Maid for Him.

Chapter Eleven

He spent the next few hours by the river. Contemplating life, wondering what changes it had to offer him if he was brave enough to make them. Wondering where he would start, when something caught his eye. Someone was swimming towards the pontoon. He pushed his sunglasses up on top of his head and squinted at the figure as it glided through the water. It was impossible to tell who it could be from this distance, it was rare to see anyone else out there.

His sister was away at school, not that she would swim in dirty lake water. She refused to go past her knees in the pool and that was cleaned weekly. She preferred lounging by the side, sipping cocktails and working on her tan.

The nearest neighbors were a fair distance from here and truth be told if they wanted to swim, they had their own section of the river. Not that there were any steadfast rules but people usually kept to themselves around here.

Getting up he wandered over, closer to the water's edge. He could see now; it was a woman. She floated at the edge of the pontoon, her hair a weird shade of pink. Like some sort of mystical mermaid. She pulled herself up onto the pontoon, he was almost surprised to see long, lean legs and not a tail. Shaking her head from side to side, drops of water broke free, clinging together to create an arc. Who was she? And was she real or had she materialized from his dreams of meeting a wild, beautiful woman?

Leaning to the side she twisted her hair, round and round, wringing it out at her feet. She glanced up and made eye contact. He couldn't have looked away if he wanted to. A huge smile spread across her face and she waved towards him. He turned slowly, reluctant to break eye contact, to look over his shoulder, then the other. No one else was around. She was waving at him. Gradually raising his hand, he threw a brief wave back.

She turned her hand the other way and summoned him over. She had to be crazy. He was dressed in cream chino slacks and a shirt. He couldn't possibly just swim out there—she gestured to him again. No, he couldn't, that would be ridiculous, he decided as he pulled one black, leather, Burberry loafer of his foot. What was he doing? Why was he removing his shoes? Put that shoe back on this minute. He thought as the second shoe thud against the ground.

He practically ripped off his shirt and threw it towards the tree he had previously been lounging under. His skin sizzled under the heat of the sun that beamed down from a cloudless sky. He dipped his toes in the water and felt instant relief. Fully prepared to dive down into the lake for this gorgeous stranger, he took one last brief look at her.

Standing straight with one hand on her hip, her other hand was held outstretched and she waggled her finger at him. He furrowed his brow and raised his shoulders. "What" He mouthed. She pointed to the chinos. "Lose the pants." She yelled, her voice soft and sweet despite the power she pushed it out with.

She had to be kidding, there was no way he was getting down to his briefs for a stranger. He thought as he kicked his ankles free and flung his chinos onto the pile of his belongings. He dashed into the cool water and dived down, fully submerging himself. Swimming along the river floor, he started to doubt his rash decision. He didn't even know this woman and she had him practically naked and covered in dirty sludge from the river.

"Dangerous territory. Turn back." His brain practically screeched at him. Yet his legs continued to kick, propelling him towards the pontoon. Reaching the floating wood, he broke out and gasped for a large intake of air.

"Glad you could make it." The angel practically sang. Well maybe not exactly, more like laughed hysterically. "Do you always strip off because a stranger tells you too?"

"When they let me." He said with a wink and flashed a cheeky smile. "So what're you doing out here?"

"Hunting elephants." She said. There was no expression on her face to indicate she was joking. Although clearly, she was. They were in Virginia. It would be a challenge to find an elephant around here, and even if she did, he was sure it was illegal to hunt them. She made her way over to the far end of the pontoon and sat down, dangling her feet in the water.