Daring the Bad Boy (Endless Summer)(15)

“Trust me, I wasn’t trying to impress you.” I couldn’t believe I’d said that. But I was offended that he basically just called me stupid.

“No kidding.” He released his hold on my shoulders and walked a few steps away, snatching up something off the beach. “And I definitely wasn’t impressed.”

I made an incredulous sound, one I usually saved for the privacy of my bedroom when no one else was around, and he sent me a look. I was reluctant to admit it was sort of a cute look, his dark eyebrows raised, as if he dared me to contradict him.

So I did.

“Are you going to write me up?” When he still said nothing, I continued. “You said you would earlier.” I glanced around, noticed that the dock was completely empty.

Where was Kelsey, anyway? Did she leave me, too?

“You want me to?”

“N-no. O-of c-course n-not.” My teeth had started to chatter. I didn’t know if it was from the cold or the shock, or a combination of both, but I couldn’t make them stop.

“Did you bring a towel with you at least?” Jacob asked. When I shook my head, he muttered something that sounded distinctly like a curse word starting with the letter F. The sympathetic look he shot my way was surprising as he came back toward me, his hand thrust outward, a ball of fabric clutched in it. “Take this.”

I didn’t want him feeling sorry for me. And that didn’t look like a towel. “Wh-what i-is it?” I wrapped my arms around my middle, my fingers brushing against my goose-bump-covered torso. I couldn’t stop shaking. It was like I had no control over my body.

He sighed and glanced to his left, then his right, like he wanted to make sure there was no one around before he stepped forward and stretched the dark fabric between his hands. “Don’t move,” he ordered, his tone bossy as he yanked the fabric over my head.

I jerked against his first touch, but otherwise I remained still. It was a giant hoodie that he slipped over my head. Warm and soft and a little sandy from when he’d abandoned it on the beach. The fabric clung to my damp skin and the hem fell to my thighs, covering me from my neck to almost my knees. I shoved my arms in the sleeves but they were so long, they swallowed my hands completely, even when I stretched my fingers out.

He stepped closer and reached behind my head, pulling the hood up so that it covered my soaked hair. Then he grabbed hold of the strings at the sweatshirt’s neck and tugged on them, so the hood cinched around my face tightly, his gaze never leaving mine. “Better?”

I nodded and took a deep breath, the shivering starting to subside, thank goodness. “Much.”

Jacob reached out and wiped one cheek, then the other, his thumb rough yet warm against my chilled skin. “You’re still wet.”

“I should p-probably take a shower.” I clamped my freezing lips shut. Why did I just say that? Showers meant naked, and I didn’t want to talk about getting naked with Jacob. Ugh. Not that I meant it that way.

Why couldn’t Kyle have been the one to save me? That would’ve been my dream come true, my summer plans come to fruition in only a few days’ time. I could’ve swooned and fallen into his arms and he would’ve realized just how amazing and wonderful I was, all because I almost drowned by trying to prove to myself that I wasn’t afraid…

“Jake! Is that you? What’s going on?”

Oh God. I wanted to die. Just…collapse into the sand and pray it swallowed me whole. I saw the camp director running toward us, his expression full of concern and slightly…angry?

We were so screwed.

…

JAKE

“Play along,” I told the girl who was blinking up at me with terrified eyes. They were big and wide and the deepest blue, though the moon could be playing tricks on me. But her eyes were definitely pretty. “Let me do all the talking.”

She squeaked in response and I shoved her behind me, smiling at Uncle Bob like I was always hanging out by the lake at midnight.

“Hey, Uncle Bob.” I waved at him when he came to a skidding stop in front of me, wearing pale blue pajama pants and a thin white V-neck T-shirt. Damn, I could see all sorts of hair sprouting out, like it could barely be contained, and I almost wanted to laugh.

Almost.

“What are you doing out here at this time of night?” he demanded.

“Technically it’s the morning,” I joked, my smile fading when I saw his eyes narrow. Yeah, needed to take this a different route. “I was, uh, walking the grounds.”

“With a girl?” Bob asked pointedly.

I played dumb. “What girl?”

“Maybe the one I found on the dock?” He tilted his head. “Or perhaps the one hiding behind you?”

The girl on the dock was probably this girl’s friend—the only loyal one she had. I’d heard a blood-curdling scream when I was on the far side of the beach, freaked out that someone must’ve plunged to their death. I saw the group that had been hanging out on the dock yelling and pointing, a few of them running away. One of them stood by the edge of the dock, a redhead who looked terrified as she pointed out into the water.

“Who’d you find on the dock?” I asked.

“A camper from G7A,” Uncle Bob said.

“Ah.” I had no idea what to say next. I could practically feel the girl shaking behind me, her teeth lightly chattering. She needed to go take that hot shower she mentioned and climb into bed. Forget this entire night ever happened.