Tim arrived athis truck carrying mysterious baskets, his strong arms flexed and well-defined. After loading his baskets into the back, he opened the door for me. “Your phaeton awaits, madam.”
I laughed, delighted he’d remembered. And still relieved I’d shared my burden with Tim, of all people. But this kindness and the way he’d listened, making me feel calm and understood, had upped his appeal for me. I already found him attractive, and now I was even more smitten. “Phaeton?” I said as a flush ascended my chest and neck. “The poshest carriage, not just bog standard. I’m impressed. You did pay attention when I read you passages from my regency romances.”
“Yeah, I—” He clamped his mouth shut.
What was he going to say?
“Yes. I did,” he finally said.
“And where is this phaeton taking us?”
“It’s a surprise.”
He placed his hand on my back and helped me climb up onto the seat. The heat from his touch remained, and I smiled to myself, feeling cared for.
A short drive later, we pulled down a long country lane with tall grasses and towering old elms.
I turned to him. “Oh, I know what we’re doing. We’re going to picnic on the riverbank.”
He pulled up in front of our old water hole that was shadowed by willow trees. The sounds of running water and birds and bees in the grasses filled me with peace.
“No, just sit. You’ll see.” He swung out of his seat, rounded the front of the truck, opened my door, took my hand, and helped me out.
I stood in front of him, and he was still holding my hand, lingering a moment longer. The caw of an overhead crow swept his face upward and must have pulled him out of his reverie.
He strode around to the back of his truck, popped the trunk, and pulled out a basket of soft towels and an enormous robe that must have been his. I knew his mum did a lot of swimming, but I didn’t know he’d taken it up too.
But now, it was obvious what his plan was. Swimming.
Excitement rushed through me at the thought of immersing my head under the cool water, but we were missing a key item. “We’re going swimming, but I don’t have a swimsuit.” And anyway, did I want him to see me in a swimsuit? We worked together.
His eyes swept down my body and then went wide. He coughed. Um, he wasn’t thinking about me without a swimsuit, was he? I chuckled a little inside.
“You’ll be underwater,” he said.
“Tiiiim.” I narrowed my eyes.
“I’ll be on the bank watching out for anyone walking by. I promise not to peek.”
I kept looking at him as we walked to the water. Would he keep his promise? I checked his face for any indication this was something else, but he seemed to be scouting around for a good place to set everything down. “Promise?”
“Tabitha, this is for you, not me. I’m just here to enjoy your company and sit guard.”
I laughed, but somehow, I believed him. “Okay. You don’t want to come in too?”
“Well. You know how vain I am. My pride couldn’t take the shrinkage.”
I laugh-snorted, but was this like the kiss he’d turned down all over again? Was I feeling attracted to him and hoping all the time we’d spent together had changed how he felt about me, when he only wanted to be friends? I still couldn’t be sure of his affections.
“Okay,” I said. “It’s probably still bloody cold, so it might be a pretty brief swim for me.”
In the end, I stayed in for half an hour. The water was chilly but glorious, transparent pale blue, and I could see to the stones and sand at the bottom. I dove under again and again, being careful not to tip up my bottom above the surface, then treading water and singing and gazing up into the sky. I was utterly relaxed and serene and enlivened by the cold. My problems seemed so far away from this perspective.
Tim kept his promise and never turned once, not even when he called out, “Annoying teenagers coming.”
“Ducking under,” I called back.
When it was time to get out, I emerged quickly, giving the birds a flash, pulled on the robe he’d hung from a branch, andtied it tight at the waist. I was cold but refreshed and felt like I could face the world again and all was going to be okay.
