Lauren

 

By the time Nick and I had pulled into my new home late at night, I could barely move from exhaustion. I’d never driven so far in one day before or through so much traffic. With the light nearly gone, I could barely keep my eyes open while I met my other roommates, Beth and Renee. Beth seemed as excited to see me as Natalie, but Renee gave me one cold glance and disappeared into her room.

Because it was so late, everyone helped carry all my belongings in while I inflated the air mattress I brought with me to tide me over till I could get a real bed. Then, they’d said goodnight and left me alone in a strange room with new smells and shadows, my boxes and suitcases strewn around the room. It was unnerving, but even with my stomach churning with butterflies, I went right to sleep.

It wasn’t the sun that woke me up, but Natalie bursting into my room. “Lauren, wake up. You can’t sleep through our first day together.”

I stared at her with bleary eyes, hoping I was having a nightmare. “I could if you’d go away.”

She laughed and tugged my blanket off. “No way. We’re going to a pool party in less than an hour.”

My eyes finally opened as the horror of her words dawned on me. “Did you say pool party?” Then, remembering how persistent Natalie could be, I said, “Please, can I just go back to sleep?”

“No way. I told everyone you were coming and they all want to meet you. Now get up and get ready! It’s past noon.”

Natalie left and I remembered all the times she had tortured me during our long friendship. But usually it was with tweezers, wax strips, and mascara. This was too much.

The thought of meeting so many people at once was scary enough. Meeting them while wearing a bathing suit sounded like the worst idea ever. I wanted to jump in my car and speed back to New Mexico. And I totally could. My family would be thrilled. But I would always know I’d chickened out. So, I dragged myself out of bed and headed to the bathroom.

Once I was clean and feeling human again, I found my black swim suit, and began wrestling it on. I wiggled my hips from side to side and growled. The humidity made my skin sticky, further complicating the process. Just as I yanked it into place, Natalie walked in my room without knocking. I don’t think she knew how.

Her brilliant eyes, carefully made up with perfectly winged eyeliner, swept over me. “Lauren, girl, where have you been hiding all those curves? No wonder Nick jumped all over you this summer.”

Crossing my arms over my chest, I blushed. “Stop it. My brothers have teased me enough. I hate it.”

“Why?” Natalie asked, looking completely confused.

I glanced over her, my model perfect friend, and rolled my eyes. She looked amazing in a sapphire blue tankini and sheer white cover-up. Her bright red hair was twisted into a careless knot of curls on top of her head, and giant sunglasses perched over her side swept bangs, ready for action in the sunshine. And her figure had never been anything but womanly since she was fifteen. She loved it when people noticed her, which everyone did, so there was no way she’d ever understand.

“Never mind. Look, Nat, I really don’t want to go.”

“Why? What’s wrong?”

I motioned to me in a swimsuit with a farmer’s tan and legs covered in new mosquito bites. I’d learned all about those last night.

Raising both eyebrows and shrugging, she said, “I don’t see the problem.”

I sighed. “How about if I meet your friends later, when I have more clothes on?”

“No way. Besides, Nick is coming as soon as he gets off work.”

I smiled and relaxed, thinking about Nick with his muscled chest gleaming in the sun. “Well, that changes things.” Natalie made a gagging sound and I turned to her in surprise. “What?”

“This is so weird. Seeing you two kiss last night was freaky.”

“Just because he’s your brother.”

“I guess. I mean he’s okay, but I will never know what girls see in him.”

“Um, he’s gorgeous for starters.”

“Gross. Stop, Lauren. I know you’ve always had a crush on him, but…”

“What? No I didn’t.”

“Oh, please. It was so obvious. But I never thought you’d get together. I guess it was bound to happen though, with no other girls around.” I glared at her and Natalie opened her eyes wide. “That so sounded worse than I meant it to. You know I love you, Lauren. We’ve been besties since we were twelve.”

“But I’m not good enough for Nick?”

Natalie straightened, towering over me. “No way. You’re too good for him if anything. Look, you know how my mouth gets away from me sometimes. I would totally love to have you for a sister-in-law.”

“We are so far from that.”

Natalie’s phone beeped in her hand and she looked down at it, effectively ending our conversation. “It’s Beth. She says they’ve already gotten started. Let’s go.”

Still wanting to refuse, I opened my mouth to argue, but our eyes locked in a battle of wills. Just this once, I wanted to win. Natalie was a force of nature, though. My shoulders sagged and one of my shoulder straps threatened to slip down my arm. I tugged at it and sighed.

Laughing, Natalie crossed her arms. “Relax. You’re going to have so much fun. All the guys are going to hate Nick for grabbing you before they even got a chance.”

She still had no idea that was the last thing I wanted. But I doubted anyone would notice me next to her anyway, so I slipped on my flip flops and a long t-shirt that covered most of what I wanted to keep hidden. “Okay. Lead the way.”

Pleased with her easy victory, Natalie grinned and headed out through the dim hallway again. The whole house was in shadows since the blinds were shut to keep out as much heat as possible. Unfamiliar with the layout, I shuffled slowly in Natalie’s wake. She handed me one of the towels she’d flung over the back of the couch and opened the front door. I froze behind her, blinded by the sun. “Man it’s bright. Let me get my sunglasses out of my car.”

I opened the unlocked door and leaned into the sauna of the overheated interior to grab my glasses.

“I’m so excited,” Natalie said, waiting for me, “You’re finally going to meet Jake.”

I wiped the lenses with the hem of my t-shirt and said, “Yeah. Time to see if he’s as perfect as you say he is.”

“Seriously, Lauren, he is. And so smart. He’s totally chill all the time and funny. He even moved back here just to take care of his grandma.”

Laughing, I shut my car door. “Okay, stop. Are you trying to make me fall for him too?”

“Don’t even think about it. He’s mine.”

Walking beside Natalie was so intimidating. She belonged on a runway, not a quiet, residential sidewalk. The idea that I could ever steal a guy from her was ludicrous, but part of me, maybe the part that still hurt from her earlier comment, couldn’t help asking, “Really? Since when? I thought you weren’t sure where you stand with him?”

She raised an eyebrow. “We’re just taking things slow.”

“Hasn’t it been, like, a year? And you aren’t even official yet?”

“We’re both just really busy.”

I raised my eyebrows but kept quiet. What did I know? I was in my first relationship.

We crossed the street to Jake’s apartment complex and rounded the corner of the building nearest the street. The space in front of us opened up into a courtyard with a wrought iron fence wrapped around the pool deck. Through its bars, I could see more than a dozen college-aged people hanging out. The voices and splashes echoed strangely off the surrounding apartment buildings, amplifying the sounds until I thought my nerves would choke me. As I followed Natalie through the gate, I looked around, hoping to see Nick, but I couldn’t find him. Without my boyfriend to lean on, I hovered behind Natalie.

A blond girl with blunt cut bangs and a wide smile ran over to us. “It’s about time! Hey, Lauren! Pretty sweet pool, huh?”

Even though I’d only met Beth briefly last night, I liked her already. She was so friendly.

“It’s awesome,” I said, looking around. And it was. The pool was surprisingly big and well maintained. White loungers and round tables lined the fence facing the pool, and the aqua blue water looked incredibly inviting.

“Ready to meet everybody?” Natalie asked.

Before I could answer, Beth jumped in. “Oh, don’t make her do that. She looks nervous enough.”

Great, I looked nervous.

Natalie’s mouth twisted with displeasure. “Ok, but I want her to meet Jake, at least.”

Natalie was scanning the pool for him, so Beth sighed and said, “He’s over there in the deep end playing basketball. Are you really going to pull him away from his game to meet her? That won’t be weird or anything.”

I leaned to the right to look behind Beth, curious to see the coolest guy ever. Of course, I had no idea how to pick him out of all the bobbing, splashing figures wrestling over a ball at the deep end of the pool. Giving up, I straightened and realized Beth and Natalie were having a whispered argument.

Sweat prickled on my scalp and in my cleavage. I tugged at the top of my suit, wishing I could stick a towel down there to dry it up. I needed to cool off so badly—enough to not care who saw me in my suit after all. “I’m going to swim,” I said. Neither of them even looked at me, so I shrugged and took off my flip flops and t-shirt, dropping them on a lounger. The pavement burned my feet so I hurried to the edge of the pool. I dove in at the edge of the deep end, a safe distance from all the guys playing ball.

Gliding forward with my eyes closed, I reveled in the cool ribbons of water curling around my body. I hadn’t taken a big breath of air, so about midway across, I kicked up to the surface. But then something slammed into me from the side. The impact made me lose the last of my air and totally disoriented me until I didn’t know which way was up. Desperate for air, I forced myself to calm down and open my eyes. Seeing bubbles rising up, I followed them, kicking hard. As my head broke the surface and I took a breath, the turbulent water splashed into my face, choking me.

My head spun as I coughed. I struggled to tread water and find oxygen at the same time. Then strong arms closed around my shoulders. Supported against someone stronger and bigger than I was, I relaxed, finally able to breathe.

“Are you okay?” A deep, concerned voice asked. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t know you were there.”

I scraped back the heavy curtain of wet hair in front of my face and pulled on my nose to make sure I didn’t have any snot coming out. “It’s not your fault,” I said.

“It was too. I was swimming backwards.” When I choked on another wave of water, he said, “Come on, let’s get you over to the side of the pool.”

He let go of me to give me room to swim, but stayed close. Even with a throbbing head, bruised shoulder, and burning lungs, I still noticed his strong arms and shoulders pulling him effortlessly through the water. I probably looked more like a drowning chicken. When I reached the side, he was there before me, holding out a hand to help me. I took it and twisted around as he pulled me up until I was securely perched on the edge of the pool.

“There you go. Sit here a minute.” He sat next to me, turning sideways until his knee brushed against my thigh. “Where did I hit you?”

It was hard to think with him touching me. “My whole left side. But I’ll be fine in a minute.”

He smiled. “I’ll try to resist making any jokes about you being fine just now.”

I coughed in surprise, then coughed a few more times as my lungs decided that was a good idea.

When I was finally done, he asked, “You’re Lauren, right?”

I nodded, not surprised he’d guessed.

One of the other guys from his game shouted to him. “Hey, Jake. Are you coming back or not?”

My mouth dropped open and I studied him as he turned to look at his friend. So this was the legendary Jake. In profile, his face was rugged with a harshly cut jaw and chin, but expressive eyebrows and full lips softened the effect. Drops of water skimmed down his tanned face and clung to his spiked lashes. His lips were rosy from the cold water. “Play without me for a minute,” he called back.

“You don’t have to worry about me anymore.” I said, not wanting him to miss out. “Really. I’m okay.”

He nodded, but didn’t jump back into the pool. “So you’re a cowgirl, huh?”

Thanks a lot, farmer’s tan. “Yeah. Is it that obvious?”

“Actually, not really. If Natalie hadn’t told me, I never would have known.”

I sat up straight as five generations of pride shot through me. “Why not?”

He shrugged, looking uncomfortable. “You look too delicate.”

Rolling my eyes, I said, “I’m tougher than I look, I promise.” I held up my left hand and showed him my latest scar. It was still pink and puckered, about three inches long, curving over the skin between my thumb and forefinger. “I got this about a month ago wrestling our billy goat out of a fence. He’d gotten his head stuck trying to reach the strawberries. Man, he was tangled up. Even a tough guy like you would have had a hard time with that mess, but I got him free, even if it took nine stitches to fix me up again.”

Jake laughed and pulled my hand in close to look at it. His touch sent shivers through me and I pulled my hand away like I’d been shocked.

The side of his mouth twisted up in a half-smile. “Okay, I believe you. Let’s just say you weren’t what I was expecting.”

My brothers had always called me “Pixie” and teased me mercilessly about how little I was. Maybe I was too sensitive about it, but it still galled me. “Yeah? Well after the way Natalie goes on and on about you, I expected something different too.”

Which was true. I’d been sure she’d been exaggerating about how hot Jake was right up until I realized who he was. But he didn’t have to know what I meant. Let him think the worst. Then I pressed my fist to my lips in horror as I realized how I’d just betrayed Natalie. But, surely he already knew she liked him.

With a thoughtful expression, Jake asked, “Are you going to elaborate?”

“No,” I said, slipping into the water. I sank below the surface and kicked off hard against the side of the pool, swimming furiously underwater to get away from him. But in seconds, strong fingers caught my ankle and jerked me backwards. Powerless against Jake’s strength, I didn’t resist. This wasn’t the first time a guy had tried to manhandle me in the water. I had three brothers after all.

My legs slipped past Jake’s chest as he pulled me even with him, and I straightened as soon as he let go of my foot. I caught sight of his laughing face and nearly laughed myself, but there was no way I was going to explain what I meant. Curling quickly, I pulled my knees up to my chest and when Jake tried to pull me towards him, I kicked out against him, ramming my feet into his diaphragm.

He let go immediately and bent forward, but before I could swim away, he grabbed my shoulder and pushed me under water. My feet landed squarely on the bottom of the pool and I pushed up hard. As soon as my head broke the surface, Jake grabbed my shoulders again, but this time he pulled me closer. I braced myself against his chest with my hands, trying not to notice how firm his muscles were.

“Tell me what you meant,” he said, laughter making his words unsteady.

“Not happening,” I gasped out.

He pushed me back under water, but I was prepared for it and grabbed a decent breath as I plugged my nose with my fingers. This was so mature. When I hit the bottom, I let go of my nose, turned, and swam away from Jake into the shallow area where I would be able to get away easier.

He followed me, of course. As I came up, his arms wrapped around me from behind, completely inescapable. With his forearms around my ribs and right under my chest, my cleavage was lifted higher just as I was, though of course he couldn’t see it. He probably had no idea that with the pressure of water pushing down as he lifted me up, way more of my chest was being exposed than was cool. I struggled to pull up the front of my suit while my legs flailed in water, but it wouldn’t budge. I prayed he’d hurry up and body slam me, which I was sure he was about to do, before the worst happened. Surely I could get away from him this time. But then the realization surged through me that I didn’t want to get away.

Which was probably why I screamed so loud when I saw Nick and Natalie on the edge of the pool watching us with identical scowls.

“Oh my gosh, let go of me,” I said to Jake, pummeling his arms with both fists until he released me.

I flicked my sodden hair out of my face, glad the water only came up to my armpits here so I could stand up. “Nick,” I said, fumbling to sound normal while I adjusted my swimsuit back into place.

“Hey man,” Jake said, his voice calmer than mine. “I was just getting to know your girlfriend.”

“So I saw,” Nick said, the muscles in his jaw bunching when he closed his mouth again.

And this was my first attempt to fit in here. Epic disaster.