Noxious (Anathema #1) - Yolanda Olson Page 0,32

“Come on. It’s just us.”

That is what does me in. The fact that he made that bitch Daphne stay behind so we could spend some time together. Alone. Without her irritating commentary.

“Fine, but I’m keeping my underwear and my bra on,” I say, tugging my shirt over my head.

“Your choice to sit in the car in wet clothes!” Aftyn laughs, running for the edge of the lake, sending up huge splashes when he collides with the water. Before I even have my jeans unbuttoned, Aftyn’s gone. Diving under the water with more grace than he deserves to have. A second later he pops up, sending water flying again as he laughs. “This feels amazing, Wills. Get your ass in here!”

I ignore his taunts as I strip down to my bra and underwear, folding everything on top of my shoes to try and keep bugs out of my clothes. I’ve got dry underwear and another bra in my bag, but I’ll have to completely strip to change. Wavering over keeping them on or not, I groan when Aftyn whistles at me.

“Hurry up! You are so fucking slow,” he calls out.

“You’re too fucking impatient!” Turning around, I decide to keep them on as I move to the edge of the lake. It’s bigger than I thought it would be, and there’s no way I’m just charging into the water like him. It still has a chill to it, and as the water gets above my knees, I know it’s going to take my breath away.

“Just dive in, Wills. It’ll be way easier to adjust.”

“Not all of us jump headfirst into absolutely everything,” I snark, taking my time as the water reaches my hips. My plan is to wait here so I can adjust to it, but Aftyn suddenly bursts out of the water next to me. Before I can stop him, he scoops me up and tosses me farther out into the lake. I scream something at him just before I go under, the chill pushing the rest of my air out as I bounce back up from the bottom.

“Dammit, Aftyn!” I shout as soon as I get my head above water again, but he’s just laughing, floating on his back a few yards away. “God, you’re such an asshole.”

“We don’t have all day for you to be a princess about the water, Willa.”

Splashing him, I roll my eyes, but I know it’s a mistake the second he looks at me. Aftyn is upright in a flash, that sly grin tilting his lips just before he swings his arm across the top of the water to send a wall of water at my face.

“You ass!” Wiping my face, I lean back and float so I can kick water right back at him. Soon enough we’re in a full-on water war, but Aftyn is definitely winning. He keeps going under just so he can pick me up and throw me.

If I had any make-up left before this, it’s definitely gone now… but as our laughter winds down, I don’t even care. It’s been way too long since Aftyn and I just hung out together without some alternate agenda for one or both of us.

Of course, I’m already driving him to Arizona in my car… but it’s still nice.

Both of us just floating, his hand reaching out to find mine so that we can link our fingers and stay together while the clouds roll by in a never-ending heather gray blanket.

This moment—this moment right now—makes the entire shitshow of a trip worth it, because for once Aftyn isn’t putting on a show or trying to be the biggest asshole in the room. It’s just us.

Like it was always supposed to be.

Twenty-Three

Battleaxe pt. 2

Aftyn

Being in the lake alone with Wills, away from the absolute mess that is Daphne, feels a lot better than it should.

I know that eventually we’ll be able to ditch her and I’m hoping that it’s before we get to Lakyn’s.

I’m still not entirely sure how I’ll react to seeing him in person, but I’m sure it will be better than how I would react to seeing Mom every day.

“What’s wrong, Aftyn?” Wills asks, pushing my damp hair away from my forehead.

“Huh?” I ask distractedly.

“You’ve got that Meyer scowl happening so…”

I chuckle as I do my best to force a smile onto my face, though from the way she squeezes my hand, I know that I’ve only deepened the scowl.

“Thinking about Mom,” I tell her as I look back up at the