at the thought of taking that plunge, sinking into the deep. So far, the trip had been full of triggers. Strange men in the woods, physical altercations, extreme stunts. Everything made her uneasy, from the thick forest to the wide expanse of open water before her. “Is it that obvious?”
“Your discomfort, you mean?”
She nodded.
“Not really. Ballplayers learn to read body language and facial expressions. We have to anticipate a player’s next move.”
“Does it work with Leo?”
He touched the sore spot on his lip, rueful. “Apparently not.”
Nathan appeared to have instigated the fight. Despite this brief lapse in maturity, she still liked him. At least he hadn’t traded punches with Leo. Somehow, the macho shoving match had broken the ice between them.
Men.
Abby frowned on Nathan’s methods, but she could relate to what he was going through. She understood how it felt to be torn apart. He also seemed aware of his own failings and desperate to improve. That was appealing to her. The fact that he was handsome, well-built and observant didn’t hurt, either. He might not have a clue about communicating with his son, but he knew how to please a woman. Shivery intuition told her that.
She inhaled a sharp breath, drawing his attention to her chest. Her nipples pebbled against the wet fabric of her bikini top.
He returned his attention to the lake. “I need to get back in the water.”
It was hot. Sweat trickled between her breasts.
“Come on,” he said. “I’ll jump with you.”
“That sounds more dangerous.”
“Okay, I’ll go first, and you can jump to me. I’ll be right there.”
The granite island loomed in the close distance, taunting her. She could climb up with Nathan and brave the unknown. Or she could sit on the sand, wallowing in heat and anxiety. “You really think it will help?”
“Sure. Most fears are based on inexperience and unfamiliarity. Our imaginations conjure all sorts of scary, but unlikely, scenarios. As soon as you jump, you’ll realize it’s not that bad. Then you can relax.”
She smiled at his pep talk. “So this will be a quick, natural tension reliever?”
His eyes darkened. “I can think of a better one.”
So could she. He looked interested enough to pounce on her at the slightest provocation, but they couldn’t just wander off into the woods for a quickie. Even if she’d been willing to engage in a naughty fling, their kids were here, and encouraging a man like him would only lead to trouble. He was too charming, too sexy.
Too risky.
Brooke and Leo headed toward the rocks for another turn, spurring her into action. “Okay,” Abby said. “I’ll try it.”
“The jump?”
“Yes, the jump.”
He seemed surprised by her agreement. Cliff-diving was a sport for wild teenagers like Leo and Brooke, not women her age, with skittish temperaments. Maybe she was avoiding the greater danger—Nathan himself.
She stood, brushing the sand off her bottom. His lean physique made her feel self-conscious about her figure. He was extremely fit, without an ounce of spare flesh. Although she was on the slim side, she wasn’t young and perky anymore. Her stomach and hips were softer. Her thighs had more jiggle.
He watched her wade into the lake, his neck flushed. “Splash me.”
“Why?”
“For luck.”
She’d never heard of such a thing, but she splashed him. The water hit his face and shoulders, trickling down his chest.
He shook it off like a dog and lumbered to his feet. Vanity had her wondering if he’d been overheated—aroused, even—because of her. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d given a man an inappropriate erection.
Hiding a smile, she ducked under the icy water and swam to the cluster of boulders. Brooke and Leo were already jumping from the opposite side. Abby hauled herself onto the lowest boulder, with some difficulty. The path to the top was wet. She used the same handholds and footholds that Brooke and Leo had used, her mouth pursed in concentration. It was an undignified climb in a bathing suit, with Nathan right behind her. If she’d known a hot guy would be staring at her butt in broad daylight, she might have gone tanning or had her cellulite zapped.
She reached the plateau, breathless. “I didn’t enjoy that.”
“I did.”
Abby laughed, accepting his help to stand up. A wave of dizziness struck her as she peered over the edge. “Oh God.”
“What are you doing?” Brooke yelled from below.
Nathan kept a firm grip on Abby’s hand. “What does it look like? We’re jumping.”
Leo put two fingers in his mouth and whistled to cheer them on.
Brooke was less than thrilled. “Be careful,” she said with a frown, as if uncomfortable with the role reversal.
“I’ll try not to break a hip,” Abby said.
Nathan smiled at the joke, squeezing her hand.
He’d been wrong about the power of her imagination. Reality was worse. It looked so much higher from up here. The distance to the water made her stomach flip. She felt like she was standing on the roof of a skyscraper.
“I can’t do it,” Abby said.
“Sure you can. I’ll go first. When I call out to you, jump. If you wait too long, you’ll overthink it.”
Brooke swam to the underwater obstacle with Leo and gazed up at them.
“Don’t push me,” Abby said.
He let go of her hand.
“I can’t feel my face.”
“As long as you jump away from the boulder, you’ll be fine,” he said. “Keep your arms and legs straight.”
She was about to tell him not to leave her when he did it. He just leaped off the edge like it was nothing. His body hit the water, arrow-straight. When he resurfaced a few seconds later, he was grinning.
“Come on,” he said, swimming backward to give her some room. “You can do it.”
Abby didn’t want to. She pictured herself fainting and dashing her head against the rock. “I have to sit down.”
“Don’t sit down. Jump!”
She looked for a way out, her shoulders shaking. The path they’d climbed would be difficult to descend.
