Page 45 of Ruthless Game

“Hey sexy, going to teach me how to float today?” Matthew Whatever the Third, the redhead whose name I’d mostly forgotten, called to me, clapping his hands together like a cheerleader.

The hard look on Lawson’s face came right back. If it was because Matthew was annoying, I agreed. And if it was because Lawson was jealous? Well, I couldn’t deny that made my stomach make room for some butterflies and my thighs clench. Guess I was as fucked up as he was.

“Don’t call me sexy again,” I told Matthew. “Or you’ll have to find a new swim class. And no, we won’t be teaching any of you how to float. Today, we’re going to learn how to blow bubbles underwater and turn our heads like we’re doing the breaststroke.”

Matthew opened his mouth, and I glared at him. “No jokes.”

Lawson smirked.

“What?” I asked, annoyed now, basically with everyone.

“I like seeing you stand up for yourself,” he said.

I wanted to bathe in those words, absorb them into my skin, but there was no time for that, and besides, it felt the teensiest bit hypocritical coming from him. So I turned away, climbing into the pool, and began to demonstrate how to blow bubbles with your face in the water and turn your head to take a breath. Maya also demonstrated, and for the next twenty or so minutes, the class practiced. Stepping back, I looked up at Lawson.

“How do I convince you to get in here with us?”

“You don’t,” he said simply. “You’re going to let me hang out here on the bench all semester, and then you’re going to pass me.”

I rolled my eyes. “What happened to me standing up for myself?”

“This doesn’t count. This is you knowing what’s good for you. There’s nothing you can do to get me in the water. Not even stripping. Not even offering to fuck me in the pool, so don’t bother trying.” He grinned. “Although I’ll take you up on it on dry land.”

His words echoed off the walls. As if they were synchronous swimmers, each student pulled their head out of the water, one by one, to look at us.

“Um.” Maya flapped her hands, perplexed. “Maybe y’all should have this conversation after class?”

“We’re not having a conversation.” I could feel my cheeks reddening, and all I wanted to do was dive underwater where I couldn’t see anyone and they couldn’t see my face.

“Why does he get to talk to you like that, but I get bullshit slung at me for calling you sexy?” Matthew complained, making his way toward me in the water. “Or are you only a slut for the hockey tea⁠—”

There was a loud splash, and then a large, wet body was in between me and Matthew.

Lawson.

Lawson was in the pool.

Lawson was also grabbing a spluttering Matthew by the throat and pulling him out of the water, glaring down at the redhead, whose face was going as red as his body.

“What the fuck did you just say to my girl?”

“I wasn’t—I didn’t⁠—”

“Not good enough.” Lawson dropped Matthew back into the pool, and then forced him underwater. Matthew flailed, going nowhere. Distantly, I realized I’d taught him well, because bubbles floated to the top.

Dragging Matthew back up out of the water, Lawson asked, “What the fuck did you say to her?”

“I’m sorry, man⁠—”

Splash.

Bubbles.

Screams all around us.

I shook myself out of my shocked stupor and tugged on Lawson’s arm. “Lawson, you have to stop. You’re going to kill him, and I don’t want to deal with that much paperwork.”

“Not done with him yet,” Lawson growled, not sounding like himself at all as he pulled Matthew back up and held him, dangling, toes inches from the bottom of the pool. “Tell me exactly what you called her.”