“Axel’s asleep, and yeah, Wyatt’s with him.” The tremor in my chest settles, but I twist back, sharply splashing water at Garrett with as much force as I can muster. The wave hits him square in the face, but he only laughs harder, spitting water like a fountain.
“Don’t call it that!” I narrow my eyes. Given just how serious Axel’s injuries were, I won’t be accepting death jokes anytime soon. Garrett doesn’t care either way, his grin splitting all the way across his face.
“Or what, Peach?” Garrett flips onto his stomach and paddles toward me like a crocodile stalking its prey. I let him do his taunting until he’s close enough that I launch myself out of Huxley’s hold and shove Garrett’s head beneath the water. I hold him there for only a second, knowing I don’t have the strength to beat him, but I do have the agility to escape.
Pushing through the water, I propel myself by sheer force to reach the other side of the pool. If I can just reach the side, I’ll shoot up onto the edge and be gone before Garrett’s even recovered. But I don’t make it more than a foot away from him.
Hands grab my ankles, dragging me backward. I twist my body to fight against it, kicking wildly within the water. Garrett’s grip is relentless, but I manage to wriggle free for a moment, only to be caught again, his laughter vibrating through the water as he drags me closer.
Breaching the surface, I only manage to gasp a singular breath down before Garrett’s back on me, his arms around my middle. He drags me to the bottom, taking every rogue elbow and missed kick. Spinning me around, he winds his legs around my waist and grabs my face in his hands. A few precious air bubbles leak from my lips just before hismouth crashes against mine. I still, no longer fighting but finding myself kissing back. Although I won’t last much longer without air.
Wrenching back, I tap Garrett’s shoulder insistently and point to the surface. His dark eyes flick upwards, his hair floating around him like a black halo. He uses his grip on my face to drag me back to him. His mouth covers mine, and as Garrett brings his hands forward to squeeze my cheeks, he breathes into my parted lips. I inhale him all the way into my lungs, and his satisfied smile is everything. Without the jokes and the stress of the world above, I feel like I’m seeing Garrett’s true self, and it’s surprisingly calming.
Unwrapping his legs from my waist and replacing them with his arms, Garrett kicks off the floor and propels us to the surface. I come up sputtering, my hair plastered to my face, but Garrett is already retreating, his arms slicing through the water as he swims away as if nothing happened. Or perhaps he has another prey in mind now.
Garrett turns his attention to Huxley, who is already launching himself at Garrett like a torpedo, knocking them both under. Garrett resurfaces almost instantly, but before he can retaliate, a cascade of water smacks him square in the face. One that came from Dax’s stronger hand. The pool explodes into chaos.
I use the distraction to dart away, but apparently, I’m not safe from anyone. Dax is already on the move, closing in with a mischievous grin. Before I can make it to the edge, he uses his good arm to collect water and send it crashing towards me. I retaliate, cupping water in my hands and flinging it back at him. Totally pointless, considering we’re all soaking and flinging ourselves around the pool in our underwear, but we dissolve into laughter regardless. Water and curses fly all around whilst Hux and Garrett are busy trying to drown each other, and Dax descends on me.
“I thought you were supposed to be taking it easy!” I yell, still splashing regardless. Dax chuckles.
“I am,” he confirms by only using his stronger hand to splash and keeping the other one firmly beneath the water. I relax and let the smile grow once more.
For a fraction of time, there are no worries, no whispers of the outside world. I indulge in the chaos, reveling in it. Eventually, Dax leans against the side of the pool, having exhausted himself. Garrettswims to the edge, planting his hands firmly on the tile to hoist himself out of the water. The movement is so effortless. Water drips from him, pooling at his feet as he quickly wraps his top half in a towel.
“Okay, I admit that was long overdue.” Dax chuckles softly.
“I aim to please,” Garrett quips, using two fingers to give Dax a salute.
Huxley mutters something that sounds suspiciously like‘aim for silence instead’before splashing Garrett one last time, setting off a ripple of laughter that echoes through the pool room. Gare offers Dax his hand and hoists him out of the water, helping to pin a towel around Dax’s waist. It’s a simple gesture, and yet my heart is fit to explode from the sentiment. These wonderful boys have been looking after each other long before they started looking after me.
Before I can head out too, Huxley catches my waist. It’s all too easy to move me in the water, gliding me wherever his large hands see fit. Right now, it’s against his expansive chest. His smile softens, and he leans in close enough to murmur in my ear.
“I love you too, Swan,” he answers finally, barely more than a whisper but full of quiet certainty. I press my forehead to his, letting the world shrink down to just the two of us, the gentle sway of the water around us mirroring the steady rhythm of my heart.
My eyes sting, and at long last, the tears that well up in them are for a good reason. Because this introverted girl who was scared to let anyone in will never be alone again. I have a team of men ready to fight and die for me, to do whatever it takes to bring my twin home. This is what love feels like. It’s messy and imperfect, yet so achingly beautiful that I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Chapter Thirty Two
I should’ve known Thiago couldn’t be trusted with an audience. I left Avery alone in the library for not even twenty minutes, grabbing us some snacks from the kitchen. In one aspect, we have the run of the mansion around Sharon’s many outings, whether it be business meetings or shopping trips she’s using to occupy her time. I suspect if it weren’t for our presence, she’d be home more often. Garrett and Wyatt cross my path, heading to the gym for another round of sparring. Hux is currently helping Axel with some gentle physio under the watchful eye of Dr. Marcus.
Tray in one hand, I stumble back through the library doors, drawn in by Avery’s laughter. Such a sweet, pure sound that I didn’t realize I’d been missing until it filtered through the hallways. She’s exactly where I left her, curled up on the library’s velvet sofa, her legs tucked under her. The book she was previously reading is now on her thigh, forgotten about in favor of giggling at whatever story my dear cousin is currently butchering. Her eyes light up even more when she sees me, not even trying to hide her amusement.
“Speak of the devil,” Thiago sniggers, lounging in an oversized armchair across from Avery, arms spread wide like a king telling war stories. “Were your ears burning? I was just telling your girl about that summer we decided to start our own side hustle.”
“Welcome back,” Avery grins mischievously, patting the cushionbeside her. I place the tray on the low coffee table, smacking Thiago’s hand away when he tries to reach for a churro. The set-up of dunking chocolate and caramel seems much less romantic with my cousin leering over it. I cautiously sit, reclining back with a sinking feeling in my chest. Of all the things I wanted Avery to know about me, none of them will include whatever Thiago must be recounting.
“Apparently, you fancied yourself as quite the entrepreneur.” Avery bobs her eyebrows. She curls into me on instinct, pushing her sock-clad feet beneath my thigh. I force a smile, swallowing past the lump in my throat. Trust Avery to put a spin on everything to put me in a positive light. My memory is more jaded by a pair of hungry children who scammed people to help put food on the table. Like me, Thiago was the man of his household, even at the ripe age of eleven.
“We were con artists. Although geniuses might be a more appropriate description.” Thiago chuckles, remembering our past much more favorably.
“Well, come on then, someone needs to spill.” Avery looks between the two of us, but her stare lingers on me for a beat longer. I let out a weighted sigh, tracing absent circles on the inside of Avery’s wrist. I remind myself to get her bracelet back from Axel at some point.
“We’d steal empty spray bottles from the convenience store, fill them with tap water, slap a label on them that said holy water, and sell them outside the church.” Avery’s mouth drops open as she stares at me wide-eyed.
“No.”
“Oh yes,” Thiago grins. Suddenly, she’s laughing again, a breathless sound that rattles through her whole frame. “Dax, that’s so bad.” Despite her accusation, her body is warm and soft where she leans against me, squeezing my knee with little touches of acceptance. My past isn’t something I bring up often since there are not many happy memories to reflect on, and in her own small way, Avery is reassuring me that her opinion won’t change.
