Page 40 of The Great Dating Fake Off
She lifts her hair off her neck. “You coming?”
I glance behind me. The path is clear of people, and the lake is empty as far as I can see in any direction. We won’t be seen.
But this still feels like a dangerous move.
Chapter Twelve
Nora
The sand is warm beneath my feet as I turn and walk backward, waiting for Sebastian to make up his mind.
“One quick swim,” he decides aloud, pulling off his sunglasses. “Only to cool off, because it’s hot outside and I’m sweating.”
“Whereas I’m swimming for an Olympic medal. Pride of the States.”
“Careful, Nora.” He removes his shirt in one smooth move and tosses it on the sand. “Eels love a smart-ass.”
A firework detonates dead center in my chest at the way he says my name. It’s not nearly as powerful as the one I felt when he put his hat on my head, though. That one lit up my whole body.
My gaze skims the tattoo on his arm.The mountain scene spans his broad shoulder. The ink is bold, the jagged mountain peaks begging to be traced with a gentle finger.
Somebody else’s.
Not mine.
His stomach is the tightest I’ve ever seen. He’s so toned I want to poke his muscles to see if there’s any give.Or maybe I want to congratulate each of his abs on having their own abs, which are situated off to the side. Obliques. And those arms. Baseball left its mark on Sebastian Rossi.
It’s really ridiculous that this guy hit the genetic lottery and then decided to be an upstanding citizen and start nonprofits for his career. I think I’d prefer it if he were a felon. Or a used car salesman.
Maybe then I wouldn’t be thinking about wrapping myself around his body like a human-sized dryer sheet.
I spin to face the water. As soon as my feet break the surface, the freezing water clings to my calves, the sensation bleeding up my legs. It’s as effective as a cold shower at rerouting my thoughts.
“Whoa, it’s frigid.” I cross my arms, regretting taking out the padding of this swim top. My nipples ache instantly. “It’s annoying-coworker-in-charge-of-the-thermostat cold.”
“You have to jump off the dock. All or nothing.”
My chin brushes my shoulder as I glance backward. “Wading in is easier, thank you very much.”
“Sure, because you’re clearly enjoying yourself.” He removes his phone from his pocket and kicks off his sneakers, and then peels off his black socks. “Rule number one of swimming: always jump in. You should know that, given you are a professional swim dancer.”
I groan. “You’re going to make me regret telling you that, aren’t you?”
“All signs point to yes.”
I roll my eyes. “You do it your way, I’ll do it mine, and we’ll both cool off.”
“Deal.” He passes me by and steps onto the floating dock. “Now watch and learn.”
He springs into action, tearing down the floating platform, steps thudding as he flies past the tiny boats tied to hitching posts. His big body curls into a ball as he catapults off the edge and does a front flip right into the water.
Show-off.
He breaks the surface seconds later with a bursting exhale. His chocolate hair is waterlogged, and his mouth is wide open. “Holy fuck that’s cold!”
“Mm.” I cup my hand to my ear. “What was that?”
“You heard me.”
