Page 9

A startling thought hit me at that moment. Rafe missed the ocean, and Kai would too, I was sure. What if these men—if I chose them—didn’t want to stay here? What if they wanted to return to their homes? Could I stand to live somewhere else away from my family?

I looked up at Alexei. He was staring out over the pond. We’d come here many times to cool off after a sweaty training session, but we’d never used it as part of the training. Like Rafe, his dark hair had matted to his head with sweat. He belonged here, at the water’s edge because this was as much his home as it was mine. Looking at the others though, it was evident they were out of their element. Especially Kai. I’d never seen anyone dress like him around here.

Kai took off this wreath crown and then pulled at the strings of his grass skirt. Underneath, he wore tight shorts that left nothing to the imagination. He dropped the skirt to the floor and looked up, not a hint of embarrassment at all. “A few laps should do.”

He dove into the water, sending a shower our way. Alexei was next. He tore his shirt off, then stood there in his training shorts for a few beats. He dove in like I’d seen him do so many times before, but this time seemed different. He was my best friend but not. There was a whole other side to him I hadn’t recognized, hadn’t been privy to. He liked me. As weird as it sounded, he was a bit of a stranger to me too.

Rafe wasn’t going to be left behind when it came to water. He also pulled his shirt over his head and dove in with the gracefulness of a dolphin. He didn’t come up for several feet. So long that I became worried for him when he didn’t surface. But then he came up with a fountain of water shooting from his mouth. He smiled back, the widest grin on his face I’d seen yet. “No salt. It’s kind of nice.” Then, he raced ahead to meet up with Kai.

I tugged on my shorts, pulling them down to my ankles as Theo and Calen jumped in. Felix and I were the last ones in, both diving in at the same time. I had barely a glimpse of his body as he made the jump, and I had to say, I was impressed. The Dumont Clan had not rested on their laurels when they were exiled to Australia. Felix was certainly a trained guardian as I had witnessed in my sparring match with him. His body was proof of it even if I hadn’t known the other part.

Swimming had never been my strong suit. I could stay afloat and was faster than a normal human, but the others were faster than me. Kai and Rafe lapped me more than once. My pride was hurt—a little.

After they’d lapped me again, Alexei came up and splashed me. “Come on, Princess. Let’s see those swimming muscles.”

I bit my lip and splashed him again. “I swear to God, Alexei.”

“You swear what?” he said, moving to a backstroke as he looked back at me. “You can’t even catch me to do anything.”

“We have time out of the water too.”

“Ooh,” he said, mockingly.

Some of the others laughed. I stared around, trying to see who it had come from. Of course, when I looked at them, they all looked straight faced, except for Kai and that was only because he was always smiling. “Alright, laugh it up. All of you. Wait until we do my kind of training. We’ll see who gets schooled then.”

“That sounds like a challenge,” Rafe said. He was clear on the other side of the pond now. He winked at me, letting me know he was only intent on joking.

“You bet it is,” I said, trying hard to dig deeper so I wouldn’t seem like such a poor swimmer. If we ever had to fight in water, I would need Rafe and Kai around me because I certainly wouldn’t be able to do much by myself.

“The princess has thrown the gauntlet down,” Rafe said, an edge of teasing in his voice.

This was the most I’d ever heard him talk. I was glad for it. The water seemed to bring out his personality more.

Felix grunted as he passed me, almost like a token of satisfaction.

Now I was really butt hurt. I hated to see him beat me in anything. Since he’d resorted to making noises instead of sharing his opinion, I supposed we should all be grateful.

I still couldn’t quite figure him out though. He seemed to hate every minute of being here, yet, he was still here.

Theo was the only one not to say anything. He kept at his stroke, strong and steady. He didn’t say a peep about the trash talk going around. It was almost as if he didn’t hear any of it. He was just focused on the task ahead of him, which was working out for him. He’d just passed Alexei and was working on overtaking Rafe.

We swam a few more laps with Calen and I bringing up the rear though I did beat him by a little when Kai called our swimming session to an end. He pulled himself from the water in an impressive display. Water rolled down in rivulets from his hair and face, tracing the curves and dips of his body. Over his chest muscles, his abs, then finally the v that led to his shorts.

A hushed voice came from right next to me. “Don’t drool, Izzy. It’s not becoming of a princess.”

I splashed Alexei and then locked my jaw down tight. I’d been caught. I shouldn’t have been such a poor sport about it, but Alexei and I had that type of relationship.

His gaze never left mine. It only narrowed. “That’s it, Princess.”

He swam forward, catching me without barely trying. He then heaved me over his shoulders and threw me. I landed in the water back first, knocking the air out of me briefly. I came to the surface of the water, sputtering.

I zeroed in on my target. “Alexei.Rajyvik.”

“Yes?” he answered, a smirk the size of the United States on his face.

“You’re going to pay for that.”

Using every ounce of my strength, I lunged at him, grabbing him around the hem of his shorts. He eyed me warily, but I wasn’t that cruel. I switched my grip, latching onto his waist as I scrambled up him, putting my arms around his head in a choke. He laughed and then dove into the water, taking me with him.