Girl Crush(76)

“Dude, I’m so not answering that question.”

“Thank you, Parker.” I shook my head in humored disbelief. Collier would kill any other man for so much as peeking.

“West, I think Mark and I are going to head out. It looks like the girls are leaving, too. Thanks for letting us crash your place all day.”

“No worries, you guys be careful.”

We said goodbye from the shallow end as our friends gathered their things and left out the side gate. The water was still around us, and the quiet was a welcomed change. Once we heard the last car pull out of the driveway, Collier resumed his pursuit of happiness. It didn’t take him long to untie the strings of my bikini, and it floated away before sinking. His shorts met the same fate shortly after.

His hands roamed my slick skin. My weightless body became putty in his embrace, and he slipped inside me with little effort. Sex with Collier was always good, but romping in a pool wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. There was no way to gain leverage with slippery body parts and nothing to cling to. My frustration mounted just before the entire act became uncomfortable. And seconds later, Collier lost his hold on me, and I nearly drowned, still connected to him while flailing in the pool.

When I finally broke free and found my footing, he was bent over laughing with his face inches from the surface. It was childish, but I couldn’t stop myself from pushing him under. His head broke free, and I heard him gasp for air while he shook his hair practically dry. I broke out into uncontrollable giggles when I saw the surprise on his face. What had been erotic only minutes earlier had turned into a silly water fight.

He caught me in a bear hug and dunked me one final time before bringing me back up to breathe and curling me into his body. He popped a kiss on my lips and echoed a sentiment he’d uttered a thousand times, but it was one that never got old. “I love you, Elle.”

“Love you, too.”

“You ready to go inside? I need to rinse the chlorine off, and I’m tired.”

I nodded and followed him up the stairs in the shallow end. Our swimsuits still hung out underwater, but I made no attempt to get them. They’d still be there tomorrow. He handed me a towel and started to dry off. I did the same and then wrapped myself up. I stood there waiting for him, and that’s when it happened.

The wet, farting sound coupled with the rush of water between my legs took me by complete surprise. And Collier too. He stared at the puddle on the ground at my feet and then my face.

“What the hell was that?”

“The joys of sex in water.” He might as well learn now.

“That’s kind of gross, you know?”

I swatted at his arm. “Where did you think that water was going when you were doing your thing in my hot box?”

“Your ‘hot box’?” He chuckled, and his eyes danced with humor.

I shrugged it off with a grin and was once again reminded why I loved him. He was able to laugh with me and enjoyed my idiosyncrasies…even as outlandish as they were.





18





The next day, I went back to my mind-numbing job where I spent another eight hours staring at the walls hoping someone would come in to entertain me…or possibly shoot me. When that hadn’t happened by ten, I started messaging my friends, none of which responded because they all had jobs that required them to actually do something. I surfed Facebook but quickly grew tired of that as well. A girl can only read so many posts about politics and how great other peoples’ lives are before wanting to clobber herself in the head with the heel of her shoe. I tried never to bother Collier at work. I still wasn’t sure I fully understood what he did, but I knew he ran a huge company that required his attention, and if I sent him a text, he would stop to respond.

Me: Are you busy?

Collier: Never too busy for you, Elle. What’s up?

Me: I’m bored.

Collier: Haha. I can hear your whining from here.

Me: Not funny.

Collier: Babe, why don’t you find a job you actually enjoy?

I didn’t know how to send a virtual shrug.

Me: Meh. I’ve been here a long time.

Collier: Maybe it’s time for a change.

Me: This is far too deep a conversation this early in the morning.

Collier: You’ve been up for five hours. It’s hardly early anymore.

Me: When I still have six more hours of watching dust collect, it’s early.

Collier: Quit.

Me: I can’t quit.

Collier: You can. You’re just choosing not to.

Me: I have bills to pay.

Collier: Again…that’s a choice.

Me: Are you suggesting I ruin my credit? That’s very unadult of you.

Collier: I’m suggesting you quit worrying about that kind of thing and do what makes you happy.

Me: You make me happy.

Collier: Well there you go. Do me.

Me: Can you meet me for lunch?

It didn’t happen often, but every once in a while, I talked him into breaking up the day with an afternoon rendezvous that left him relaxed. The copy room at Stearns and Wilkes hadn’t seen this much action since Xerox went multi-page.

Collier: I can’t today, Elle. I’m slammed. Why don’t you come here when you get off, and we’ll go to dinner?

Me: Fine.

Collier: Don’t pout, babe. And seriously, we need to talk about your employment situation. I hate that you’re that unhappy there. Topic for dinner, okay?