top in place and she was offering it up to Reese Madigan on a silver platter. Like her skin was his to touch.
Oh hell no. Not happening.
Before I could stop myself, I was striding toward them, ready to put an end to this little game they were playing.
“Hey Jude.” Ashleigh stepped in front of me, blocking my path to Lila. She flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder and smiled at me. “You looked really good out there today. At practice,” she added.
“Thanks.”
“So I’m throwing a pool party next Saturday. You should come. Bring whoever.”
“Yeah, maybe,” I said, distracted by Lila whose back was being slathered with suntan lotion compliments of Reese who was doing a shitty job of it, might I add.
But his hands were touching Lila. I was having trouble breathing.
“I’ve invited the girls from the squad. We’ll just hang out and chill by the pool.” Giving me another smile, she swept her tongue over her pink glossy lips and placed the palm of her hand on my bare chest, looking up at me from under her long lashes. “It’ll be fun. Even more fun if you’re there.”
I looked straight into Lila’s eyes as she watched us over her shoulder. She averted her gaze quickly but not before I saw her face fall. Disappointment? Hurt?
Meanwhile, she was sitting on top of the picnic table next to Reese, talking now. They were shoulder to shoulder, thighs touching, and he was listening to every word that came out of her mouth like she was the most fascinating creature on the planet.
No part of her should be touching any part of him.
There were a few different ways to put the brakes on this, but I knew Lila well enough to know that if I shut it down she’d push back so I opted for a different tactic.
Improvise. Adapt. Overcome.
“Hey Lila,” I said casually.
“Yeah?” Her brows raised, a look of practiced boredom on her face to hide the curiosity. I knew this girl so well, I could practically read her mind.
“You up for a race?”
“What kind of race?”
I jerked my chin toward the water. “First one to the waterfall wins.”
“What are you willing to lose?”
How laughable that she actually thought she could beat me. Gotta love that kind of optimism. “The winner gets a slave for the day.”
“So when you lose, you’ll be at my beck and call for an entire day.”
I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing as she jumped off the picnic table faster than you could say Rebel, earning me a scowl from Reese. Hey, I’d warned him. Fair is fair. “You’re on. Get ready to eat my dust.”
Lila never could resist a dare or a chance to compete with me. Even though she never won, she still believed that one day she would.
She sprinted toward the water, and I gave her a head start before I chased after her just like I’d been doing since we were nine years old.
As usual, she lost and I was waiting for her when she reached the waterfall.
She pushed her wet hair off her face with both hands. “You did that on purpose,” she accused, green eyes narrowed on me, water spiking her long lashes. The sunlight picked up the flecks of gold in her eyes. She was beautiful. Full of fire and sass. And I didn’t want anyone else to have her.
I wanted to kiss her. Lick the beads of water off her face. Suck on her plump bottom lip.
“Did what?” I played dumb. We were treading water, circling each other, her long dark hair slicked back from her summer sun-kissed face and I was loving the idea that she’d be my slave for a day. My imagination was running wild with the possibilities of having Lila at my beck and call.
“Challenged me to a race, knowing I can never resist.”
“You can never resist me?” My leg brushed hers under the water and I wondered if she felt it too, that current of electricity that zinged through my body.
She rolled her eyes. “That’s not what I said.”
“It’s what you meant.” I spread my arms. “I’m irresistible.”
Which was the only invitation she needed to launch herself out of the water and dunk me. I wrapped my hands around her waist, lifted her clear out of the water and tossed her in the air like she weighed nothing. The look on her face was priceless when she emerged from the water, spluttering.
I laughed. She was so cute. It only