Her POV
Ethan's house was alive with music, laughter, and splashes from the pool. He'd always been the center of gravity when it came to summer parties—charismatic, effortlessly cool, the guy everyone gravitated toward. Tonight was no different.
But I wasn't here for the party. Not really.
I was here for the moment I'd been planning all week.
The moment Ethan saw me in the bikini I'd bought just for this.
It wasn't the kind of bikini you wear when you want to blend in. Black, strappy, barely-there—the kind of suit that clung to curves and hinted at more than it covered. When I slipped it on in my room earlier, I'd barely recognized myself. Bold. Reckless. Dangerous.
Exactly how I felt whenever he was near.
I wrapped a towel loosely around my waist and stepped out onto the pool deck. The air was thick with chlorine and grilled food, the humid evening pressing warm against my skin. My brother was at the far end, laughing with a group of friends. But my eyes sought only one person.
And then I found him.
Ethan was at the bar cart, pouring drinks, his shoulders golden under the string lights, his smile lighting up his face. He looked so at ease, so untouchably confident—until his gaze flicked up and landed on me.
The glass in his hand nearly slipped.
His expression shifted in an instant: surprise, hunger, disbelief. His jaw tightened, and for a long moment, he didn't move. He just stared.
Heat flushed up my chest. My heart thudded so loud I was sure people could hear it. I tugged the towel from my waist and let it drop.
Ethan's eyes followed the motion like he had no choice. His grip on the glass tightened. His throat worked as he swallowed, gaze sweeping over me with raw intensity that left me weak.
I smiled—slow, knowing—and walked toward the pool.
His eyes burned into my back the whole way.
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Ethan's POV
Christ.
What the hell was she thinking—wearing that?
No, scratch that. What the hell was I thinking—reacting like this?
I couldn't look away. She walked across the deck like she owned it, the towel sliding free, the slivers of black fabric clinging to sun-warmed skin I wasn't supposed to notice. Not like this. Not with her brother—my best friend—just feet away.
But my body betrayed me. My pulse spiked, my mouth went dry, heat coiled low and tight. She wasn't the girl I used to tease, the kid sister tagging along. She was a woman. A dangerously beautiful one.
And she knew exactly what she was doing.
I should've turned. Should've forced my eyes anywhere else. But when she slipped into the pool, arching slightly as the water lapped over her skin, I felt the air punch out of me.
Someone jostled my shoulder. Her brother. "You good, man? You look like you've seen a ghost."
I forced a laugh, muttered something about the heat, and knocked back the drink I'd poured. But even as I tried to join the group, my gaze slid back to the pool. Back to her. Always back to her.
And when she glanced up, caught me staring, and smiled?
Yeah. I was done for.
---
Her POV
The water was cool silk against my skin, but my blood ran hot. I swam to the shallow end, pretending to join a group of girls gossiping, but my attention never left him. Ethan.
Every time I surfaced, my eyes searched for his. Every time I found them, the intensity there made my stomach clench.
Finally, I moved to the far side of the pool, where the shadows deepened and the laughter of the party dulled. I floated near the edge, pretending to relax.
He came to me.
One moment he was across the deck, beer in hand. The next, he was stripping off his shirt, revealing bronzed skin, muscle shifting beneath, and sliding into the pool. My breath caught. He didn't look at me right away, but the air between us tightened as he swam closer, cutting through the water with powerful strokes.
When he reached me, he braced a hand on the pool wall beside my shoulder. Close. Too close.
"Do you have any idea," he said low, just for me, "what you're doing to me right now?"
My heart hammered. "Maybe I do."
He exhaled sharply, his breath brushing my cheek. Under the water, his knee bumped mine. Not an accident. His hand, hidden beneath the surface, skimmed my thigh. I jolted, a shiver rushing through me.
"Careful," I whispered. "People are watching."
His lips curved, dark with need. "Not here."
And then his hand slid higher.
---
Ethan's POV
I'd lost my mind. That was the only explanation.
Her skin was slick beneath my hand, the water hiding everything but making it ten times more dangerous. She trembled when my fingers traced up her thigh, and the way she bit her lip nearly undid me.
Around us, the party continued—splashes, laughter, music—but it all blurred. All I could feel was her.
She shifted closer, her hip brushing mine, her breath catching. I knew I should stop. I knew this was insane. Her brother was right there, and if anyone noticed—
But then her hand slid beneath the water too, finding my wrist, guiding me higher. An unspoken yes.
My control snapped.
I stroked her slowly, carefully, every movement disguised by the water. Her eyes fluttered shut, her lips parting in a soundless gasp. My chest ached with the effort to stay calm while inside I was unraveling.
"Ethan…" she breathed, barely audible.
"Shh," I murmured, brushing my cheek against hers, as though whispering something casual. To anyone looking, it might have seemed innocent. Friendly. But beneath the surface, it was anything but.
---
Her POV
I was on fire. Every nerve lit as his hand moved against me, hidden by the water. The risk—the sheer insanity of doing this here, surrounded by people—made it sharper, hotter.
I tried to stay still, to look normal, but my legs trembled, my fingers clutched at the pool ledge. Every brush of his touch stole my breath.
My brother's voice rang out from the deck, calling to someone. Panic shot through me, sharp and dizzying. For a heartbeat I thought he was calling for me.
I froze. Ethan did too, his hand going still, his body taut beside mine.
But my brother's attention turned elsewhere, laughter following. Relief crashed over me, mixed with something darker—excitement. We hadn't been caught. Not yet.
Ethan's mouth was at my ear. "You like this," he whispered, his voice a low growl.
"Yes," I gasped before I could stop myself.
He groaned softly, and his fingers pressed just right, sending heat spiraling through me until I thought I'd shatter.
I buried my face against his shoulder, biting back a cry. My body quaked, pleasure pulsing in waves that left me trembling in his arms.
He held me through it, steady, silent, his grip firm as though anchoring me.
When it finally eased, I sagged against him, breathless, my heart racing like I'd just run miles.
His hand slid away slowly, reluctantly. But the look in his eyes when I dared to meet them—hungry, undone, reverent—told me this wasn't over.
Not even close.
---
Ethan's POV
I was shaking.
Not from the water, not from fear of being caught—but from what I'd just done. From what we'd just risked.
Her body had clenched beneath my touch, her soft sounds muffled against my skin, and I'd had to grit my teeth to keep from groaning aloud. I'd never felt anything so intoxicating, so forbidden, so goddamn addictive.
And the fact that her brother was yards away, completely oblivious? It was madness. Pure madness.
When she finally lifted her head, her cheeks were flushed, her lips parted, her eyes glazed with satisfaction. My chest tightened. She was beautiful. Too beautiful.
I brushed a hand down her arm, forcing myself to keep the gesture casual. Friendly. Nothing more.
But under the surface, where no one could see, I curled my fingers into a fist. Because if I didn't, I'd drag her out of this pool, out of this party, and take her somewhere we didn't have to hide.
And I wasn't sure I'd be able to stop myself next time.
---
Her POV
The rest of the night passed in a blur. I laughed at jokes I didn't hear, sipped drinks I didn't taste, all while replaying those minutes in the pool over and over. The heat of his hand. The way I'd come undone against him. The risk, the thrill, the dizzying pleasure.
Every time our eyes met across the party, my body remembered. And every time, the corner of his mouth curved just slightly, like a private secret only we shared.
It was reckless. It was insane.
And I couldn't wait for more.
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