off next , then ran to the water and dove in.
She swam around, enjoying the feel of the cool water on her hot skin. When she came up for air, she turned ba ck to say something to Kent, and saw that Pete and Kara had arrived. T hey were setting up next to Kent . Sh e swam back towards the shore to get out and join them.
She walked out of the water, her hair slicked back with droplets cascading down her body.
That was the image that greeted Colin when Rich ushered him in through the fence. He stopped abruptly. Rich ran into his back, and Colin stood there, mouth open , as he watched her.
“Dude,” Rich yelled. “What the hell?”
Briana looked up at the sound of Rich’s voice and saw Colin watching her. The look on his face was enough to make her body tingle, and she couldn’t help but feel some satisfaction in the stupefied look on his face.
Kent looked up at Rich’s shout as well, and was less than happy to see the way Colin stared at Briana. The only one who seemed oblivious was Rich, who was still trying to shove Colin through the gate.
“Colin, I can’t walk through you, d ude.”
Rich’s voice finally registered, and Colin said, “S orry, m an,” as he got out of the way.
Briana walked over to her friends and pulled Kara off to the side. “What the hell is Colin doing here?” s he asked , trying to keep her voice down . “Did you know he was coming?”
“No, I had no idea, ” Kara replied. “I’m sure Rich invited him. It’ll be fine. There will be so many people here that you ’ll never have to talk to him.”
Kara walked back over to finish setting up her blanket and unpacking her things. Briana watched Colin and Rich go up to Pete and slap hands to say hello. They all star ted talking, probably catching up since they last saw each other, and she took the opportunity to look Colin over while he was distracted.
He wore solid blue swim trunks with a tank top in the same shade . His arms looked really good, t one d and tan . She felt that tingle run through her again and she couldn’t help but remember what it felt like to touch his body.
Back when she’ d the ability to touch him whenever she wanted, she’d always loved to run her hands over his back and feel the taut muscles underneath. She’d always thought his body was amazing, thanks to the training he’d had to do every day.
She looked around and realized that there would be a lot of eye candy for the ladies today. Between Colin, Kent, Rich, and Pete there wasn’t an inch of body fat. She couldn’t wait until it was time to go swimming .
Maybe she would just enjoy the day and not worry about Colin. The town was small, but it was big enough for the both of them. Since they were bound to run into each other often, she might as well make the most of it.
Kent started grilling the food as the rest of the people started showing up. Everyone cracked open the beers and malt beverages. Kara pu t on some tunes and everyone started to enjoy the water and the company.
Briana was sitting on her blanket talking to Pete, when they noticed Kara walking o ver to where Rich and Colin stood talking.
“Don’t take it personally, Pete,” Briana said quietly to him.
“I don’t,” Pete replied. “I’ve known Kara a long time , Bree, and I know that she thinks that she can’t have a serious relationship because her mothe r never could. B ut she’s wrong.”
“Her mother’s a b itch, and Kara is nothing