Daring the Bad Boy (Endless Summer)(28)

If she could be that terrified of water yet pushed herself to jump into the lake in the middle of the night, she must’ve had a pretty damn good reason for wanting to learn to swim. Why didn’t she ever take lessons at home? Why did it have to be this summer at camp, when she suddenly felt the need to learn?

I didn’t get it.

I wanted to get it.

“I don’t want anyone else to make fun of me,” she finally said, her voice barely above a whisper. I stopped kicking my feet in the water so I could hear her better. “Everyone can swim here.”

“Not everyone,” I started to say, but she quieted me with a look.

“Everyone above the age of eight can swim here. They’re all so comfortable in the water, around the water. And I’m just…not. I don’t want to stick out. I don’t want people to ask uncomfortable questions that I don’t know how to answer, or try to delve into my past to find out what the heck is wrong with me. I’m a—very private person.” She clamped her lips shut and looked away from me.

“Well, come on. If I’m going to teach you some basics, we need to get on it. So far we’ve done nothing but sit around and waste time.” I hopped into the pool, the water hitting me below the waist, like barely above my knees, and I waved at Annie to jump in and join me.

She sat frozen on the edge of the pool, her legs crossed like she was ready to bust out some yoga.

“Put your feet in the water,” I told her, hoping she’d agree and just…do it. Helping Dewey out with some preliminary activities he liked to put the kids through if they needed lessons had taught me a thing or two. He’d have them kick the water. Then stand in the water. Then hold on to the edge of the pool and let their bodies stretch out before they started kicking. Then he’d bring out the kickboards and so on. It was a simple step-by-step process, gradually becoming harder and harder until they finally had to put their face in the water and actually, you know, swim.

I’d thought Dewey was a pain in the ass for making those kids go through all of those tedious steps. But now I saw there was a method to his madness. They needed to go through every one of those steps to slowly become more comfortable in the water. Had to give the guy props.

I also really wished he were right here, right now, taking this duty off my shoulders.

Slowly, without saying a word, not even looking at me, she untucked her feet from beneath her legs and let them dangle over the edge, though not close enough to actually touch the water. She inched her feet down slowly, scooting her butt closer to the ledge so she would have no choice but to finally dunk those feet and get them wet.

Yet she still didn’t make a move, her feet hovering over the water. Frustration rippled through me. I was trying to be on my best behavior, but it was kind of hard. I wasn’t the most patient person in the world.

Annie dipped a toe—no joke, just her big toe—in the water, pulling her foot back so fast, it was like it never happened. She tucked the water-tainted foot beneath her bent leg, contemplating the situation in front of her, nibbling on her lower lip. Something she did whenever she was nervous, I’d noticed. She looked ready to bolt, and I needed to convince her to stay. “I don’t want to do this,” she admitted, her voice small.

“You have to.” Why the hell am I trying to convince her?

She shook her head. Didn’t say anything.

“It can’t be that bad. The water’s not even that deep.” I paused, but she still said nothing. “Annie. Look at me.” I waded into the deeper end, feeling the water rise, enjoying the sensation as it swirled around me. When I finally made it to the point where my feet were no longer touching the bottom and I was treading water, I turned to look at Annie.

“If I can do this, you can definitely dunk your feet,” I said, making it sound like a challenge.

Her brows rose. This girl loved a challenge. She started all over again, the second time around just as painful as the first, as she carefully inched her foot forward, excruciatingly slow just like the last time. Until finally, those toes were in the water—then her entire foot was in the water and she was squealing and I started shouting my encouragement, telling her she’s got this. All she needed was a little push.

I wanted to be the one who pushed her. She didn’t seem to mind, either. Despite the squealing and the yelling, she was giggling, her eyes sparkling, and she looked so pretty I got sort of lost in the moment.

Until I realized we were causing such a major scene surely someone could hear us.

I immediately went quiet and so did she, each of us staring at the other until she burst out laughing, her hand going to her mouth to stifle the sound. She slipped her other foot into the water without any urging, and I grinned in return, flicking my chin at her. “Get all the way in the water, Annie.”

Her legs went still, her hands braced on the edge of the pool. Without thought I let my gaze wander the length of her. She was slightly bent over, her position offering me the perfect glimpse of her chest. She had a nice one. She had a nice everything, and the realization shocked me.

My dad told me when I was around thirteen that I should watch out for the quiet girls. “They’ll sneak up on you and blow your mind. Not only are they smart and won’t put up with any of your shit, but they’re usually beautiful, too. You just don’t realize how perfect they are because they’re so damn quiet all the time. They’ll sneak their way right into your heart. Once that happens, you’re done for,” he’d said.