Going Full Throttle

Chapter 32

"C'mon!" Finn growled in frustration as he yanked on my arm. "You pwomised."

"You promised you would wait until noon," I retorted. I tucked my knees up to my chest and locked my muscles when Finn pulled again. From my place on our couch, I looked outside. The sun just barely peeked over the eastern mountains that surrounded Clearwater Lake. The water would still be chilly for another few hours until the sun had time to heat the top layer.

"But I'm too excited." Finn changed tactics, rather than brute force he embraced his more subtle talents. His bottom lip pouted with a convincing wobble as his eyes rounded and glassed over.

I groaned, knowing I'd lost. "Fine," I sighed and stood up from the couch. "We'll just freeze to death."

"That's dwamatic," Finn said with a well-timed eye roll.

I scoffed down at him as I tried to hide the twitch at the corner of my lips. It was a fine balance between wanting Finn to be respectful, while also admiring his ever-growing sass.

"Only nice kids get to swim without lifejackets!" I called over my shoulder as I went to my room to change into my swimsuit.

"I'm gonna put the bowls in the sink!" Finn said quickly as he collected the breakfast dishes. I winced at the clatter of porcelain against each other. I ignored the urge to micromanage his attempt to help. His gesture was performative at best but at least he was trying.

With the cold water in mind, I put on a one-piece red swimsuit. It was a little cheeky but it would cover more skin than any of my other choices. My hair was—as usual—a lost cause. The errant strands fell messily around my face. There was no point in trying to tame it. I flipped my head upside down, shaking some of the waves loose, then embraced the mane.

"Alright," I said as I entered the kitchen. "You ready?" I already knew the answer to that. Finn had changed into his swimsuit before I'd even gone into his room this morning. In his excitement, he'd decided to put it on in the middle of the night, just to be ready.

Finn raced ahead of me out of the cabin and toward the dock. His excited shouts alerted Petey who came running from the Thompson's yard. I lifted my fingers to my mouth and whistled at both of them. Finn skidded to a stop in the sand just as Petey bulled past him then whipped around to face me.

"Hold your horses," I laughed. Finn's exuberance was intoxicating but I couldn't let him race off the end of the dock alone. "I think we need to practice a bit."

Finn's shoulders fell slightly but he agreed with a nod and waited for me to catch up. We walked side by side into the calm waves as they rolled slowly toward the sandy beach. The cool water nipped at my calves and brushed my body with goosebumps. I sucked in a quick breath and jumped from foot to foot to warm up. The shallow water sloped down and soon Finn was engulfed up to his waist.

"Okay," I said with a soft hand on his shoulder, "I'll go first. Try to swim to me."

I sucked in a breath and took the plunge, shooting under the water. I kicked forward as the cool water slicked my hair along my back. The mild bite against my skin from the temperature was refreshing as it washed the last of my tiredness away. I popped up and brushed the droplets from my eyes as I spun toward Finn. I bobbed about five feet away from him, the tips of my toes skimming the sandy bottom.

I assessed the distance between us and decided it was enough of a challenge while still leaving me close enough to grab him. "Okay," I grinned, "whenever your ready, swim to me. Remember to kick really hard."

For the first time that morning, apprehension clouded Finn's excitement. Petey must have sensed his fear because he left his place in the sand and walked to Finn's side. Finn dropped a hand into Petey's fur and rubbed him absentmindedly as he stared at the water.