Between Two Fires

^.^ Chapter 18 ^.^

We set up the towels and bring out some soft drinks. The morning goes smoothly with all of us drinking and talking. I learn a little more about Ethan and Trent which do most of the talking. Trent is on the same boat as Luca and Ethan, finishing his studies. He has no idea what he wants to do when he is done the following year. Ethan tells me he has a pretty good plan for his future but doesn't elaborate. Although I do input some information of my own I mainly just listen to what they have to say, enjoying the close bond they all have with each other. Throughout the whole conversation my eyes constantly wander to the clear water and my body is itching to take a dip. I ignore it for around an hour before I give in to the urge. The boys are fooling around and Lea is sun-bathing so I get up and, making sure they are all distracted,quickly strip into my bikini. It consists of a simple black number which connects at the center of my stomach. The cleavage exposure is more than I am confident or comfortable with but I had bought this when shopping with Lea and my other two bathing suits had needed a wash.

I jump into the water as soon as my clothes are safely stuffed in my bag. 

Luca's POV.

I hadn't intended to accept Ethan's offer. Lea had enlightened me on their newfound relationship but that didn't mean I was entirely comfortable with it yet. Sure, I had seen it coming for some time now but it was going to take some getting used to. Initially I had rejected his offer, since it seemed pretty ridiculous to interject a date by inviting more people. But then he had mentioned the fact that Cyan was going to be there and that Trent had been designated as her fake date by Lea. Apparently Trent had readily accepted the chance but the thought of them possibly being left alone had me readily accepting Ethan's offer. 

The past couple of days had been enlightening. The one thing I had finally come to terms with was that Cyan was not a girl who could be ignored. At least I was having a hard time ignoring her. So instead of ignoring her, I decided I would just let things happen like they always did and if it came to it, I would just get her out of my system. She was only here for the summer so if anything ever did happen, it wasn't like it would last long.

Man, your thoughts are f*cked up....

With a sigh I walk down the path back to the car. It was definitely time for a beer but there wasn't any in the fridge I grabbed earlier. Making myself useful, I grab the fridge with the beers from the car and the one which holds the food for the barbecue. Walking back to the others, I set the fridge down noticing that Cyan isn't sitting where she was before. A splash catches my attention and it isn't a second before I see her head emerging from the water. I am about to head over in her direction when I feel something crash into my chest. The ball bounces from my chest to the ground and back up before I catch it. 

"You going to stand around or are you gonna join?" He shouts. I roll my eyes and for the next few minutes we pass the ball around with our feet, trying our best for it to stay above the ground. I am about to call it quits when their attention is drawn to something behind me, the ball bouncing its way into the lake long forgotten.

"I knew she was cute but..." Trent says, his words trailing off. Ethan just nods in agreement. I turn to see what has them so transfixed and my eyes immediately find their object of interest. Lea and Cyan are talking by the shore but what really catches my eye is what she is wearing. Although I had seen a glimpse of her in her bikini the day we went to the cliff, I hadn't really seen her in anything other than her beach wear since. But now, with water drizzling down her newly tanned skin, she wore a black bikini which covered more skin than most but hugged her in all the right places. The dip in her cleavage was enough to make any man take a glance but my attention was focused on her long hair, now wet and dripping around her waist, and big blue eyes. The only flaw which caught my eye once again was the fingers marks bruised on her hips. My fists clench and un-clench at the reminder in an attempt to control the rising anger. She remains oblivious to the three pairs of eyes fixated on her as she talks with Lea, softly drying her hair with the beach towel.