Chase wished he could see her beautiful face, but she seemed more relaxed around him than she had been initially. The conflict in her eyes tugged at his heart. He couldn’t see those brown eyes now and he longed to, but he’d take not seeing for this level of teasing with Lizzy. Offering to wear a blindfold hadbroken through barriers, and their current comfort felt too good to be true.
“I won’t get cocky about it, I promise.”
“Good boy.” She said the words in a complacent tone, as if he were a dog. He recognized it as a social media trend and laughed even harder.
She put her hand in his and tugged. He stood, and she led him out of the steam room and across the smooth concrete.
Pausing, she clung to his hand. “Do we ease into it?”
“No, ma’am. We need to leap into the icy fringe. Can I take off my eye covering if I promise not to open my eyes? You can put it back on after we do the plunge, but it might rip off as we jump.”
She didn’t say anything for a beat, and he almost retracted.
“All right.” She released his hand, untied the knot, and slid the shirt off his head. Her soft hands brushing his face made his pulse race.
Keeping his eyes shut was a conscious effort, not only because it was unnatural, but because he wanted to look at her in her swimsuit. Not to check out her scars, but to check her out in a swimsuit. He could imagine he’d be more ‘obsessed’ with her shape than she was with his chest.
He resisted the impulse, praying they could develop the trust she needed to allow him to look at her. Was there something besides the knife wound and whatever made her limp that had scarred this beautiful lady?
“Tug me off the ledge,” he instructed.
“This is crazy, Mr. Fox.” Then she yanked him forward, screaming, “Cowabunga!”
Chase laughed as they went off the edge, closing his mouth before the water covered his head. It was icy cold, but the plunge felt as refreshing as he’d promised it would. She clung to his hand as they plunged underwater and then resurfaced. Again he had to remind himself not to open his eyes.
She screamed even louder, “Cold! Cold, cold, cold!”
He chuckled and tugged her down. “You have to sit completely submerged in it for six to eight minutes. It’s incredible for circulation.”
“Are you kidding me right now?”
His eyes almost popped open. “No, ma’am. I can show you all the research after we swim. Right now, you’re going to have to trust me.”
There was a pause, and he realized what he’d said. Sadly, she didn’t seem to trust him. It was instinctive to be offended by that and wonder what he’d done wrong, but he suspected it had nothing to do with him.
“All right, Retired Army Ranger Lieutenant now Officer Chase Tenley. I am trusting you.”
Those words were a relief. He wanted to hear her say them regarding more than just a cold plunge.
They sank into the cold water up to their chins and clung to each other’s hands. He could hear her teeth chattering almost immediately and wanted to tease that it wasn’t that cold.
“You’ll get used to it,” he promised. “At least you’ll get numb soon.”
“That sounds horrible. Who wants their entire body to be numb?”
He laughed. “Are you timing us?”
“Of course I am. Counting down the seconds. My goodness! Watching my timer only makes this misery worse.”
“You can just look at me and think how funny I look with my eyes squeezed shut.”
“Not funny at all. Remember my Chase’s chest obsession?”
“How could I forget that?” He flexed, and she laughed. He felt confident around her, but he was also afraid to set off any triggers.
“All right,” she said, cheerful again. “Tell me stories. Tell me all about your family and your growing-up years.”
“Um …” Now Chase was the one who wanted to hide something, and the cold water didn’t feel cold at all as he flushed with embarrassment. He knew logically it wasn’t his fault that he didn’t have family, but it didn’t change his reaction when somebody drew him out about it. He swallowed and pushed out the words, “I don’t have a traditional family.”
