“Oh, you’ve done it now,” he warned, his voice dropping to a mock growl.
Hannah’s eyes widened as she realized what was coming. She scrambled to her feet, water splashing everywhere, but she wasn’t quite fast enough. Caleb cupped his hand and sent a wave of icy water arcing toward her, catching her squarely across the middle.
She shrieked, the sound echoing through the trees, followed immediately by laughter... real, unfettered laughter that seemed to surprise even her.
“That’s freezing!” Hannah protested, hopping back with a laugh as she splashed through the shallows, sending ripples skittering across the surface of the stream.
“You started it,” Caleb said, unapologetic, even as he braced himself for retaliation.
She didn’t disappoint.
Another handful of water came flying toward him, less coordinated this time, as her enthusiasm took over. It caught his sleeve and soaked into his shirt, cold seeping through the fabric.
Caleb laughed outright, the sound loud in the quiet clearing. He hadn’t laughed like this in a long time. Not like this.
Not like a big kid,his bear said gleefully.
“I think we should go dry off!” Hannah took a step back.
“Oh, absolutely not,” he said, shaking his head as he stepped closer. “You don’t get to declare war and then retreat.”
“I absolutely do,” Hannah shot back, backing away again, eyes bright, cheeks flushed, hair coming loose from her scrunchy to frame her face. “For your sake.”
“My sake?” Caleb asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Yeah. I’m smaller. That gives me a tactical advantage in situations like these.”
“In situations like these...” Caleb nodded. “I’m guessing this isn’t your first water fight.”
“Oh, it is. But I’m a fast learner. I soon figured out how to make the most of a situation.” She quirked an eyebrow at him.
His bear rumbled, delighted.Let me play.
We agreed no shifting today,Caleb warned, but there was laughter in the thought now.Only splashing.
He scooped up another wave of water and sent it toward her, and she squealed, slipping on the smooth stones before catching herself, hands flying out to steady her balance. For a heartbeat, Caleb’s instincts surged sharp and fierce...
...but she was laughing, still upright, unhurt, and breathless.
“Okay. You got me. I’m surrendering,” she declared, lifting her hands. “I yield.”
“You don’t sound very convincing,” he said, stopping just out of reach.
She grinned at him, eyes sparkling. “That’s because I’m not.”
She splashed him again, smaller this time, more playful than defiant, and then she stepped back, breath coming fast, laughter trailing off into something else. Something deeper.
The moment stretched.
The stream murmured on, indifferent to their play fighting. Sunlight danced across the water, catching on the droplets clinging to Hannah’s trousers, her sleeves, her hair.
He saw it all. His senses heightened by her nearness.
And then the cold, inevitably, caught up with them.
Hannah shivered, wrapping her arms around herself with a rueful laugh. “Okay. That was fun. But I’ve reached my limit of cold endurance.”
Caleb nodded. “Same.” Although, as a shifter, the cold didn’t bother him at all.
