Then, a new sound reached her.
It was a splash, as of something large entering water. Then the distinct sound of paddling.
She spun towards the sound and struck out from the path into the bosky undergrowth. Moments later, she found herself atop a knoll, peering down on a lake. It glittered with glassy sunlight, and a man was swimming across it. He arrowed through the water with strong, decisive strokes, his body pale beneath the sheen.
He reached a rock that jutted from the lake’s still heart. Catherine recognized it at once. She gasped as she watched none other than Aaron rise from the water like something born of it, some ancient, dripping sea god called up from the depths.
And he was… naked.
With the ease of a creature made for such things, he climbed the rock, muscles slick and glistening in the light. At its summit, where moss and grass clung to stone, ten feet above the shimmering surface. There, he stretched.
Catherine forgot the pain in her head. Forgot her sudden paranoia and fear.
She could not pull her eyes from the sculpted body before her.
He was Herculean in proportions with pectoral muscles that bulged like polished stone, sharply defined biceps, and a ridged abdomen. From the short distance that separated them, she could see the lines of white that crisscrossed his chest and stomach. Scars, though she could not fathom from where.
What life have you led since my Aunt and Uncle prohibited me from seeing you? A life that has given you that glorious body, but also marred it so. What adventures have you had?
She leaned distractedly against a tree, drinking in the masculine beauty of his figure as he shook water from his long hair. The tree shifted under her weight, its slim bole not able to support her fully.
Catherine cried out as one foot slipped on earth that was suddenly spilling away from her. She tried to hold onto the slender tree bough, but her balance was gone.
The bough broke, and she plunged into the water.
CHAPTER 9
Gideon whirled as he heard the cry and was just in time to see Catherine fall from the hillock that overlooked the lake, hitting the water with a splash.
He responded instinctively, leaping from the rock, snapping his body straight in the air, and arrowing into the water. He surged toward the spot where Catherine had fallen, knowing that her dress and underclothes would quickly become waterlogged and drag her down. Even if the impact from a dozen feet didn’t knock her unconscious, those sodden layers could drown her in seconds.
Through the murky water and waving tendrils of vegetation, he spotted the pale shape of his wife. She was struggling, which was good. Provided she didn’t inhale.
He reached her in a dozen strokes, kicking hard. He slipped one hand beneath her chin and an arm about her waist, driving upward with his legs.
She bit him.
Gideon cried out in surprise, and lake water surged into his mouth, triggering a coughing fit. He broke the surface in an explosion of spray, Catherine still clutched about the waist, fighting tooth and nail to free herself.
“Will you desist, woman!” he roared. “Do you not know a rescue when you see one?”
Her struggles eased. She coughed and spluttered, letting her arms rest on his shoulders. Then she looked down, and her eyes went wide.
“You’re naked!”
“I am. I find clothes hinder swimming. Clearly, you disagree.”
“Release me!”
“I cannot until we reach the shallows. Your clothes will drag you under.”
“But—but you’re unclothed!”
“Yes, damn it! I noticed. Now hold still!”
Gideon began stroking for shore. There was a sheltered, sandy beach beneath the hillock, shielded from view by tall ferns andthe hill itself. His body remained pressed against hers as he swam, and he tried to think only of reaching shallow water. But he couldn’t ignore the feel of her. Her softness. Her curves pressing against him with each stroke.
It stirred an immediate, undeniable response.
