Page 94 of The Saviors: Part One

Kai laughs. “No, Dragonfly, I’m not.”

She looks at Axel with a raised brow, and he shakes his head. “Since when do you back down from a challenge?” Cole asks Axel.

Axel’s eyes narrow. “What challenge?”

Chelsea laughs. “I, Chelsea Dawn Mitchell, hereby challenge Axel Chuck Norris to bring his ass into the pool.”

Axel fake glares. “So, that’s how it is? You two always used to gang up on me.”

They high five and say, “Yep,” at the same time, causing them both to laugh.

Axel strips his shirt off and drops his shorts. Chelsea is staring up at him with wide eyes, and I can’t even blame her. He dives perfectly into the pool over our heads. He surfaces in the middle with a grin. “Challenge accepted, Cupcake.” I notice he didn’t say it with the same venom he did at the meeting; this was more playful. Maybe we can work this out.

We all swim to the shallower end and swim around, playing, splashing water, and just enjoying our time together. I feel so fucking carefree; we all do. None of us have probably ever had it like this. Sure, there were good times, even great times, but nothing like this. Chelsea can bring out the best in everyone and make you forget all the bad shit you’ve been through and all the bad shit you’ve done.

I hear Chelsea squeal and look toward her. Axel has her in his arms. “Submit.”

“Never!” she laughs.

He throws her into the water, laughing to himself. He’s staring and waiting for her to come up. I watch him start to get worried while hiding a smile. I saw her twist under the water and go the other way. She comes up behind him, arms around his neck, legs around his waist. “Submit.” She gets close to his ear. “Bitch.”

Cole throws his head back, laughing. “I see some things will never change.”Is this how they used to be?

“Never.”

She tightens her arms around his thick neck. “Submit.”

“I’ll never submit to you, Cupcake.”

She shrugs, tightens her hold, and throws all her weight backward. The momentum knocks Axel off his feet, and they both go under. They come up with about a foot between them, and I see the calculating look in Axel’s eyes at the same time Chelsea does.

“Shit,” she laughs, diving under the water and swimming past him before he can grab her. She swims over to Kai and reaches her arms up. He tugs her out, and she hides behind him, laughing like crazy.

“Come on. Don’t hide now!” Axel yells from the pool.

She sticks her arm out from behind Kai and flips him off. Kai’s rumbling laugh fills the air and raises the hair on my arms.Interesting.

“Chelsea! Run!” Nolan yells about the time Axel pulls himself out of the pool.

She runs behind one of the long tables so they’re on opposite sides. “Truce?” she asks between laughs.

“Not a chance in hell.” Axel fakes to one side but goes to the other. She doesn’t have a chance before he grabs her the same way I did, she wraps around him, and he jumps into the deep end, full cannonball.

They surface where their feet can touch, and I swallow the lump in my throat at how they’re staring at each other. Their eyes are filled with some sort of wonder, and his eyes are saying everything he couldn’t say before. Her chest is heaving, and it’s not from playing around.

“Holy shit,” Cole whispers. I don’t even know what to say.

Chelsea snaps out of it first, blushes, and untangles herself. “You win,” she says softly, diving under the water.

She swims over to Kai, and he helps her out with a look of concern. She walks straight into the house without a backward glance.

“What just happened?” Nolan asks quietly.

“I think their rule about not talking about the past is about to be broken,” Cole mumbles.

Shit.

Chapter30