Page 41 of Bound to You

I look over to her, wrong move. She flashes one of her stunning smiles at me, stopping me in my tracks. She’s unreal.

She splashes water in my eyes that are too busy admiring her to pay attention, before speeding off towards our starting point.

That little cheater.

I kick off the wall before following her to the other end of the pool. She reaches the end seconds before I do.

I’m usually a sore loser, but not today, I couldn’t care less about winning or losing as Isla pushes up to sit on the edge of the pool letting me see the body that’s been hiding under the surface. She’s wearing a blue bikini that leaves little to the imagination.

I think blue is my new favorite color. From that little sundress to this? I’m so gone.

She crosses one leg over the other as a smug expression climbs up her face. “I would be happy to accept a gold medal formy win, or alternatively some of Vanessa’s fruit tarts would also be considered.”

“You cheated,”I say, looking up at her.

“How did I cheat?” She plays innocent as if she didn’t know I’d be completely distracted by her looking at me the way that she did. As if she doesn’t realize what she does to me.

I shake my head smiling at her, before I wrap my hands around her tiny waist and yank her under the water with me. She lets out a little yelp on the way down. I come up shaking my head before she pops up before me, her hair plastered over her eyes as she giggles, god I love that sound. She tries to push it out of her face but she’s not having much luck.

“Here,” I say, running my fingers through her hair helping her move it off of her face. She’s looking up at me, quietly allowing me to help her tuck the wavy strands behind her dainty ears.

“Hey,” I start, now’s a good enough time than ever to ask. “There’s another event coming up next week, did you want to come with me?”

She looks at me, something like confusion swimming in her eyes. “Is Stefan forcing you to bring a date again?”

“No, he’s not.”I just want to spend time with you again.

“Oh, okay. So you just want me to come as…a friend?”

I grab another strand of her hair, tucking it away, but I don’t let go until my fingers reach the very end of the strand. “Is that what you want it to be?”

“Well, that’s what we are, aren’t we?” Her eyes are shining with uncertainty.

“Is that why you’ve been avoiding me?” She doesn’t say anything, just continues to look at me as we both float here together. “You can call it whatever you like, Isla. Just come with me, please?” I don’t have a word for what we are, but considering how close we are, and the speed with which her chest is risingand falling,friendsisn’t the term I would use to define us, but if she wants to call us friends then she can, that doesn’t change the fact that I want her by my side.

“Okay,” she says quietly and relief ebbs through me, I didn’t realize I was holding my breath waiting for her response. “I’ll go with you.”

Isla’s hair is dripping,leaving a trail of water droplets as we walk back to the elevators. I’ve got a towel wrapped around my waist and she has hers wrapped around her body, she’s holding it up under her shoulders as we stand waiting for the elevator, she’s doing her best to avoid looking at me. After our moment in the pool she quickly moved away, climbing up the stairs and wrapping her towel around herself, and I didn’t want to stay there by myself.

Any peace I was searching for earlier in the night is lost on me now, I’m not going to get any sleep tonight, but I’d rather spend another five minutes with her than swim laps in the pool thinking about her. Thinking about how her little waist felt beneath my grip.

The elevator is taking a while, considering it’s the middle of the night. After more not so comfortable silence we finally hear the ding and watch as the doors open in front of us.

“Goodnight, sir,” Marco’s voice cuts through the air. “Have a good evening.” He has a sly smile attached to his face with that comment.

I send a nod his way before stepping into the lift, Isla has already selected the button for her floor. So I reach past her totap my access card for my penthouse. As I move back past her, I notice goosebumps crawling up her arms.

“Are you cold?” I ask, frowning.

“No,” she breathes, still avoiding making eye contact. This lift is bigger than most, but it’s never felt smaller than it does now. The tension in here is enough to crack the door open midway. I smile as I realize why the little dots are trailing along her skin.

She doesn’t once look my way, her hair dripping on the floor is the only sound besides the quiet hum of the lift carrying us up. My eyes betray me as they sneak another glance her way. The tips of her ears are flushed—a dead giveaway for how she’s feeling.

“Are you nervous, Isla?” I catch her eyes in the reflection and can’t help the smirk teasing my lips.

She doesn’t look away now, but she doesn’t answer me either. Her chest rising and falling rapidly.

The elevator stops and I lose eye contact with her as the doors open to her floor.

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