Chapter 13 #2
As much as I want to stay like this, the heat is getting the best of me. And I’m fearful of whatever kind of smell I must be putting off after a long workday in the sun. An idea hits me, and I straighten abruptly. Maxinne lifts her head, blinking up at me.
“Come with me.” I stand up and reach for her hand.
She pauses before threading her fingers through mine.
Her hand is soft and fits there perfectly.
She sets the Bible down onto the dock, and I lead her down the dock toward a giant oak tree, its shadow stretching long across the bank.
The old rope swing still hangs from its thick branch, frayed in a few places but sturdy enough for another reckless jump.
Maxinne stops beside me, brows furrowing. “What are you doing?”
“I’m about to cool off.”
I throw her a look over my shoulder, a smirk tugging at the corner of my mouth. Then, I grab the hem of my shirt and peel it off in one motion, tossing it at her feet.
Her eyes widen for a second before she attempts to school her expression. “I think you just wanted an excuse to take off your shirt again.”
“Maybe.” I wink. “Why don’t you come with me?”
“I’m not taking off my shirt.”
“I’m not asking you to.” I tug the rope forward, testing its weight. “Jump in with your clothes on. I promise you’ll feel better than you do sitting in this heat.”
She shakes her head adamantly. “I don’t know. I didn’t come out here with plans of getting soaked.”
I grip the rope with both hands, backing up into position. “Come on, Max!” My grin stretches wide. “Live a little!”
Before she can protest again, I take off running, the rope pulling taut as it swings me out over the water. For a split second, I’m weightless, air rushing past me, water glittering beneath my body, and then I let go.
Chilly lake water erupts around me in a roaring splash. The shock of the cold steals my breath, but in the best way possible. When I surface, I shake my hair back and blink against the sunlight. Maxinne is standing on the bank with her hands on her hips.
“You’re full of surprises.” She laughs, and something about the sound ricochets straight through my chest.
I splash a handful of water up at her. It barely reaches her ankles, but she still jumps back with a squeal. “Zane!”
“Come on.” I beckon her forward, splashing again. “You know you want to.”
She shakes her head, but a grin betrays her. She’s battling with herself, shifting from one foot to the other, chewing her lip. She glances from me, to the lake, to her clothes, and sighs dramatically.
“Fine.”
“That’s the spirit!”
She steps closer to the rope, gripping it loosely, eyeing the lake as if waiting for it to give her permission.
“You’re overthinking it.” I raise my voice across the distance. “Just jump.”
She closes her eyes and inhales a deep breath before she runs and jumps. The water splashes around her as she drops into the lake. When she surfaces, her dark hair is plastered to her cheeks, and a wild laugh bursts out of her.
“Oh my gosh!” she gasps. “It’s colder than I expected.”
“Yeah, but a good cold, right?”
She paddles closer toward me, her eyes bright in a way I haven’t seen until now, and she says, a little breathlessly, “Okay…you were right.”
“Say it again.”
“No way.”
I laugh and splash water at her. She splashes back, drenching me with a wave that hits me square in the face. When we finally stop splashing each other, we rush out of the water in a race and take the rope swing a few more times.
After the fifth time, we stay in the water and float on our backs, side by side, hands bumping with the movement of the water. The sky spreads out above us, painted with golden yellow and orange layers as the sun starts to dip low on the horizon.
Maxinne’s voice drifts toward me. “This…was a good idea.”
I turn my head, and the water laps at my ears. “Thanks. I have them sometimes.”
Sven leaps into the water with a splash that sends ripples racing across the lake’s surface. He paddles lazy circles around us, his tail wagging and splashing water at us, before deciding we’re boring and hauls himself back onto the dock with a full-body shake that sprays water everywhere.
We float on our backs again, the lake gently rocking us, and my fingers brush against Maxinne’s.
The contact is light and unintentional, but I don’t pull away.
Instead, I curl my fingers around hers, my pulse kicking hard at the simple touch.
Apparently, I’ve somehow decided to stop pretending that I don’t want whatever this is growing between me and her.
She doesn’t let go either, giving me silent permission that this is okay.
“So…” she says softly, keeping her gaze on the sky above us.
“So…” I repeat and grin at her.
She finally turns her head slightly so she can look at me. “How are you doing?”
“Better now that I’m no longer on the verge of a heatstroke.”
She squeezes my hand, and it shoots an electrical current throughout my arm, landing right into the center of my heart. “I meant…after running into your ex. We haven’t talked about it since then.”
My gut tightens at the memory of that day. “Oh, that.”
She shifts closer, water splashing gently against our shoulders. “I figured I’d ask since I kind of unloaded all my stuff onto you earlier. I thought maybe you could do the same—if you want to.” She hesitates. “It’s easier to let things out than to keep them buried where they fester.”
I exhale. She’s right, and somehow, having her here makes the weight of it all manageable.
It’s never been easy for me to talk about Lily.
My instincts are to shut this down, to protect what’s left of my heart.
But another part of me understands that Maxinne isn’t asking for everything. She’s only asking for honesty.
“I’ll admit,” I finally say, keeping my eyes fixed on the clouds drifting overhead, “running into her messed with me more than I expected. I’ve spent years convincing myself I was past it. That I’d moved on. But it turns out some things won’t always stay buried.”
Her thumb brushes over the back of my hand. “That’s understandable.”
The words settle into me, easing the tension I didn’t realize I was still bracing against. We float there in silence, hands linked, the lake holding us both. Talking about the past with Maxinne doesn’t make me feel trapped there anymore. I clear my throat, my grip on her hand tightening a fraction.
We stop floating on our backs now, both of us letting go of each other’s hand so we can twist until our heads are bobbing above water. I look at Maxinne, her brows knitted together, eyes soft with understanding.
“I let our breakup define who I was for such a long time. I allowed it to convince me that I’d never be good enough to be chosen by anyone else. And for a while, I believed that was just…who I am now.”
Maxinne frowns but stays quiet, letting me continue.
“But after running into her, I realized I no longer want to carry that weight around and let the past have so much power over my life.” I swallow, looking over at where Sven is watching us from the dock. “I don’t want to live stuck in that version of myself anymore.”
“Zane, you’re allowed to heal at your own pace.”
Maxinne swims closer to me, her hand finding mine again. Her thumb brushes slow circles over my knuckles, and the simple touch nearly undoes me.
“Letting go of someone who once meant everything to you is never easy.”
Her words settle deep into my core, somehow easing the tightness in my chest. It clicks then, how similar our wounds are. They might be shaped differently, but they ache in the same places.
“And for what it’s worth, I think you’re doing better than you give yourself credit for.”
I meet her gaze, the lake reflecting light into her irises. Maxinne has no idea that she’s done more for the locked-up parts of me than six years of telling myself I didn’t need anyone ever did. She’s already helped my heart to heal.
She squeezes my hand once more before finally letting go to swim toward the dock. I swim ahead of her, making it into a competition for who can reach the dock first. Thanks to my longer limbs, I reach it first, and I pull myself out of the water.
The evening air hits my skin, and thanks to the lake cooling us off, the temperature has dropped enough to cause goosebumps to appear along my arms. I reach for my discarded shirt, mostly to give my hands something to do.
Maxinne climbs out a second later, water streaming from the hem of her shirt as it clings to her frame.
I stare for a moment, taking in how the fabric seemed to smooth over her curves, how a loose strand of hair sticks to her cheek, before I’m able to force my attention elsewhere.
I study the trees, look down at the dock, and call Sven over so he can distract me.
The air feels thicker now, charged with the unspoken words we’ve not said. Until I finally break the silence.
“Are you ready for our hike in the morning?”
She looks back at me over her shoulder. “I’m looking forward to it.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.” She smiles at me as we make our way toward the cabins.
“Good,” I say. “Me too.”