“I absolutely would.”
“Fine!” she barked, setting her feet down. “I’ll do it, but only because you forced me. If I drown, it’s your fault.” She ventured as deep as her ankles before she froze. “This is far enough.”
“Your toes are barely wet,” he said.
“Maybe just demonstrate for me and I’ll think over the physics for a day or two.”
“No one ever learned to swim standing on shore. Come on.” He pulled her deeper into the pond, up to her knees. “I’ll protect you.”
Her heart sped, but she managed an uneasy smile. “That’s backwards.”
“Maybe,” he replied. “But it feels alright, doesn’t it?”
He drew her, step by step, into the water until she was waist-deep, her shoulders tense.
“Mags.” Every time he said her name, a thrill ran down her spine. “I’ve got you. I’m not going to let you drown.”
She knew she was being ridiculous, but she couldn’t control water. She couldn’t think her way out of it. “No deeper,” she said stubbornly. “This is far enough.”
“Alright.” Asherton shrugged. “First, you need to learn tofloat.”
“I don’t float. I sink.”
“You need your body to be flat in the water.”
“That’s impossible.”
Asherton sighed. “Lean back and I’ll support your shoulders. Just kick up your feet and keep your core tight.”
She shook her head, hugging herself. Goosebumps spread down her arms.
“Don’t tell me you’re not strong enough.”
Magdala narrowed her eyes. “Oh, you’re devious.”
Shivering, she leaned against him, and he held her shoulders as she attempted to lie flat. Panic flooded her, and she planted her feet.
“No, I’ve got you!” he said. “Don’t stand!”
“It’s an instinct!”
“A bad instinct. That’s why you sink.”
She tried again, and again, she put down her feet.
“Stop standing!” He laughed. “You’re such a coward!”
“I am not getting paid nearly enough for this,” Magdala grumbled.
“Very well,” Asherton said primly, looping his arm around her waist and dragging her deeper. “Then we go where you can’t stand up.”
“Ash!” Magdala yelped, half laughing, half panicking. “You’re going to drown me!”
“Magdala.” She'd never seen him this earnest. “I would never, ever let you drown. Do you believe me?”
“No.”
“Do you believeme?”
