She looked at him, her wide baby blues glossed with tears. “You’re here for the summer, Colt. No getting out of that. Even if I make you sleep on the porch, you’re staying until September.”
He whistled in a breath. Lily wasn’t kidding about making him sleep on the porch.
“Uncle Colt!” Alex bolted through the room, wearing a pair of blue swim trunks and matching goggles.
“Hey, partner!” He hefted up his nephew and went to swing him around, but winced when a fresh dose of pain surged through his ribs.
“Careful!” Lily shouted.
Alex gasped and gently hugged Colt’s neck. “Oh, yeah. Mama says to be careful with you. No roughhousing cuz you’re a…” He glanced back at Lily. “What did you call him, Mama? A delicate flower?”
Colt choked on his own spit and glared at Lily. “That’s right, honey. Uncle Colt has some owies and we need to be real gentle.”
Colt rolled his eyes and set Alex down, ruffling his hair. “I think your mama’s being melodramatic.”
Alex giggled. “Uncle Colt called you a melon, Mama.”
Everyone laughed and the tension eased. “Come on, we need to get you to swimming lessons.” Lily slung on her purse and brushed her hands down her pink scrubs.
“If you’ve got to get to work, I can take Alex.” Lily eyed him like he was a vase in the middle of the Daytona 500. “Christ, Lil, it’s the community pool. Down the road. I think I can handle it.”
“Watch your mouth.” She looked at her watch. “Well, I am running late and the main route to the hospital is under construction…you sure you’re okay?”
“You’re a good nurse, Lil. I promise I’m fine.”
“All right then. Just make sure you ice it more when you get home and remember, the best thing for you to heal are deep, soothing breaths.”
“Got it. Ice and breathe.” Colt clapped his hands together and turned his attention to Alex again. “Now let’s go, big guy.”
“Yes! Can we take your bull into town, Uncle Colt?”
He smiled, loving that his five-year-old nephew believed he rode a bull around town. “Let’s stick to the Chevy this time.”
…
Jenna helped the last kid out of the pool. “Great job today, everyone.”
She had just finished up with her first round of swimmers, and her ten o’clock class would be here in fifteen minutes. Jenna had already corralled a few other educators to pitch in. This year she had three volunteer teachers to help with Saturday swimming lessons. Which was three more than last year.
Taking on the extra responsibility would be beyond worth it and show the school board she was ready for the after-school program. The state had approved her petition for the grant, but left it up to the board to approve her running it. Which worried her.
Taking a deep breath, Jenna immersed herself under water. When she came back up, she was in the shadow of a man peering down at her, and she about swallowed all the pool water in shock.
“Well, well, well. I never took you for a water-baby…baby.” Colt stood near the edge of the pool and—did he just wink at her? She was two seconds away from grabbing his heel, yanking him into the water, and bolting for the nearest exit.
With the sun at his back, Jenna let her gaze linger, momentarily caught up in the tantalizing shadow of his muscled frame.
“Ah—I…what are you doing here?”
Lily had said Colt was coming to town and told her about his minor injury. But Jenna assumed it would be the usual “one night stay, no big deal” kind of thing and she wouldn’t even see him.
Colt’s smile widened when Alex called from behind him. “Hi, Miss Jenna!”
“I’m just dropping my nephew off for lessons.”
The bill of Colt’s baseball cap hid his eyes from the light, but Jenna felt that intense blue gaze rake over her, as if he were trying hard to peer through the water. She squirmed and suddenly the water felt colder. Or was it her skin that flushed hotter? “When will you be leaving?”
“I thought I’d hang around for a bit. Maybe monitor your breaststroke.”