Prove It

Chapter 14

Sierra fell asleep in Tristan’s car as he drove her home. He couldn’t blame her, today was a really big day for her. They’d been sitting in the driveway outside of her house for the past ten minutes and Tristan couldn't bring himself to wake her. The idea crossed his mind to pick her up and carry her inside and he would have done it if he didn’t think her father would get the wrong idea.

He put his head back against the leather headrest, in no hurry to get rid of his slumbering passenger. He looked at her face, so peaceful in sleep,  and thought about how amazing she did today. Things were a bit touchy there at the end, but she pulled through, just like he knew she would.

*************Flashback*********

He took her under the water with him and she squeezed him tighter than she had the entire time. Her legs fastened around his waist and her arms strangled his neck. He blew the air out of his lungs, in order to make it to the bottom. About three-quarters of the way down, he felt Sierra’s grip loosen and he recognized the beginning signs of alarm. He focused on her and saw her eyes were wide and she had this look on her face. She was starting to freak out. He tightened his hold so she wouldn’t be able to pull away if she tried. Then, he moved their bodies toward the side of the pool so he could use the wall to push off and propel them back to the surface. When they came up, she coughed and spat water out of her mouth, then she gasped for air. He immediately felt bad. He pushed her too hard too soon. She wasn’t ready. He was about to apologize for his error in judgment when she looked directly at him and started smiling. It was so unexpected.

“I can’t believe I just did that! That was amazing!” she said, her voice full of wonder.

“Really?” he asked feeling his mouth begin to form a smile.

“I mean, there was a moment when I was sure I was going to die but then you pushed off the wall and we swam so fast. I’ve never moved like that before, it was almost like we were flying, we were weightless. I can’t wait to do it again. Can we do it again?”

Her enthusiasm was contagious and he was relieved. He thought she would never want to get back into the water with him. She was always full of surprises.

“Yeah, we can do it again. Maybe not today, though,” he told her.

She pouted and his eyes were immediately drawn to the movement. Suddenly, it became a problem having her so close, clinging to him like she needed him and the water felt unbelievably warm. She was softer that he ever imagined. And then there was the bikini. He had no idea just how much her clothes concealed. She was beautiful all over. He was going to have to get her to release him so he could have some space to cool down.

“I think this is a good place to stop,” he said. Sierra seemed reluctant to leave. “You want to stay in the water longer?”

“Yes,” she looked into his eyes. “If it’s with you.”

Thump, thump. His heart pounded and parts of his body pulsed at her words.

“Let’s save something for tomorrow. There’s no need to rush. We can work on your mermaid routine later.”

 “Tristan, you’re incredible. The way you move through the water is amazing. I hope one day I can be half as good as you.”

“With me as your teacher, don’t doubt it. You accomplished a lot today. I’m so proud of you.”

“Thanks for pushing me to do this. You’re a good friend.”

Friend. That’s what he was. Her friend. So why did it bother his so much to hear her call him that?