Paper Thin

Bradley University didn’t have anything by way of wildlife, unless you counted the primal ways of frat boys. The ducks had been soothing to see. Even though I always said this dinky town sucked, deep down there were things about Parish Cove I loved. This lake was one of them.

I slipped off my sandals and moved to sit at the edge of the dock, hanging my legs over the edge. Slowly, I dipped my toes into the water, careful not to get my jeans wet. Chills ran through me, causing goose bumps to prickle up my legs and across my skin. The water was freezing. I took comfort in knowing some things never changed.

Water splashing a few feet away caught my attention. I glanced around, looking to see if the ducks had decided to take another evening swim. A muscular, bare back glistening in the sunset captured my attention instead. Dark hair. Tan skin. Strong, confident strokes. I knew who it was even before he even turned his head to the side for more air.

Dawson Phillips.

I couldn’t believe he still took evening swims in the cold ass water of the lake regardless of how cool it was outside. Yeah, some things never changed. I leaned back against the palms of my hands, feeling the rough wood of the dock steady me, and crossed my ankles. My mind flashed back to all the previous times I had sat in this spot, watching him swim laps. Sometimes I would imagine him becoming an Olympic swimmer, and traveling the world with me by his side. God, I had wanted to be with him.

The splashing of the water stopped. I blinked and realized he’d spotted me, staring at him like the teenybopper I used to be. My heart picked up pace as I wondered what I should say that wouldn’t embarrass me any more than I already was.

“Hey,” I called out, because what more could I say? My voice wavered from having been caught staring. I cleared my throat, hoping it would sound even when I spoke again. Jesus, I was fifteen and tongue tied by him all over again.

Dawson’s lips twisted upward as he continued to tread water. “Hey, yourself.”

I couldn’t breathe as a strong sense of deja vu hit me. The last time we’d been in this exact situation came rushing back. It was the night before Dawson was leaving for college. I’d come to the lake for a nighttime swim in the hopes I would see him here one last time. I desperately wanted him to stay, but I also wanted him to be happy. The scholarship he’d gotten for baseball had made him happy. So, I let him go. Even if he technically wasn’t mine to release. Dawson was destined for greatness. I knew this even at fifteen, and I didn’t believe anyone could find greatness in Parish Cove.

The conversation between us had happened just the same. In fact, I’d dreamed about his ‘Hey, yourself’ and sexy smile for months afterward. The entire night had been imprinted into my head and etched into the contours of my soul, because that was the night Dawson had given me what I always wanted from him most—my first kiss.

He knew I’d had a crush on him for forever. It was no secret. Everyone knew. I followed him around like a lost puppy. We’d sat on the dock that night, lost in conversation. I listened with my head propped up by my hand, soaking up his every word as though my life depended on it. Fear of the unknown was what he talked about. How he’d always thought about leaving Parish Cove and creating his own path in the world, but now that the time had come, he wasn’t sure he could go through with it. I’d admired him and felt nervous for him. I’d also foolishly asked him to stay. The smirk I loved had twisted his lips as he asked me why. I’d told him he could wait until I graduated, and then we could face the unknown together. Sometimes I could still hear his laugh, if I focused on the memory hard enough.

It was a sweet laugh, gentle. He wasn’t making fun of me, but had found my words humorous. The conversation took a different turn then. We moved down a road filled with relationship talk. He’d mentioned I was too young for him and said that maybe if I were older things would be different. I’d hated those words. My frown must have done something to him, because to my surprise, he’d kissed me. A simple, sweet brush of his lips against mine. It had been a bittersweet goodbye I would remember forever.

“You go

“I don’t have a suit,” I called out.

“Never stopped you before.”

My cheeks heated. Damn him. Of course he had to bring up the one time he caught me ski

“I wouldn’t—” he started to say, and then stopped. Something passed over his face I couldn’t name, and he swam toward me.

My heart thudded in my chest as I wondered if the rest of his sentence would have been the words mind seeing them. I hoped he would continue with his train of thought once he surfaced. I needed to hear the end of his sentence. Desperately.

My cell chimed with a new text, and I glanced at the screen. It was Sadie.

Did you make it there okay?

I typed a reply, not wanting to take my eyes off Dawson as he hoisted himself up onto the dock beside me.

I did. ~ Charlotte

I watched as water dripped off him, pooling where his hands pressed into the wood of the dock. It trickled down his sculpted chest and rolled off the tip of his nose. He sat beside me, and wrung out the legs of his trunks. My cell chimed with another text from Sadie.

Any good first impressions you should be thanking me for? You looked hot in that outfit.

My lips quirked into a smile as I read her text.

One. Thanks. ~ Charlotte

“The lake is all yours,” Dawson said. He barely looked at me when he spoke.

Something was off, but I couldn’t put my finger on it.

“Thanks, but I didn’t come here to swim, the water is too cold.” I moved my toes around in the chilly water and leaned back against my palms again. “I came here for the view.” The second I said the words, I wished I could take them back. The way they came out made it seem as though I was implying the view of him swimming was what I had come to see, not the beautiful lake. My cheeks and neck grew hot. Surely he knew what I meant.

Dawson arched a brow at me and gri

I pressed my hand to my fiery cheeks. “Yeah, I know. I still joke that I blush when I breathe. I hate it.”

“Don’t. It’s cute.”

The heat I’d felt spreading across my face made its way to my toes. I opened my mouth to say something, but another text came through from Sadie.

Was he at least hot?

I glanced at Dawson. Hell yes, he was.

Oh yes. ~ Charlotte

“Someone must miss you already,” he insisted as he stood. There was a weird tone embedded in his words. Did he think I had a boyfriend I’d left behind? Did he even know why I was here?

“It’s my roommate, Sadie,” I said, hoping to clear up any misconception about my relationship status. “I’m only here for Emma’s engagement party.”

“I figured as much.” I expected there to be a smile on his face when he said the words, but there was nothing. He only nodded as though we were talking about the weather. Maybe he wasn’t interested in me. God, did he still think of me as some little kid?

He was the same age as Emma, barely three years older than me. I now understood the age thing when we were still in school, but now age was only a number. It didn’t matter. I was twenty-two and he was twenty-five. It was the perfect age difference if you asked me.