Page 104 of The Villain

The plastic stuck to my sweaty back as I rolled over with an ungraceful flop. Water splashed up the sides of the float as it rocked. Lying on my stomach, I let my hand hang off the edge so my fingers dipped into the warm water. My roll attempt had sent the float toward the side of the pool, and it bumped the edge gently. A shadow fell over me. A very familiarly-shaped shadow. I jerked to my elbows, my head whipping to the side, “Don’t you d?—”

The figure cannonballed off the edge to land two feet away me. A wave of water capsized my float and sent me head over ass into the pool. As soon as my feet touched the tiled bottom, I surged to the surface with a sputter. “Jace!”

He howled with laughter as he slicked back his hair, which he’d recently dyed a soft pink that looked ridiculously good onhim. I refused to tell him that, though. Even if he was the closest thing I’d ever had to a friend in my adult life.

With a swipe of my hand, I sent an arc of water in his direction. “Asshole.”

“Blame your boyfriend.” He splashed me back. “He told me to get you off that float before you fry.”

I sensed said boyfriend behind me and whirled around with a glare. How he just apparated places was a mystery that I’d never solve. He wore nothing but a pair of athletic shorts, unlaced sneakers, and his tattoos. His skin glistened with a thin sheen of sweat that let me know he’d been working out.

“I’m not burnt.”

He crouched down at the side of the pool. “Come closer and let me see.”

“No,” I snapped, and yet I walked over to him anyway. I folded my arms on the tiled edge.

It’d been two months since we came back from the beach, and in that time, Cian had managed to hire a company to install a heated in-ground pool. That timeline had seemed insane to me, but Cian had some pull around here, especially with contractors. I planned to get as much use out of it as I could before the cooler fall temperatures hit our state.

He pushed my wet hair off my forehead. “How long have you been out here?”

“A while,” I answered vaguely. Jace had begun to swim laps behind me, and he was not quiet about it. Every stroke slapped the water like a shot.

I let my legs float behind me, and Cian’s gaze went to my ass below the water before returning to my face. I’d gained weight in the last few months from finally eating well. When I couldn’t fit into the youth XXL frog swim shorts anymore, Cian had emailed the manufacturer and asked them to make the same patternin adult sizes. At first, I’d questioned his audacity, but then everything about it had been perfectly Cian.

A month later, we’d received three pairs in the mail that fit perfectly. I wore one today.

Voices drew my attention, and I turned to see Mads and Dylan emerge from the house with Jeremy. He hadn’t known how to swim either, so for the last month, the two of us had taken lessons together from a girlfriend of one of the crew.

“Hey, swim buddy!” I called out to the kid.

He grinned with a wave. “Dev!”

The kid’s mom had signed over full custody to Dylan, and Cian had helped him get a job where he didn’t have to travel as much. Dylan lived closer to the university in a townhome with Jeremy, but they both visited often, especially since we’d had the pool installed.

I was fond of Jeremy, and sometimes when I looked at him, I saw my nephew, Holden. Guilt sank into my bones sometimes, when I was feeling vulnerable. Holden would grow up knowing I was the villain, and I was okay with that. He wouldn’t be wrong. I didn’t let myself play thewhat ifgame. That wasn’t fair to Conrad or Tav. I’d fucked up years of their lives, and no matter what I did now, karma would come for me one day. But I didn’t tempt fate anymore. I was never going to absolve my soul, but I could stop punishing other people for my own pain. I could be a good influence on a kid who’d had a rough start in the hopes he didn’t turn out like me.

As the day wore on, more men from Frank joined us at the pool. Hack and Rhys. Starla and a few of her friends. A couple other servers from O'Shea’s. Because Cian didn’t do anything small, the pool was huge with a waterslide. He’d also had an entire patio built around it with a small pool house that held a TV, bar, bathrooms, and a lounge area.

As the day stretched on, Rhys manned the grill to cook enough hot dogs and hamburgers to feed an army. Cian and I stood along the side of the pool in the shallow end while Jace and a few of the other guys played with a floating basketball hoop. Cian had both arms wrapped around my shoulders and his chin in my hair.

Sometimes, I still woke up in the middle of the night in a panic that this entire life was a dream. I knew I didn’t deserve the happiness I’d found, but Ciandid. I turned my face into his arm and kissed his skin.

“Pool was a good idea,” he said. “Everyone likes it.”

“It was agreatidea.”

With a hand cupping my shoulder, he rubbed his thumb over my collarbone. “Let’s go back to the beach in September. Before the cold weather comes.”

I smiled. “Okay.”

“Jace will want to come.”

“Sure.”

“We’re getting separate rooms, though. I’m not going to the beach and not fucking you.”

“Of course. Heaven forbid.” I snarked.