After a moment, he lifted his mouth off her breast to nod towards the pool. ‘Time to cool off?’
Abby glanced at the markings on the floor of the pool. ‘Can we stay in the shallow end?’
‘You’re not confident in the water?’ He framed it as a question but it sounded more like an observation, especially since he was looking at her in an understanding manner.
‘Well, let’s put it this way,’ Abby said with a self-deprecating grimace. ‘Every time I try and swim, someone throws me a flotation device and calls for a lifeguard. Swimming lessons weren’t a priority at any of my foster placements.’
‘Then that’s something I can help you with while we’re here.’
‘Ella told me you won a heap of medals during your schooling but you stopped swimming when your parents split up,’ Abby said.
A shadow passed over his features. ‘Yeah, well, club training wasn’t a priority after that.’
‘Because you were always too busy looking after your mum and Ella?’ Abby asked.
He made a twisted movement of his mouth. ‘Don’t get me wrong. I was glad to help with Ella. She was a good little kid and no bother. I just missed out on the stuff other teenagers my age were doing. It made me feel like an outsider. But I guess you know all about feeling like that.’
‘Sure do. But I think what you did for Ella and your mum was amazing. They’re so lucky to have you.’
He gave her a quick smile. ‘Let’s get you in the water before you melt, okay?’
Abby was so hot from his caresses she was expecting the water to sizzle when she entered it, holding Luke’s hand for support. And the only melting she was going to do was when he looked at her with his dark blue eyes full of smouldering desire. The water enveloped her in a blessedly cool embrace that felt like silk against her naked skin. Maybe swimming wouldn’t be so scary after all.
Luke brought her close to the aroused length of his body. ‘There’s only one problem with making love in water.’
‘Putting on a condom?’
‘Yep.’
Abby bit her lip. ‘I guess we could go without…’
He looked at her for a long moment. ‘No can do. Too risky.’
Abby knew he was being responsible about having safe sex. She was always insisting on her followers doing the same, but a part of her—a secret part—wished he would relax his rule for her. ‘Because this is just a fling, right?’ She tried to tone down the bitter note in her voice but didn’t quite pull it off.
He let out a gust of a breath and slid a hand down one of her arms. ‘Abby… Think about it. If you were to get pregnant it would—’
‘I know, I know, I know,’ Abby said. ‘It would be a disaster for you.’
He frowned. ‘And for you too, surely?’
Abby kept her expression blank while her mind suddenly raced off with images of her holding a baby—a little dark-haired angel with deep blue eyes. She blinked away the image and pasted a smile on her face. ‘Of course it would be a disaster. I’m still building my career. I don’t want to have kids until I’m in my late twenties at the earliest.’
Luke’s expression was guarded, as if he wasn’t sure whether to believe her or not. ‘The Pill is mostly reliable but I don’t want to risk it.’
‘It’s fine, Luke, really,’ Abby said. ‘I’ve written heaps of columns about this. It’s too easy to get lost in the heat of the moment and then it’s too late to undo. I’ve had heart-wrenching letters from followers who’ve had to deal with an unplanned pregnancy, more often than not to a guy they no longer want anything to do with. You’re being sensible and responsible and I’m grateful for it.’
He gently tucked a wispy strand of hair behind her ear. ‘So, swimming lesson first and then we’ll finish this later.’
* * *
An hour later Abby wasn’t quite ready for the Olympics but she could get from one end of the pool to the other without ending up with a lungful of water. The pool contained saltwater, which added extra buoyancy, and with Luke’s excellent coaching she was reasonably confident she wouldn’t drown if she stepped out of her depth.
She completed another lap and stood at the end and blinked the water out of her eyes. ‘How many have I done now? I lost count.’
‘You’ve done enough for one day,’ Luke said. ‘Besides, the sun is starting to pink your skin. The sunscreen’s probably washed off by now.’
‘I’ll sit in the shade for a bit,’ Abby said. ‘You’ve been so patient with me but you must be dying for a swim yourself. Go on. I’ll enjoy watching you. It’ll be like watching a training video.’