It's just Pretend | clexa AU

chapter seventeen

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Clarke thankfully didn't choose to tease Lexa and cuddle her this time. They laid on their respective sides of the bed and thanks to jet lag, were asleep quickly. Lexa just couldn't stay asleep. She woke up several times along the night and somewhen around three in the morning, she got up and decided to take a swim.

The water was softly lit by fluorescent light, a dark turqoise that stood out in the dark. Lexa adored the night. She loved the silence, the solitude. The cliff overlooked the darkness of the sea, yet the waves were visible even from so far above. They shone cold in the moonlight and everything was bathed in a low silver, far up into the night sky where the stars glowed.

The little waves Lexa created with her strokes softly hit the glass wall of the pool, the only sound in the air except for the real waves far beneath. There was barely a breeze in the air and the sea was as calm as Lexa. It smelled faintly of salt water and late summer nights and even despite the late hour, the air was mild.

Lexa knew then already that she would miss this silence back in New York. The silence, the scent of the air and the stars up in the sky.

She was so caught up in that, she didn't notice the sound of someone else slipping into the water. It was only when Clarke joined her at the edge of the pool that Lexa saw her.

"Can't sleep either?"

"Nope."

"Jet lag I guess."

Clarke chuckled "Yeah, but I usually don't get up at six, so this isn't morning for me."

Lexa hummed, her eyes now drinking in the woman next to her. She wore a beige bikini, the color only searching to reflect the moon and the neon light of the pool. Her hair too seemed brighter than usual, melting into the water, and her features were lit so beautifully, Lexa thought Clarke look ethereal there in the water.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Clarke asked, looking out on the ocean that looked like stars were scattered all over the water.

"Yeah," Lexa breathed. Clarke's eyes tore away from the water and a slight, almost playful smirk appeared on her lips. Shit. She had definitely noticed Lexa staring. "I can't complain about a business trip like this for sure," she distracted with flustered cheeks.

"Who could? Tomorrow morning we have a meeting over a delicious breakfast- I saw pictures of the breakfast buffet, God, have I mentioned I'm a slut for good breakfast?"

"I believe you have," Lexa said with a little grin.

"I really am. Also, did you check the plan? There's a party tomorrow night. There will be a few companies there that we can do good networking with. Even if we don't get the partnership, these two weeks are absolutely invaluable for us as a business."

"I know, I already emailed a few of them. Trikru Enterprises has let an interest for a partnership shine through. That might be a once in a lifetime chance to get."

Clarke nodded. "We're not a bad partnership for them either. Especially after the almost scandal last year, they're good to work with a nature and animal friendly company as ours."

"Yes, I'm sure we'll find an agreement. Their reach for advertisements could well benefit us," Lexa said and took a breath of the fresh night air. "Anyway, this is not a night I want to spend talking about business."

Clarke hummed. "Is that so?" Lexa wasn't sure if she was imagining it or if Clarke's voice had dropped in pitch. "Do you have anything specific in mind what you would rather spend this night with?"

Lexa was definitely not imagining it.

I mean your ability to flirt is there when you're in business mode, she heard Lincoln say. Instead of freaking out or immediately playing it off with a laugh, Lexa forced herself to imagine she was anywhere else but alone with Clarke in a pool in the middle of the night.