“I’ll try,” Beth said, not sounding at all confident. She hesitated. “Uncle Conleth? You do have a plan, right?”
“Of course I have a plan.” He leaned over, lowering his voice. “And a secret weapon.”
Beth looked him up and down, as though trying to figure out what he could be concealing. “You do? What?”
“You’ll understand when you’re older.” He straightened, adjusting his sunglasses. “Trust me. Everything is under control.”
Beth still looked a little dubious, but she trotted off. Other kids and counselors were starting to emerge from the boathouse now. He caught sight of Paige among them, a towel wrapped tightly around her body.
Showtime.
“Paige,” he called. He rested an elbow on a nearby post, angling his body in a carefully calculated show of relaxed ease. “Over here.”
Paige’s head turned. Her mouth dropped open.
Excellent. Conleth congratulated himself. Nowthiswas a good plan.
After his conversation with Archie, he was convinced Paige was hiding the real reason she was so concerned about his shifting. If she was going to trust him with her secret—let alone with her heart—he had to show her that shecouldtrust him. That he could be a mate worthy of her, the sort of personshe could love. Capable of handling any problem with cool efficiency. Reliable. In control.
And that wasn’t all he planned to show her.
His inner stallion snorted in agreement. It arched its neck, preening.Our mate is looking at us!
‘Looking’ was not quite the word. ‘Ogling’ might have been more accurate. Conleth was under no illusions about himself, which meant he also saw no point in false modesty. He knew exactly how he looked. He’d spent considerable effort honing his natural assets, simply as a matter of good business. Charm and attractiveness were useful tools for closing deals.
And when it came to closingthisdeal, he was not above using every weapon at his disposal.
Paige was definitely appreciating the view. He oh-so-casually tightened his abs, and she walked straight into Ragvald’s back.
“Shield-sister?” The big man turned, giving Paige a quizzical look. “Are you quite well?”
“Guh,” Paige said, eyes still glued to the low-slung waistband of Conleth’s swimming shorts. “I. Uh. What?”
“Only you seem rather flushed.” Ragvald frowned down at her in concern. “In training, noble Leonie warned us not to underestimate the strength of the sun in this land, nor how it can quickly rob the body of all water. Are you thirsty?”
“All right, campers,” Moira called. The sea dragon princess was dressed in a camp t-shirt and running shorts rather than a swimsuit. As the head lifeguard, she rarely went in the water herself. “Find somewhere to put your towel, then everyone gather around. We need to go over some safety rules.”
Paige started, as though only just remembering that the rest of the world existed. She fumbled with her towel, letting it drop to the ground—and Conleth abruptly discovered a significant flaw in his plan.
His pegasus pranced in delight.Now we can look at her too!
Paige’s swimsuit was technically modest, but it still clung to every curve of her body. Her honeyed skin glowed in the sunlight, warm and inviting.
He wasn’t using his power, yet time seemed to slow. He could see the strong swells of her shoulders, the arcing wings of her collarbones, the delicious softness of her thighs.
The effect on him was immediate, overwhelming, and—given that he was dressed in swimwear and surrounded by children—absolutely disastrous.
Sheer panic made his speed power kick in. This was, if anything, actively unhelpful. Having the leisure to appreciate every detail of Paige’s spectacular body did absolutely nothing to quell his rising predicament.
There was only one possible course of action.
He jumped in the lake.
“Conleth!” He resurfaced to find Moira glaring down at him from the dock. “What in the Sea are you doing?”
“Just…checking the water temperature.” He stayed slightly crouched, keeping himself strategically submerged from the waist down. “Don’t mind me. Carry on.”
Moira folded her arms. “No one swims until I give permission. That applies to counselors as well as campers. Get out of the water at once.”
