I didn’t even give Marium a moment to say anything more before I was hurrying out of the library. I hurried down the sidewalk, trying to shake the feeling off. I stared at my hands, still feeling the spark.
“That’s insane,” I whispered to myself, wondering how it was even possible. It wasn’t.
I headed into the woods, letting my body go where it felt it needed. I just needed to get away and clear my head. Force the feeling away because it wasn’t real. It was just the idea, the thought that maybe I could be.
I froze when I heard footsteps. I scanned the space ahead of me, knowing that I wasn’t that far in the woods, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t be in danger. I swallowed as I took a few more steps ahead of me and looked from behind a tree.
I spotted Westley just a few feet ahead of me. He had his back to me and was moving in different training positions. I knew better than to watch, but I couldn’t help but be shocked at how perfect his movements were. They were calculated like he’d done them a thousand times and didn’t even need to try. His body just knew.
I chewed on my lip as he rolled his shoulders back, making muscles in his back flex. I remembered how his shoulders would brush against mine in the library and how I always thought they were soft, a gentle place to rest my head. But looking at them now, they looked like pure muscle.
His biceps tightened as he held his hands up, and I felt my heart leap. I was mesmerized.
I suddenly found myself missing what we had. The closeness we shared, and I hated how it was all different now. I wished I knew what happened, why it suddenly changed. I had thought about asking Westley, but I was afraid of the answer I would get.
I shook my head, knowing I needed to keep moving and quit watching him. I was getting ready to turn when he pulled off his shirt, and my eyes widened at the sight of his bare back. Each muscle moved, and I couldn’t look away. Westley had a dark tan, and as he reached for the sky, I felt my stomach bottom out.
He was perfect, like a woman had carved him out herself. My insides flipped, and I internally screamed at the sight of him.
He took a few steps closer to the water next to him. I stood frozen like a statue, unable to look away. He reached down, pulling at his boxers and shimmying them down. I knew this was my last chance to turn around. There was no returning from seeing this. But I couldn’t.
Westley had a nice ass. A very fit, muscular ass. That was the only way to describe it.
My eyes stared as he walked completely naked toward the water. I frowned, confused why he would even think about going into the water when it was cold out. Was he trying to get himself sick? It was winter, and only someone insane would go into the freezing cold water.
He walked into it, showing no reaction to even feeling the cold. I imagined it felt like ice. He kept walking, going from his feet to his thighs into the water. And then he jumped in, diving under.
I stared as I waited for him to come back up, but he didn’t. So, I waited five seconds, then ten. Fifteen seconds went by, then half a minute.
I moved out of my spot, looking for him. I scanned the water, watching the bubbles for a moment before they disappeared, too. My heart was beating quickly in my chest, my eyes going over the water frantically trying to see him.
Was he trying to swim from one end to the other? Was he doing a cold plunge after a workout? The seconds ticked by, but he didn’t come up for air.
A minute. And counting.
I shifted uncomfortably on my feet. “Westley…” I whispered his name, chewing on my cheek. “Come on… come up for air… what are you doing?”
A minute must have gone by, maybe even two. I wasn’t sure. Everything seemed to blend together. The seconds felt like an eternity.
I moved closer to the water. “Westley! Come up,” I practically yelled at him. I looked over the water, still nothing. No bubbles. No ripples. Just stillness.
I felt my body shaking as I shoved my shoes off. I should have stripped down, but I didn’t have time. What if he hit his head? What if he was stuck on something? What if he wasn’t able to come up, and I was just standing here watching him drown?
I moved, rushing into the water, and dove down underneath. Cold hit me like a train, and my entire body tensed up at the contact. It was like diving right into an ice bath.
I swam, looking for him. I quickly found him just a few feet under, floating. I felt my panic grow and swam to him quickly, grabbing at his arms.
His eyes snapped open, and they widened as he spotted me. His mouth opened, and I watched a few bubbles flow out. But I didn’t have the air to say anything, or the time. My lungs were burning.
I tugged, and we both shoved up until we broke through the water. I coughed as I gasped for air, my lungs felt like they were on fire, and my skin felt like it was frozen. I think the cold air was even worse than the cold water.
“What… the hell are you doing?” I asked, my voice sounding broken.
“What do you mean?” he asked, not even looking flustered. He wasn’t even out of breath. He was calm, almost too calm.
“You could have drowned!” I yelled at him, throwing my arm into his chest. His muscles were strong against my palms. I hit him two more times, my entire body shaking.
Westley’s eyebrows went up, and he looked at me, genuinely surprised. “Is that what you think I was doing? Trying to drown myself?”
