Page 96 of The Dixon Rule

I glance at Percy. I don’t think I’ve seen him flip a page yet.

“Come on, Girlfriend,” I say. “Let’s cool off. I can see that temper of yours heating up.”

“Fine.” She lets me tug her off the chair. That slamming body of hers is barely covered by a tiny red bikini. She adjusts the two triangles as she walks toward the shallow end.

I know my next move could backfire on me and ignite her temper even more, but I grab her arm and draw her toward me.

“Where do you think you’re going?” I taunt.

A yelp escapes her lips when I scoop her into my arms and run toward the pool. I jump, and then we’re airborne for a second before we hit the water with a loud splash. Diana is sputtering with laughter when her head pops out of the water.

“Oh, you asshole,” she says, smacking me in the chest. But her eyes are dancing.

See? I know how to cheer Dixon up.

We swim side by side for a while and eventually wind up in the middle of the pool. I can stand in this section, but she can’t, so she wraps her legs and arms around me, clinging to my body like a koala hanging onto a tree.

“Can you really not touch the ground here?” I ask.

“No! I’m short.”

“Must be a terrible way to go through life.”

I walk us backward until my shoulder blades bump the side of the pool near our chairs. Diana twists around so her back is flush against my chest. I wrap my arms around her, tilting my head to the sky. I don’t see any murderous magicians, but suddenly I’m looking for shapes everywhere. Dixon rubs off on me in the strangest ways.

“What kind of thoughts do you think a cloud would have if it was sentient?” I ask her.

“I can’t even begin to answer that question.”

I absently play with the end of her wet ponytail. “I think he’d think, what the hell am I doing up here?”

There’s a beat of silence, and then Diana bursts out laughing, waves splashing everywhere as she shudders in my arms.

“Oh my God, why are you so weird?” she howls.

“Shut up.”

I hear Gigi giggling from her chair. “Okay, I take it back.”

“What?” Diana says, glancing over.

“You two are kind of perfect for each other.”

I don’t know if Percy heard that, but I notice his cloudy eyes flick in our direction before he lowers them back to his novel.

“Why won’t he go away?” Diana mutters to me.

“Do you want me to go over there and say something? Because I’m happy to.”

“No. He legally rented the Garrison place. What are we supposed to do about that?”

“You could file some sort of complaint with Brenda?”

“He hasn’t done anything that warrants kicking him out of the building. Trust me, I’ve read the handbook.”

Of course she has.

“He’ll be gone soon,” I assure her. “And until then, I will diligently serve as your boyfriend.”

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