Page 65 of Diving In
Kath
On the final night of my stay, I’m out of the shower and applying my make-up in front of the mirror when Austin and Seb arrive. Seb gives a wolf whistle and I blush.
“You’re going to give someone a heart attack in that top, Kath,” Austin tells me as I twirl.
I think I hear him tack on “maybe Sam” but when I glance at him in confusion he just looks away.
The group of us are getting ready to go out to a party. They’ve just had their last training session, and it’s one of the only nights of the year when they’re all willing to let loose. It’s going to be funny. I haven’t seen drunk Sam in a while, if ever really, and I can’t wait.
It’s hot outside, even though it’s 8 p.m., and the Florida humidity is something else. This was the only top I felt cool enough in. It’s not my fault that it’s backless.
Sam does a double take as he walks in, eyes flicking up and down my outfit. I think I see him take a hard swallow, but I turn back to the mirror to finish putting on some mascara. I refuse to analyse his expression and torture myself more than I already do when it comes to this boy.
Sam empties his backpack onto the bed with a flourish. A box of paracetamol, two bottles of water and a huge pack of KitKats tumble onto the pillow.
“Big night planned?” Seb asks as Sam places the water bottles by the bed alongside the packs of paracetamol.
“Nope,” he grins. “But I know what Kath’s like and I didn’t want to risk it.”
They laugh as I glare at him. “That’s not true,” I tell him. “You only had to carry me home fromoneparty.”
“I think I gave you piggybacks home from more than one party.” He smirks at me. “And I’m sure I heard something about an excess of blue WKD when I visited you in Exeter.”
I let out a growl of frustration before turning back to finish my mascara. I will not let him rile me.
“I’m ready.” I drop my mascara back into the make-up bag and run my fingers through my hair one last time.
“Give me a minute,” says Sam, rummaging around for a fresh T-shirt. “Some of us have been on a supply run.”
“Nope. It’s the pirate’s code, if you fall behind you get left behind!” I wink at him as I brush past Austin and Seb. “Let’s go, guys.”
“It’s more of a guideline!” Sam shouts after us as we leave the room.
“No offence, but you guys are weird,” Seb tells me as we slowly make our way down the corridor.
“Nah, we’ve just spent half our lives together and know exactly how to wind each other up.” We pause by the stairwell for Sam, who half-jogs down the corridor to catch up. He looks good, messy blond hair, plain white T-shirt. But I’m not going to give him the satisfaction of telling him that.
When we arrive at the house, the party’s already rammed. It seems like all the athletes are planning on a big night out at the end of the season. Within minutes of arriving, we’re engulfed by the swimming team. Wemake a circuit of the room as Austin introduces me to course mates, the diving team, some swimming girls.
After a whirlwind of introductions I extract myself and push my way outside to join Sam, who’s chatting with AJ in the garden, nursing a beer.
“Having fun?” I tuck myself into his side, under the arm he stretches out for me. “Still on your first beer there, Champ?”
“Just savouring the moment.”
“You look nice, Kath.” AJ winks, and I think I feel Sam almost imperceptibly stiffen beside me.
“Back at you,” I tell him, and he does look good. He has a tight T-shirt on, and like all the other swimming guys, he’s huge.
“Want to play beer pong with me?” he asks. “Some of the track guys think they can take us on, and we need to maintain the superiority of swimmers over the other athletes.”
“Yeah, I love beer pong.” I quickly down the rest of my drink and walk over to the table to join him.
“You do?” Sam trails behind us. “Since when?”
“Since I started university,” I tell him over my shoulder. “You don’t know everything about me, Fletcher. I’ve still got some mystery.”
“Well, I’m playing, too,” he says.
