I hold out my hands, wiggling my fingers. “Okay… I want you guys to stay close, got it? I need you to show me what to do, okay? Don’t let go.”
With serious expressions, they take my hands and begin to guide me toward the pool. I act like this is just a very serious obligation they have decided to undertake and allow them to escort me toward the ladder and stairs at the shallow end.
Carefully we step in for the first stair. The pool is so big that the shallow end has six steps leading down. Nice and safe.
The water is cool and refreshing, the top edge of it a bright line of coolness around my calves. It is almost too cold, but I can’t give up now.
Ned and Matthew glance up at me, grinning, squinting into the sun every few moments as if to check up on me. I nod encouragingly. Finally we make it to the bottom of the pool. The kids are just tall enough to reach the bottom with their toes, but I am glad for the flotation vests. Still holding hands, I kneel down and get closer to eye level, tugging them across the water, dragging them back and forth while they giggle delightedly.
The sun gleams off the surface of the pool, filling the air with sparkles and shards of light. We play and play for I don’t even know how long, getting to know each other, getting to trust each other.
At some point, I look up toward the house, surprised to see Jack and Chance watching us. They have identical ear-to-ear grins, silently filling the sliding glass doorway with their arms crossed over their chests. Happy smiles. Proud smiles.
My body twinges, and I think about inviting them in to join us. But not right now, I guess. I had just enough of a tease earlier today, and I would hate to be distracted at this moment. It will have to wait. Being in between them doesn’t leave any room to think about anything else. It’s good. So very good.
But, damn, what have I gotten myself into?
Chapter 14
Chance
Has it already been a week? How is that even possible?
The small gym that we had built last year is right next to the pool area. With a wall of windows, I can see the whole patio as well as get a basic idea of what is going on in the great room from this vantage point. With my forearms on the front of the elliptical trainer, I stay focused on what’s going on out there.
The first thing that she did when she got up was head to the pool for a dip. I think that she has done that every day. Even before coffee, Chelsea likes to take a quick swim. Twenty laps. I didn’t realize she was so athletic, but it makes sense. She has definitely shown a certain… stamina.
Then she hurries back to her suite before getting the boys up. She always keeps the monitor with her just in case they are awake before she expects them.
They play for a couple hours until lunch, usually some blocks, some coloring, some reading. Lots of songs and naming things. Lunch is healthy and hearty. Then they go for a nap.
It’s perfect. I don’t have to worry about a thing.
It’s like our lives were on pause, and then someone hit the play button again. She fit right in the middle. She does things I wouldn’t even have thought of. She’s been working on verbal skills with the boys and has already made dramatic progress. They are talking in whole sentences, like they must have already been thinking them and they just started popping out. It’s so weird. I was used to the baby talk thing, but apparently they are observant, avid thinkers.
She claims that it’s all about expectation. Once she started setting the expectations that they would use complete sentences, including please and thank you in order to get the stuff they wanted, they just started doing it.
Weird. I wonder why Maddie didn’t think of that?
There is a clock in the corner of the room, a big red LED thing so that I don’t go over my time. If I don’t keep track, one hour will stretch into two. I’m already at forty-eight minutes, too bad.
The door swings open and Jack enters, his eyes looking toward the pool. Apparently he has also noticed Chelsea’s routine.
“Hey.”
“Hey.”
Jack settles into the rowing machine, flexing against the waterwheel until it starts going at a fast pace. He doesn’t really enjoy working out, so he sticks to the full-body experience instead of doing circuits, like I do. Both ways work. I am not going to judge him for that.
Chelsea walks by the swimming pool, probably unable to see us because of the darkened glass. Her hair swings from a high ponytail and she holds a paperback book open in her left hand while she walks, barefoot, across the textured concrete.
Her shorts are old-fashioned terrycloth, with white piping up the sides and a slit that flaps open with every step. Her tanned legs are sleek and muscular, but not thin. She’s nice and thick, sturdy.
“I love it when she wears that little half top,” Jack mutters as he rows.
“Yeah, me too.”
Her tits are high, with nipples pointing about 15 degrees north of the horizon. The half top doesn’t even come close to the bottom curve of those gorgeous globes, but still, it seems like they might get exposed at any second. Anyway, I can’t help but think about just reaching up under her shirt and finding a breast right there, firm and ready, just like that.