Page 29 of Invisible String
She’s sitting on my lap now, resting her weight on me. Her red bikini bottom rides up, causing a surge of arousal within me. The sound of music fills the air from the speakers on their floats. We let the current guide us, drifting along the water’s surface. “Here, have a beer,” Lana offers, passing me two cold bottles.
As we follow the winding stream, its waters grow in strength and width. The gentle trickle turns into a rushing current, pulling us along with its force. We collide with other travelers as the pace quickens, our bodies bouncing off each other like pebbles in a rapid river.
Water splashes all over us. With one hand on Rainey and the other on the bottle of beer, I’m unable to balance us and hold on to the tube handles. The waves get stronger.
“Oh, my gosh. I didn’t think it was this crazy.” Rainey screams.
My hand wraps around her middle. As my fingers lose their grip on the glass bottle, it plummets into the murky lake. A sudden jolt rips Rainey from my arms and throws her into the chilly water. Before I have time to process what happened, I see Peter smirking before he jumps in after her. I can’t trust him. He’s the one who pushed us in the first place, so I take a deep breath and plunge into the unknown depths below.
CHAPTER NINE
RAINEY
The weight of the water drags me down while the strong current pulls me in. I struggle to keep my head above the surface. A pair of hands grabs onto me, but I can’t figure out whose they are. My vision is distorted.
My hands wrap around their neck. “I got you,” I recognize the voice—Peter. Uneasiness dips in my gut. “Are you okay?”
I don’t answer. I cough up water and try to catch my breath.
My mind wanders back to the overwhelming fear that gripped me moments ago. I’ve never been afraid of the water. But at that moment, it was like my body had betrayed me, and I had suddenly forgotten how to swim. I can’t shake off the feeling of drowning, even though I’ve never feared water before.
“Get the fuck away from her, asshole.” Max’s lethal roar vibrates.
I’ve never heard him this pissed off. He takes me from Peter’s hold. I wipe the water off my face and hold on to him. He then sits me on a tall rock, and the waves of water splash around it and push us back because of the amount of people making vast waves with their floats and tubes. The river is so vast that the current must have taken us toward the rapid waves.
Max grabs Peter by the neck. “You come near her again, I’ll rip your fucking tongue out. You know what—cross that, I’ll shove your head up your ass. Now get the fuck out of here before I drown you.”
Peter’s eyes widen at Max’s threatening tone. His focus stays glued on Peter as he maneuvers toward the crowd.
Lana stays on the tube with Dan as the current pulls them in a different direction, toward the end of the stream. She calls out, “Rainey, are you okay, babe?” A crease etches her forehead. She tries to lift herself off.
“I’m fine. Go on ahead.” I wave her off.
She nods and tells Dan something. Her expression is angry. Luckily, Peter follows them.
Max’s forehead furrows as he peers at me with his stunning green eyes. He stands atop a small rock, bringing him to my eye level. “How are you doing?” he asks, studying my profile.
“I feel so dumb. When I fell in, the waves pulled me down like weights. It was like a fear came over me. I started panicking, and I know how to swim. I could have just pulled myself up. I’m not the type of girl to get frightened over things.”
“As the lake widens, it experiences a seiche event due to its shape. However, as it narrows down, the water becomes calmer and more tranquil.” He lifts my chin with his thick index finger. “It’s not dumb. We all panic over something, and water weighing you down is a good reason.”
“I know, but there are lots of people here.” I look over his shoulder at the sea of people, so many laughing and drinking. Some fall off but get back on as if nothing happened. I panicked, as if something was pushing me down. “It’s embarrassing.”
“Come on, let’s walk back. We can get off here onto the trail.” Max lifts me up in his arms as if I weigh nothing. We reach the surface, where he puts me. Then he jumps up. I try to dust the sand stuck to my feet and legs, but it’s useless. I’m dripping wet.“This sucks. We should have just continued reading.” I groan, walking down the path. I feel bad because he didn’t really want to come. Whether he wanted to admit it, he was jealous of Peter. Max showing up, and the kiss, said it all. I’m glad he came. I know Peter kicked the tube intentionally to throw me off to get my attention. I don’t think he did it to harm me. The guy is just a dumbass.
“Probably, but you wanted to hang out with your friend.” His gruff voice fills my ears.
He’s right, I did, but I also wanted to be around him, especially since he kissed me.
He kissed me.
We walk up the sandy trail. It’s quieter, and the sound of the patrons has faded. We approach a lush patch of grass after fifteen minutes of walking. It’s private, with only the forest surrounding us. “Here,” he says, handing me my clear waterproof pouch holding my phone and keys. I must have lost it underwater.
“Thank you. I completely forgot about it.”
He seems out of sorts, like his head is elsewhere. He sits on a large log that fell on a patch of grass, looking out at the rows of pine trees. His head tips up. “Are you okay?” His strong jaw tightens as he pointedly asks.
I nod. “I’m fine, Max. Really, I’m good now.” It rattled me, but I’m fine now.
