Seeing her in her swimsuit is a feast for my eyes. As she swings on the rope, her full breasts sway with each movement, taking me back to the view of her in that tank top last night. The image plagued my dreams and to no one’s surprise, I woke up with a raging erection.
Thankfully, I have my own room to handle my needs. I don’t know how the hell the other guys manage with no privacy. Maybe that’s why they take so long in the bathroom.
When the competition is over to Lana’s satisfaction, they join us for lunch. Before we attack the food, we pile her plate up high with far more than she’d need.
After the spread is gone and we’re left with nothing but crumbs, I make my way back over to the shade of my favorite oak tree, book in hand, as the rest of them lay on their towels to soak up the sun.
Though we have different interests, they never make me feel like the odd one out for being a bookworm.
I lose myself in the world of dragons as the world around me fades. I don’t notice anyone approaching me until the book in my hands is swiped away. Startled, I shoot upwards to find the culprit, only to see Lana’s mischievous face.
Instantly, I calm down and smile back at her. Unlike earlier at lunch, she’s back in her shorts and shirt, so I’m not as flustered by her closeness.
She’s watching me closely and I can feel that the situation may become awkward if I don’t say something. Has it already? I’m comfortable without saying a word around her but I know she may struggle with my quietness.
Hesitantly, I offer, “Care to join me?”
She beams at me and curtsies, eliciting a smile from me. “I’d love to.”
This girl is really something else. I never know what she’s going to do next.
She drops down next to me, her arm brushing against mine, sending tingles where we touch. Those tingles spread and spread, turning into a threatening heart attack, when she leans her head against my shoulder.
This is not the kind of affection that I’m used to from her.
What do I do?
Do I put my arm around her?
Would that be weird?
She interrupts my inner turmoil with a giggle. “Chill out, Zedd! You’re so tense.”
Taking a deep breath in and blowing it out, I give myself a pep talk.
You’ve got this, Zedd. Just reach up and put your arm around her. Nothing weird about that.
Not wanting to give myself time to back out of the decision, I jerk my arm up and put it around her. In quick succession, I try to pull her closer to me but use too much force and instead of resting on my chest, she falls face first in my lap.
Holy. Shit.
No one has ever been this close to my dick, besides me.
Her breath is warm and my dick twitches at the first hints of attention. She’s just lying there, likely in shock, frozen, because I’m such a fucking disaster.
Just as I make the decision to drown in shame after I’ve saved her from my clumsiness, she starts to laugh and the vibrations make me shiver. When she puts her hands on my leg to push herself, I almost groan because fuuuck, my dick likes all of this.
By the time she’s back in a sitting position, I’m beet red, looking forward to death and doing my best to keep my hands away from her. “I’m so sorry, Lana!”
She smiles softly at my horrified face. “It’s okay, sweetie. Let’s try this again. Put your arm up.”
Following her request, I lift my arm and she tucks herself up against my side, laying her head on my chest.
I still feel nervous about screwing this up somehow but a tense body can’t be a comfortable resting place so let out a deep breath and force myself to relax. I let my arm hang against Lana’s side and lean back against the tree.
This feels damn good.
I’ve waited a long time for this and wondered, more than once, if it would ever happen. Patience is indeed a virtue. Life can’t get much better than this.
I close my eyes and doze off, enjoying the warmth emanating from her and the cool breeze in the air.
Leo
A sharp, stinging sensation on my cheek jerks me from my nap. I come to, disoriented, and absentmindedly wipe the tingling skin.
When I pull my fingers away, they’re smeared with blood and I sit up, startled, looking for the cause. Searching the area around me, I find a large pellet of hail, the size of a dime, and my heart drops.
Oh, shit.
I glance up to a gray sky, filled with angry storm clouds, completely blocking out the sun.
“Wake the fuck up!” I shout at the guys near me. Without waiting for them, I rush over to the tree where Lana and Zedd are dozing, immediately dropping to my knees and shaking her awake as gently as I can in my panic. “Lana, baby, open those gorgeous eyes up. We have a problem.”
Her eyelids crack open and she looks at me, sleep lingering in her eyes. “What’s wrong?”
“Hailstorm. We need to find cover immediately.”
Lana and Zedd bolt upright, gathering supplies, rushing to get everything essential together with panicked movements.
“Think about where the closest shelter is!” Hale yells. “We don’t know if a tornado will follow. The sky could open up at any moment.”
We all share nervous glances, struggling to come up with an area that can provide the safety we need from this storm.
“There’s nowhere!” Zedd shouts back, struggling to hide the fear in his words. “Closest underground shelter is in town!”
“Fuck!” Ash cries, drawing our attention to him. His hand is against the back of his head when he pulls it away, blood stains it.
“Ash!” Lana calls, dropping the things in her hand and rushing over to him.
Hale catches her by the hand before she can get far, pulling her to a stop and rushing to get his words out. As we gape at the situation we’re in, he lays his plan out to protect us. “We need to take cover immediately. Drop everything, grab your towels and run over to the tree line! Use the towels to cover your head!”
Dropping the items without a second thought, we sprint to grab our towels and run towards the designated area, just as thunder booms overhead. I look over my shoulder to make sure Lana’s okay and see Luke holding her hand so she doesn’t fall behind.
She’s okay. We’re okay.
As we’re rushing towards safety, two-hundred feet from the dense woodlands, the sky opens up and the hail batters down as if determined to cut us open. Cries sound off from behind me but there’s no time to look. All I can do is pray no one is seriously hurt.
Almost there, I tell myself as I pass under the canopy of trees. Ignoring my own wounds, I whirl to check on Lana, covered in a towel Luke’s holding over her head as they dart into the cover of safety.
She looks unharmed but my brother isn't so lucky. A deep gash runs through his eyebrow and blood gushes from the wound into his eye. He drops the towel, his hand immediately going to the injury and he hisses from the sharp bite of pain.
Hurrying over to him, I apply pressure to the wound to staunch the bleeding. “Shit, Luke. This is bad.”
Lana screams in frustration, standing with clenched fists like she’s holding herself back. Tears stream down her face. “Why didn’t you protect yourself?! I could have held my own towel! You’re hurt because of me!”
He looks at her, his face a bloody mess, sincerity shining in his eyes. “My Queen, I’m not hurt because of you. I’m hurt because of the hailstorm. I shielded you to the best of my ability because you are more important to me.”