Page 24 of The Best Part of Breaking Up

“Exactly like that,” he nods. “Now, instead of pulling your face up and out of the water to take the next breath, keep your head down and just turn your face to the side. Take a full breath, then turn your face back down and blow out before going to the other side.”

This time there are no protests. She does as he says, falling into a rhythm much more quickly than I expect. Deep breath, swivel to submerge, second side, swivel to submerge. The cadence of it continues for what feels like a full minute. She straightens up, wiping her face.

“That’s it,” he smiles. “You’ve got it. Now you just have to practice. The more you do it, the easier it’ll be.”

“Okay,” she says, wiping the water out of her eyes, “but that’s not swimming. I’m not going anywhere.”

“Once you know how to breathe, you can hold the board and practice this while you kick. Eventually, you can keep adding on, until you’re like a dolphin.”

“A dolphin? Like, balancing a ball on my nose?”

He gives me a look like she’s been spending way too much time around me.

“Like swimming, without gills,” he offers.

“Okay,” she says. “But how?”

“You’ve got a good teacher. She knows what she’s doing. She can help you.”

I am filled with appreciation for a moment that Quentin has not entirely negated my presence here. It reinforces the idea that we’re on the same team – a successful team. And it feels… surprisingly good.

I give him a grateful, albeit begrudging, close-lipped smile. Over the top of Kamille’s head, he returns it with a wink. A fluttery feeling spreads through my ribcage before I can stop it.

The partners will refrain from shirtless winking. Definitely something I should have put in the agreement.

When Kamille glances over, I quickly collect myself. I wade from where I’ve been lingering a few feet away, armed with encouragement.

“He’s right,” I tell her. “You know how to do this. All we have to do is keep working on it, and I’m here with you every step of the way.”

She gathers her mouth up into one corner, puckering it in thought.

“Did you used to be a lifeguard?” she asks Quentin suspiciously.

“No, but I did a lot of white-water rafting. And it’s important to be up on your water safety for stuff like that.”

“That sounds cool,” she says.

“It was cool,” he nods. “What about you? Planning to do any white water rafting?”

She shrugs, acting way too nonchalant. “Water slides. At music camp.”

“Awesome,” he smiles. “Water slides are my favorite. What instrument do you play?”

“The violin,” she says. “I want to play in an orchestra one day. Maybe.”

“That’s great,” he nods. “It’s important to have goals. Especially ones you care about.”

She accepts this with satisfaction, cocking her head to the side like a curious puppy.

“You know, you don’t really seem like a jerk,” she says.

“Kamille,” I warn softly.

Quentin laughs. “Thanks. I appreciate that.”

He wades towards the stairs now, shaking his head like a wet dog as he climbs out.

“Wait, where are you going?” she asks.

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