choice.
“Hey, weirdo,” I call out to him, making the Squid pause in his retreat and turn back to me with a wide-eyed expression. I point to the empty chair at my side. “Sit.”