Page 66 of It Started at the Lake

I may (totally) slither down his body, taking my time to caress as much of Bennett’s body with my own in the process. He snatches my lingering hands, trapping them. He smiles at me like he knows exactly what I’m doing.

Bennett playfully shakes his head at me and whispers, “You’re killing me, Mils. Just because I’m not ready to move on from Jen doesn’t mean I’m immune to your body against mine.”

“Right back atcha.” Bennett is ri-ipped. And that skin-to-skin contact? Whoo-wee, I am on fire. Not even the cool water in the swimming pool is bringing the heat raging in my limbs down to a better temperature.

“It’s true then?” Emerson asks, pointing between us. “You two are a thing?”

This is it. The moment Bennett waited for. His family finding out we’re dating. The crowning achievement of Evie and Becca getting off his back.

Henry springs out of the water. He swipes the water from his face, then his gaze bounces between me and Bennett. His jaw is wide open. “Well?”

I stay silent.

Bennett eyes me.

I shrug, telling him it’s his call how to reveal this fake relationship to his brothers.

Bennett nods at me, then faces his brothers. “We’re dating, yes.”

If only it were real. “Yep.” I nod. “Yep, we are.”

Bennett shoves me away from him as his brothers jump on him.

I fall backward, unexpectedly going underwater. Pushing myself off the bottom of the pool, I break the surface, coughing up chlorine water.

It was sweet of Bennett to protect me from the onslaught of his brothers, but maybe next time he can be a bit gentler?

“Seriously, man?!” Emerson says. “I’m so excited for you!”

“Aw, listen, bro, we loved Jen,” Henry says. “But we are thrilled you found someone again. This whole time you’ve been saying you weren’t ready or interested, or whatever crap, and it was all a front!”

“Right! Who knew our Benny had it in him?”

“Of course we knew. He’s a stud, like us,” Henry says, beaming.

“Alright!” Bennett yells, swimming away from his brothers toward me. “I appreciate your happiness on our behalf, but what do you say you two leave us alone since you ruined our date?”

The brothers flee the pool like Bennett said they have ten seconds to leave before he starts making love to me.

“So happy for you two!” Emerson says, running toward the house.

“Welcome more officially to the family, Mils!” Henry throws me a thumbs up, chasing after Emerson.

Yeah, except how long will this welcome wagon be around? Once we “break up,” will I no longer be wanted, even though Evie and I will remain friends? Oh no. Why haven’t I thought of this before? When Evie finds out I lied to her, she’s going to kill me. What if she never speaks to me again?

She can never find out.

It’s going to suck and be incredibly hard as it is to stop hanging around Bennett so much, but if I lose my best friend? That, I guarantee, I definitely will NOT recover from.

“Well…” I swirl a leg in the water. “That was a lot.”

Bennett looks at me, lines creasing around his eyes. “Are you okay?”

“It’s better than you being ashamed of me and only wanting to meet after dark,” I tease.

His gaze changes to one of sincerity. “Anyone who is ashamed to be around you doesn’t deserve you.”

“Thank—”

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