Inconvenient Attachment

Chapter 20

Vanessa's POV:

"I bet I can beat you in a swimming race." I try my best to persuade Rafe to get in the pool.

"That's not gonna work." He chuckles at my attempt of persuading him. Truth is I just wanted to see him shirtless. I get a flashback to last night when I spent the night in Rafe's room and I walked out of the bathroom to see him shirtless laid on his bed. I definitely crave that view again.

"What was the point in you coming to a pool party if you're not getting in the pool?" I point out an obvious fact.

"Drinks?" He looks at me as if it should be obvious.

"Rafe, please get in the pool." I give him my best puppy dog eyes and pet lip.

"Alright, fine." He sighs with annoyance.

A smile bigger than the Cheshire cats creeps onto my face. He stands up pulling his shirt over his head revealing his perfect body underneath.

My eyes are glued to his torso when he notices. "Stop drooling." He retorts jokingly.

"Sorry." I say basically admitting to him I was in fact mentally drooling over his body.

He dives in over my head causing a splash before resurfacing.

"How about that swim race?" He suggests.

"You're on."

We both get to the shallow end of the pool holding the wall with one hand.

"Go!" I yell and Rafe disappears under water. I try my best to swim to the other end but I get only half way when I see Rafe is already at the end. I quickly turn around trying my best to swim back to the start when Rafe submerges from the water.

I finally reach him. "You cheated and I still beat you." He teases.

"I didn't cheat." I deny cheating at all costs.

"You so cheated." He chuckles splashing me lightly with water.

I playfully splash him back. "Don't make me drown you." I warn him jokingly.

"Don't make me laugh."

"You don't think I can drown you?"

"I know you can't drown me."

"That's it!" I grab Rafe by the shoulders and try with all my strength to push him under the water. He remains stood upright laughing at me as he walks further back into the middle
of the pool where I can no longer touch the floor. Unexpectedly he grabs my shoulders and dunks me under the water with ease.

I come back up spitting out water and wiping my eyes. I don't even realise what I'm doing before putting my arms around Rafe's neck worried I can't touch the floor and that he might dunk me again.

"Rafe!" I whine still wiping one of my eyes.

"You tried dunking me?"

"Still, I wasn't ready." I finally open my eyes and they immediately connect with his.

He puts an arm around my waist, a small smile apparent on his lips. "I'm sorry."

"I forgive you." I can't help but smile at his smile.

His eyes flicker down at my lips and then back to my eyes. Our expressions fall serious. I wrap my legs around his waist and he moves a hand down to my bum. My boobs sit flush against his chest and he doesn't make it discreet before glancing down at them and then back up at me. I look down at his lips and fixate on them. I'm sick of being in this situation and someone always interrupting. I need to know what this leads to. Is he going to kiss me? I lean my head closer to his psyching myself up to kiss him when...

"Yo, Rafe!" Kelce shouts from the other end of the pool. Rafe unexpectedly dunks me again causing me to pull away from him and swimming back up to the surface and backwards until I can touch the floor. Rafe swims forwards towards me when we are joined by Kelce.

"What are you two doing?" He asks looking between the two of us.

"Rafe, was just drowning me." I look up at Rafe with an angry expression and he can't help but chuckle.

"I swear I just saw you two being all close?" Kelce questions with furrowed brows.

"Rafe just let me hold onto him because I couldn't touch the floor." Rafe's smile is so contagious, I look at him and immediately a smile creeps onto my face.

Kelce tilts his head back before nodding understandingly.

I leave Kelce and Rafe and swim over to Sarah and Topper who are now in the more shallow end. "Hey V, where you been?" Sarah asks as she's clearly been to wrapped up in my brother.

"Just getting drowned by your brother." I shrug nonchalantly. Rafe drowning me is not out of the blue. Topper kisses Sarah's cheek before swimming over to Rafe and Kelce, leaving me and my best friend alone.

"I saw you with Rafe."

"Are you joking? And you didn't even come to help me?" I refer to him drowning me jokingly.

"No, I saw you with your arms around each other." Her tone and expression completely serious.

I bite my lip unsure of what to say. "Oh that? That was nothing, I was just holding onto him cause I couldn't touch the floor." I tell her the same thing I told Kelce. The difference between Sarah and Kelce is, Sarah is my best friend and she has been since we were both in nappies. We tell each other everything, we know everything about one another.

"You still like him, don't you?" She turns to look at me but I fail to look at her. I stay silent. If I tell her no, I'd be lying. If I tell her yes, I'm admitting I like Rafe. "It's okay if you do." I snap my head to look at her.

"What?"

"It's okay if you like Rafe." She repeats herself even though I heard her the first time I'm just shocked that she's okay with it. "So do you like him?"

"No." I say adamantly but realise I'm lying to my best friend. "Maybe, I don't know. Possibly?" I question my own feelings. "It doesn't matter if I like him or not because nothing is ever going to happen. I mean it's Rafe we're talking about here. I'm just his little sisters annoying best friend."

"V, I was your brothers little sisters annoying best friend; look at us now." She refers to her relationship with my brother.

"Yeah but you and Topper were different. You both liked each other, so it was just so easy."

"You don't think Rafe likes you?"

I scoff. "I know Rafe doesn't like me."

"You think Rafe doesn't like you but you don't act like that in a pool with just anybody."