Page 23 of The Texas Cowboy's Rescue

That’s when Beaudry hoisted himself from the pool to stand beside his wife with a smile that should have warned her, but her attention was on other things.

Suddenly, there was a loud yelp and a big splash.

“The ladies have been slaving away, guys. They need some cool-off time,” Beaudry shared loudly. Jaxson didn’t waste time. His preferred method was a fireman’s over-the-shoulder carry, and Laurel had choice words for him when she came up spluttering.

Kenzie caught the glint in Deke’s gaze, and that was a warning bell. She made a quick decision. Her cover-up went over her head and landed beside the table. While Deke was still in mid-hoist up the ladder, she was at a sprint to the springboard ladder. Up she climbed. Good idea? Bad idea, as she realized too late that her bravado might have been unwise, given the fact she hadn’t dived for a while. The end of the board was coming up fast and she was committed. If she was going into the pool, she was doing it her way. One deep breath and one major push at the end, and then the cold water hit her.

It was automatic that she dove deep and then brought her legs beneath her to push herself off the bottom and power to the top. She broke the surface to claps and whistles. And one of those whistles was a deep-throated wolf kind. It was Deke who stood on the side of the pool with a look of amazement on his face, while she noted that there was another message in his dark-eyed gaze. She might have lived like a nun most of the time, but she had pulled out not only the surprise diving move, but the bright-emerald one-piece suit with its high cuts and low, low ones in back and front that made its own statement.Not bad for an old mom.

And why did she just do that? That was the next thought. No backing out. No running to grab the black cover-up. She tried to walk as sedately as she could from the shallow end and over to where she could grab a big beach towel to hide behind while she made a slow pretense of drying off.

“That was awesome, Mama!” Brooke was still wide-eyed and effusive with her amazement. “You know how to dive. We can practice together when I can go off the high board. Did you see, Mr. Deke? Did you know my mama could dive in?”

“I had no idea. Seems your mama is full of surprises we knew nothing about.” His gaze did a fast slide down and then back up, and Kenzie couldn’t help the warmth in her cheeks from responding. “How about grabbing a cold bottle of water for your mama?”

“Okay... be right back.”

They were alone and out of earshot of the others. “Quite nice. Any other surprises you might have planned for today? Any Olympic gold hiding in a closet? Paris runway experience?”

“My repertoire is depleted. I was surprised myself that I still got off the high board in one piece. Been a few years since I was the diving champion of my high school team. More than a few. I don’t advertise that.”

“Yet I’m the one giving your daughter diving lessons.”

“And you are doing so well at it.” She smiled. “Brooke asked you... and you looked like you were having so much fun. Keep up the good work.”

“I was right about you, Kenzie Calhoun. There are deep waters hidden away behind those sky-blue eyes. And the rest of you... well, there are all kinds of secrets you are just now sharing. I need to keep a closer eye on you.”

She simply smiled. Things had notched up a bit. He reached for the towel as she evidently had dried as much as she could. With a little more confidence, she handed it over. He put it on the table and then, in a move as swift and smooth as lightning, she felt his arms go around her legs and middle and off her feet she went, accompanied by much laughter and applause as she went sailing through the air and landed on her backside in the pool... again. She spluttered to her feet, mopping the hair out of her eyes... that met a pair of very amused ones on the pool’s edge.

“Did you think you were going to get away with not being thrown in?” His response was a huge grin.

“Well, I guess we’re even.” She moved to the ladder and got a foothold. He reached down to help her, she grabbed hold of his wrist, planted her full weight on the metal rung, and used much the same technique of helping larger patients from their beds. She gave a good heave and caught him by surprise. He exchanged places with her in the water, which only made for bigger laughs from those watching. She climbed out and very gracefully bowed to the audience and then tossed Deke a towel as he stood in the water. “Yes, as you say, better watch those secret moves... I do own a few.” She took up her cover-up and headed in the direction of the pool house.

Maybe she had gone too far? When she came back sans swimsuit, but in shorts and a tank top, she found a quieter version of Deke had joined them. The meal had been great and the conversation amusing. After the leftovers had been tucked away in the kitchen, the kids retreated to the jungle gym and swings in the wide expanse of shaded lawn. Sammi Jo took little Jeff to the nursery. That left the rest of them to their sun loungers. Under the protection of dark lenses, she tried to spend time reading her book while also watching Brooke and Deke work on diving techniques. Lacy had joined them and laughter was heard now and then. All in all, a very pleasant Sunday afternoon.

“Nicely played.” Lauren’s comment came from the lounge beside hers.

“What is nicely played?”

“The fun and games in the pool earlier. Preceded by quite a reveal... of skill and swimwear choice. High marks for all of it.”

“Thanks, but I didn’t do it on purpose or for marks.”

“Right, and snow is expected by the end of this week. Anyway, you made a really BIG impression on a certain bachelor. And that’s what counts.”

“Again, amazing how your mind works,” Kenzie responded. “And I am not going to respond to your choice of superlatives, either.” She made a show of going back to her book but needed to add one more thing. “And since that time, he’s been quieter than normal. I think all I managed to do was dent a male ego.”

“Hon, you didn’t dent anything. You just helped pull the blinders off, I’d say. Now he has some decisions to make. Like his next move in stepping up his game.”

Stepping up his game.She left the book open on her lap, but her mind wasn’t on the words on the page. She wasn’t into games. Was that where he was? Had she given off the wrong message? Maybe she needed to explain herself. If they weren’t on the same page, then that could be a real problem. The breeze created chill bumps on her heated skin. It was time to bring the afternoon to a close.

“Brooke!” Her daughter and Deke looked in her direction. “We need to wind everything up and get home.” Naturally, that wasn’t what Brooke was in favor of, but Deke said something that brought the smile back, so they headed over to join the others.

In fact, her child was more docile than usual as she helped to pack up their swim bags and Deke carried the empty ice cream freezer to the car for them. Once everything was stowed away, Brooke climbed in the front seat, her eyelids showing signs of drooping after the rigorous energy expended in the water for the last few hours.

They paused at the closing of the trunk. She needed to set something straight. “Thank you for your help.”

“I’m just sorry that the maker is empty of that delicious ice cream. I’ve a new favorite in peach ice cream now. Maybe I could get you to make another round of it sometime.”

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