Chapter 23

Rowena

“Eric, I want you to teach me how to swim.”

My words came out so fast that even I was just as surprised at hearing them. Eric blinked at me as he propped himself up on one elbow.

“What?” he asked with a slight chuckle. “You’re serious?”

I nodded, although my hands were trembling slightly at my sides. “I am.”

Eric shot me a curious look and sat up fully now. “Why do you suddenly want to swim after all these years?” he teased. “Who are you, and what have you done with my Rowena?”

I couldn’t help myself from blushing a bit. “I was just thinking about the party, and… and…” I paused, swallowing before I continued nervously. “I’m tired of being a big baby. It’s time to finally get over my fear.”

My brother stared at me for a few moments, clearly searching my face for some kind of humor, but there was none there to find. Finally he sat up and crossed the room; the closer he came, the more I could smell the subtly sweet scent of sweat on his skin.

“I guess I could use a nice cool-off in the pool after my workout,” he said, gesturing idly to the weights sitting on the floor. “Alright. Go and get in your bathing suit.”

I felt my eyes widen. “You mean… tonight? Right now?” I asked shakily.

Eric nodded. “Yes. Now.”

…

I slowly stepped out into the back patio, feeling the cool nighttime breeze brush across my skin. I shivered a bit in my robe, and for a moment, I almost considered rescheduling; it was too cold outside, after all. Maybe I could try again another day.

But… no. I needed to do this.

And the sight of Eric emerging from beneath the surface of the water made me realize that there was no turning back now. He gasped in a deep lungful of air as he surfaced, pushing his wet blond hair out of his face.

When he spotted me, standing there shivering in my robe, he smirked. “I hope you’ve got a bathing suit on under there,” he teased. “Otherwise we’ll be skinny dipping.”

I felt my face go red at his implications. “Believe it or not, I do own a bathing suit,” I retorted. I may not have been a swimmer, but I did still come out here on hot summer days to lay in the sun.

“Well, then let’s see it.” Eric nodded toward my robe. His golden skin seemed to glow beneath the light of the pool. “You can’t swim in a robe.”

With a nod, I slowly approached one of the lounge chairs and carefully untied my robe. As I slipped the plush fabric off of my shoulders, I felt Eric’s eyes on me; but when I glanced over at him, he quickly looked away as though he hadn’t been looking at all.

What had gotten into him?

Once I was in nothing but my bikini, I felt the cold air even harsher against my skin. I shivered again and folded my arms across my chest.

“It’s too cold tonight,” I said. “Maybe we should—”

“No excuses, Rowena. Do you want to get over your fear or not?”

I swallowed and nodded stiffly. Eric was right—it was now or never. I couldn’t keep letting this fear take over me, keep me from doing things that normal people did with ease. I wasn’t a little kid anymore.

It was time to learn how to swim.

I slowly walked around to the stairs that led into the pool. Eric swam over to meet me at the shallow end. When he stood, revealing his glistening muscles, the water only came up to his waist.

“Baby steps,” he said in a gentler tone of voice than I had anticipated.

With a shuddering breath, I gripped the metal railing and took my first step into the pool. The water was actually warm; I always forgot that our pool was heated. Another perk of wealthy parents, I guessed.

Slowly, I took another step into the water. It came up to my knees now, which were practically knocking together from my shivering.

“Come on, Rowena,” Eric said softly. “Just come to me. You don’t even need to swim tonight. You just need to walk to me.”

I nodded and took another step. But as the water hit the tender skin of my waist, it suddenly felt colder than ever—or maybe it was just my nerves getting the best of me. Either way, I instinctively jumped back, back up onto the second step.

“I can’t,” I muttered. “I can’t do it.”

“Yes you can.” Eric placed his hands on his hips. “You’ll still be touching the ground. It’s only a couple feet deep.”

“I could still drown in a couple feet of water.”

“Yeah, and you could drown from drinking a glass of water,” Eric retorted. “But you drink water all day.”

There was a long pause as I stood there, frozen. Eric was right, but… I felt stuck to my spot. Even as the cold breeze nipped at my now-wet skin and made me shiver even more, I felt as if I couldn’t move.

Finally, Eric took a step closer to me. He stretched his arms out wide, beckoning to me.

“Just come to me. I won’t let you drown.”

I felt my heart do a flip at his words. When I lifted my gaze to meet his, his brilliant blue eyes seemed to glow beneath the pool lights. Up in the sky behind him, the crescent moon seemed to sit over his head like a halo.

“You promise?” I muttered.

Eric chuckled. “Rowena, when have I ever failed you?” he whispered. “I’ll always be here for you. Always.”

Despite my earlier anger at Eric, his words softened me. I realized that he was right; no matter what, I had always had him by my side. He had always been my best friend, my hero, my protector.

And besides, it really was only a couple feet of water.

“Just come to me,” he said as another shiver quaked my body. “Besides, I’m plenty warm. I’ll warm you up.”

I blushed, but did as he said. With another shuddering breath, but feeling bolstered by his encouragement, I stepped back down onto the last step. The water lapped at my skin, causing my muscles to tense, but I didn’t jump back this time.

“Now just let go of the railing and walk toward me.”

Slowly, I released my iron grip on the railing. I stood there for a moment, my knees shaking beneath the water before I took a trembling step forward.

“You’ve got this, Rowena,” Eric said. “I’m here for you.”

A nod. Another step. Another deep breath, and then…

Neither of us saw the sunken pool toy beneath the water. The next thing I knew, I was yelping and pitching forward with a flurry of splashes.

And then, strong arms wrapped around me. I fell into Eric’s embrace, his damp skin pressing against mine beneath the surface of the water. He held me up so that I floated on top of him, and when I finally wrenched my eyes open, I looked up to see him grinning down at me.

“See?” he murmured. “I said I’ve got you, didn’t I?”

I blushed from between the protective circle of his muscular arms.

“Yeah,” I whispered. “I guess you are warm.”