I couldn’t believe this. I couldn’t believe he would do something so… so… so much like this! It was disgusting; it was an insult to all things good in this world! Not only that but he did it right in front of me and I hadn’t even noticed, how utterly horrible!

“I never want to speak to you again.” I grumbled out after I got over my initial shock of what exactly he had done.

“Oh, don’t be like that.” He reached out towards me and I smacked his hand away, narrowing my eyes at him. I heard laughter and turned my glare over to his accomplice in this despicable deed.

“You two should be put in jail!” I cross my arms over my chest.

“Come on Jordan, it’s just a stupid game.” I gasped in horror as I looked over at Warrick.

“A stupid game?” I asked in a hushed whisper, shaking my head in disbelieve that he would actually have the audacity to say such a thing. “Go fish is the backbone of this fine country! If someone cheats at go fish, what does that say about them?” I asked, my voice a pitch higher.

“That they cheat at go fish?” Warrick asked. I knew I wouldn’t be able to keep up this façade. I wasn’t really upset; it would be a pretty stupid thing to be upset about. Even if Fox and Warrick had been cheating at go fish for the past five games; winning all of them.

“And for your punishment…” I tapped a finger to my chin, pretending to mull over the consequences of their actions.

“Punishment?” Warrick asked, shifting in his seat and suddenly I was all too aware of the heat radiating off of him as his knee brushed against mine. I tried to push away my hormones, saying it was just an accident but then something peculiar happened. I heard the sliding of his foot as it came to rest right by my sneaker-clad one before he pushed his whole side of his calf against mine. His jeans resting against my bare leg was an oddly nice feeling.

I found myself thanking Kale. I had only packed jeans, and we had gotten a call saying the schools AC had broken down and wouldn’t be fixed until dinner. It was stifling hot, so Kale let me burrow a white skirt that went to my knees. Of course it went to her mid-calf and I thought it looked ridiculous on me but Kale didn’t really give me a choice. Thank you Kale and your pushiness!

“She’s really thinking through our punishment.” Fox said, an underlying, and probably perverted, meaning was hidden in that sentence but I didn’t bother to try and decipher it. I heard the deep chuckle from beside me but didn’t dare look.

“Yeah, that’s what she’s thinking about.” Oh, so he was teasing me? It was quite obvious he knew exactly how much he affected me, and that he was quite pleased with himself. Two could play at that game.

“Your punishment for cheating will be dealt with separately and when you least expect it.” I said cryptically, giving both guys a pointed look. I would most likely forget about it in an hour, but they didn’t need to know that. Yet the warning gave me just enough of a distraction that they wouldn’t notice my next movements.

“Don’t look at me, I have no idea what’s going on in her head.” Kale said through laughter, thoroughly enjoying their torment. I took my leg, the one that Warrick had oh-so subtly put his against, and brought it up. Half way through this I realized I had no clue what I was doing. I was glad that the AC wasn’t working, that way my face was already red even before the blushing started.

I knew I had screwed it all up when Warrick dropped one of the cards under the table when no one was looking and used that as an excuse to move away from me as he ducked under. I couldn’t believe it, I’m such a spaz and-

My eyes went wide as his fingers trailed up my bare leg and he resurfaced with the card. He moved his leg back against mine. I chanced a look over at him and noticed his chest was moving up and down at an irregular pace, and his eyes were closed.

“You okay buddy?” Liam asked, interrupting the current conversation. Warrick’s eyes snapped open and he wiped his forehead.

“Just really hot is all.” He nudged my leg with his own and it clicked. He was referring to me, us or however you wanted to call it. Warrick wasn’t bothered by the heat; he could probably go to the desert and thrive there. I had to tell myself that he was so worked up because he hadn’t had female contact in a long time because I didn’t want to get my hopes up. Oh who was I kidding? My hopes were up and I couldn’t help but grin.

“We should go swimming then.” Liam offered. I looked over at him. This was only the second day of knowing him but I was really starting to like him. I understood why Ava loved him, even if she didn’t say it out loud it was obvious by the way she looked at, and acted around him. At first he seemed like this large, intimidating guy but the more you got to know him, especially while he was around his girlfriend, it became apparent that his heart is as large as he is.

“We’d have to go back to the hotel to get our suits.” Kale said but it was already decided. We were going to go swimming. The only downside to this was that I would have to move away from Warrick.

--

Any sane girl would start to have a complex around Ava and Kale, even if they were perfectly fine with their bodies. Ava was tan, she had the body of a swimmer or dancer, meaning she was toned everywhere. She looked like a super model on a swim suit photo shot and it didn’t help that all the guys couldn’t keep their eyes off of her. Kale was pretty much the opposite, she was smaller and skinny, not an ounce of fat on her.

“You going to go swimming?” Warrick sat next to me on the ground. A tree was keeping me in the shade and slightly cool.

“Maybe later.” I answered back, readjusting my skirt. I felt self-conscious, I was willing to admit that to myself but I wasn’t going to say that aloud. Warrick would probably just laugh at me, make fun of me, than laugh at me some more.

“You know, if we weren’t being watched right now, this would be about the time I grab you, hoist you onto my shoulder and dump you into the pool fully clothed.” I gave him a skeptical look as he flashed me an infamous Warrick NaDell grin.

“Good thing we are being watched.” I said, glancing up at the clear blue sky. “That and I’d kill you if you ever did that.” I grinned back over at him but his grin was gone. He was staring at something on my face. My lips. “Come on cowboy, I think you need to cool down.” I stood up and went to grab his hand but thought better of it. The pool looked like the most guarded place, and physical contact of any sort was a big no-no.

“Am I that obvious?” Warrick stood up, towering over me. He was still wearing the Black Sabbath t-shirt but now he had on a pair of white and silver trunks. I glanced around before sliding off my skirt and pulling off my shirt. “Jesus Jordan, how the hell do you expect me to control myself when you do things like that?” I looked over at me, crossing my arms over my chest automatically. He was looking away, staring at something in the distance.

“Excuse me?” I asked, raising an eye brow. Wasn’t he the one just pushing me to go swimming? Did he really expect me to go swimming in my clothes?

“Forget about it.” He pulled off his shirt, tossing it on my small pile of clothes. I had to bite my tongue, hard, to keep any sound from coming out. I was right about all the assumptions I had made about his body. He looked fantastic, and his trunks hung low, so that his V-cut was visible. “See something you like?” His voice was several keys lower, and huskier than normal. My eyes snapped up, my whole face burning from being caught ogling him. I knew what it must look like but I was not looking at his parts!

“Creep.” It was only natural that my voice decided to squeak at that one little word, making me look even worse.

“Hey, I’m not the one who was checking me out!” He defended, hands in the air, large grin planted on his face.

“Whatever.” I smartly mumbled back, turning and walking towards the pool. He kept stride with me easily and I knew that damn grin was still spread across his face.

“Jordan, we’ve only got a week together, are you really going to spend some of that time being mad at me?” Warrick asked when we had reached the edge of the pool. I stopped in my tracks, craning my neck to look up at him. His face was hidden in shadows since the sun was directly behind him and I had to squint to be able to keep looking.

“Warrick, I’m not mad.” It was easy enough to get out because it was the truth. I was embarrassed, which I suppose could come off looking like I was mad especially since I was quiet and walked off so abruptly. “And I wasn’t checking you out.” I let out a grin before jumping in.

The pool was pretty crowded, even more so because a group of guys had taken up one end playing water volleyball. Another group was throwing those toys that sink to the bottom of the pool before they jumped in and raced to see who could get the most; while a teacher kept track of the time with a stop watch.

If it wasn’t for the massive fences surrounding the area and all the guards watching I could convince myself this was just a normal pool, and we were just on a normal vacation.

“I just burn, I can’t tan.” I heard Kale say as I made my way over to her. They had commandeered a corner in the deep end. Kale was sitting above the water, on the corner with her feet in while she poked gingerly at her shoulders, which were bright pink. Ava was to her left, in the water with Liam as close as he could get without getting in trouble. Fox had joined Warrick playing volleyball with the other guys.

“I would give up my tan to have skin like yours.” Ava said wishfully. Liam scoffed and the attention was shifted to him. I noticed that no matter how vain or girly the conversation got, Liam stuck right by Ava. When she wasn’t paying attention he watched her with this look of complete adoration.

“Ava, you have great skin.” Liam made a move to reach out and graze her shoulder before remembering where he was. He dropped his hand in the water with a disappointed look. Suddenly his mood was a lot darker and he would have been frightening if his bottom lip hadn’t jutted out in a pout. “Not that I would know anymore, stupid Nazis, just because you’re not getting some doesn’t mean- ow! You hit me!” Liam looked astonished as he touched his arm.

“Even if you could get some as you so eloquently put it, you wouldn’t be.” Ava said; her dark cheeks tinted pink.

“Ava, you know I didn’t mean it like that,” Liam tried before he looked frustrated. “But it would be nice to be able to hug my own girlfriend without a battalion of teachers thinking I’m going to hurt you.” Ava pulled herself out of the pool, sitting next to Kale, who shot me an amused look. “And how can you expect me to be a gentlemen when you wear something like that?” He groaned as if he were in the worst agony.

“Oh so now it’s all my fault?” Ava was just teasing him now. Liam opened his mouth before shutting it with a growl.

“Yes it is.” He pulled himself out, towering above all of us. Liam had the body most guys wished they had. He looked like a Greek god standing there. He was perfectly chiseled everywhere, all muscle and nothing jiggled. Ava stood up and their teasing faded as they walked away.

“My goodness, is it hot or what?” Kale grinned fanning herself as she looked off in the direction of Liam and Ava.

“He does have certain,” I looked up trying to find the perfect word but Kale interrupted me.

“Oh just admit it Jordan, Liam is as sexy as they get!” I laughed but couldn’t agree. There was one guy who I thought was sexier. I looked over, floating backwards to get a better angle. He was connecting his knuckles with another guy on his team, a huge grin planted on his face. His hair was sticking up at odd angles while some stuck to his face and neck. Water reflected off his arms and chest, two things I found very hard to look away from.

“Watch out!” I barely had time to process the shout before something landed on my head.

Several things happened at once. My neck and shoulders exploded in pain from the impact, I was forced under water, my vision went black and I swallowed a bunch of water.

I flailed hopelessly but I didn’t know which way was up or down. I felt like my neck was broken. I tried to push the burning water out of my throat and lungs but it felt as if I was just taking in more water. My body started jerking and I had no control of it.

Suddenly there was a sharp tug on my arm; it felt like someone was trying to pull it out of its socket. My side and legs scraped against something and I started coughing immediately, gasping for breath that wasn’t coming. I vomited up water, my throat and lungs felt raw and it hurt to cough but I couldn’t stop.

“I can’t get to her neck.” The voice was far away and my hearing was fuzzy. I was vaguely aware that I had one arm wrapped around my neck and the other one still burned from the tugging. I vomited more water and felt my body shaking from sobs.

“Jordan, relax.” It was soothing sound in all this chaos. I felt something warm on my side and another one of my cheek. I kept coughing even though I tried my hardest not too. The coughs shook my whole body and made my throat burn even more. “Coach has to see your neck, you have to let go of your neck babe.” His voice was soft and I loosened my grip. My arm was moved aside and I felt cold hands on my sore neck.

“Warrick?” It came out as a wheezing gasp. It hurt so badly to talk but I needed to make sure it was him.

“I’m right here Jordan.” My eyes were clenched tightly shut and my hearing was still fuzzy but I knew he was right beside me.

“Her neck isn’t broken, it’ll be very sore though.” The other, first male voice said. I tried to concentrate on Warrick’s thumb brushing across my cheek. My throat was on fire, my lungs were screaming in pain and while my coughing had calmed down I couldn’t stop it completely. I was all too aware of my scraped side, which was burning. Then the numbing pain in my neck and head, which I knew would be worse if I tried to move.

“I’m going to take her to the nurse.” Warrick said, his voice farther away now.

“Be careful.” Coach answered back.

“Okay Jordan, I’m going to pick you up now.” He hooked one arm under my knees and wrapped one arm around my back before picking me up with a huff. A whimper escaped my lips as I rested my head against his chest. “Okay babe, just hold a few more minutes.” His voice was amazingly comforting, soft and his chest vibrated as he talked.

“Stop… calling me… that.” I wheezed, my own voice making me wince. I actually didn’t mind it, which surprised me since those pet names usually bugged me the most. Coming out of him it just sounded so natural, like it was actually my name.

“Do you want me to call you something else?” Warrick asked. His chest vibrated as he ‘hummed’. I coughed, my body shuttering with each new hack. I apologized for coughing on his chest, which probably wasn’t the most pleasant thing. “I can’t believe that jackass actually jumped on you.” He growled, the sound louder because of my ear pressed against his chest. I smiled despite all the pain I was in.

“Nobody’s yelling.” I wheezed out. Before Warrick could say anything there was another voice. The only reason why I knew we were inside was because the air was heavier, making it harder to breath.

“Warrick what the-”

“Can you get the door man?” Warrick interrupted quickly. I heard the squeak of a door and willed my eyes to open. I had to blink several times. Like the rest of my body, my eyes were also burning in pain. I turned my head slightly and saw a smaller guy with a tuff of blonde hair and big brown eyes. “Thanks.” Warrick called over his shoulder. I shivered when the cold hit me.

“Oh dear, what’s wrong with her?” I shifted my gaze to a grandmother looking women, who had one hand over her mouth.

“Can you get the nurses door for me?” Warrick asked, putting on his best ‘I’m a good boy’ façade. I let my head rest back on his chest, since it was throbbing with pain from moving it so much.

“Of course!” She waddled to the door before opening it wide. Warrick went side ways through the door, a look of concentration planted on his face before he glanced down at me. His eyes went a bit wide in surprise that I had my eyes open and he gave me a soft smile. He put me carefully down on the bed with the paper over it. “I’ll go get a blanket for you two, you must be freezing!” She waddled away.

“What happened?” I moved my eyes to an older, stern looking, women as she stood beside me.

“We were in the pool, some ja-” With a scornful look from the women Warrick corrected himself from using the swearword. “Guy jumped on her. He landed on her head, she went down but Coach pulled her out in less than a minute. He checked her neck but that’s all.” Less than a minute? Odd, it seemed like an eternity to me.

“What’s your name?” The nurse, or doctor, asked.

“Jordan Saga.” I wheezed out, wincing at the pain it caused and the hoarseness of my own voice. She started probing my neck with her long, cold fingers, telling me to say when it hurt. By the time she was down with that the grandmotherly women had come in with blankets, putting one over Warrick’s broad shoulders and putting another next to me.

“That brute of a man.” The nurse tsk’ed as she looked at my side. I tried to look down but stopped when my neck yelled out in protest. I knew my side must have scraped against the side of the pool and taken off a layer of skin on the way. She put some kind of ointment on it, telling me that she couldn’t wrap it and just to wear baggy clothes as to not irritate it further. She made me sit up on my own before giving me this thick juice that smelled, looked, and tasted like tar.

“Thank you.” I croaked out after drinking the juice. I pulled the blanket around me but it brought little comfort since it was as cold as the room. The nurse said something before walking out.

“She was a nurse during Vietnam.” Warrick said, pulling his blanket off and placing it on the end of my bed. I let my blanket fall and grabbed his, relishing in the warmth of it.

“Well at least this got us alone together.” I said but my raspy voice ruined it. Warrick took a step closer, putting his hand right next to where my leg was laying.

“I could live without you getting hurt in order for us to get some alone time.” Warrick scowled. I moved my leg a little, brushing it against his fingers. “Jordan…” His fingers moved up and grazed my leg, leaving goose bumps in their wake.

“I’m okay.” I said sternly, trying my hardest to make my voice as normal as I could. He moved closer, picking up his hand only to put it on my knee.

“God Jordan, I don’t think I’ve been more scared in my life.” Warrick rushed out, his other hand coming up and brushing some hair out of my face. “I heard Kale scream, I had just looked over a second before and you were right there, above the water smiling.” His fingers traced my cheek, my jaw, my nose and finally my lips.

“I’m okay.” I said again. Whether he heard me or not I didn’t know, his eyes were on my lips and he leaned forward. He stopped an inch from me and I almost screamed in frustration. “Please kiss me Warrick.” I whispered, hoping he heard it. He did, and didn’t need any further persuading. He closed the last inch and connected his lips with mine. I melted against his kiss. It was needy and full of passion, leaving me breathless and if I had been standing my knees would have buckled. He backed up just a centimeter, our breath mixing together as we breathed hard. He moved back, just brushing his lips across mine, once, twice, three times before connecting again. This time the kiss was soft but still passionate.

“I’m going to explode.” Warrick’s voice was low and husky as he put his forehead against mine. Before I could even think to respond intelligently, he moved back and started to kiss along my jaw, hesitating before brushing kisses along my neck. If my body wasn’t so hyperaware of him I wouldn’t have been able to feel the kisses.

“Warrick…” I said softly, moving my hands to cup his face and bring it up to mine before pushing my lips against his. He put one knee up on the bed and I slowly began to lay back as he moved his body over mine. He held himself above me, and I could feel his body heat. His hand grazed my good side and I remembered that we were both still in our bathing suits. He seemed to notice this at the same time and leaned down lower, pushing his chest against mine.

“Kids.” Warrick jumped off of me, nearly tripping but regaining his balance at the last minute as he pushed himself up against the wall, hands up defensively. I snapped my head to the side, moaning in pain that this action caused.

“Fox, you giant jerk, I told you to walk away!” Kale hissed harshly from behind the skinny guy who was grinning at us. I sat up slowly, rubbing my neck and glaring at him. My whole body felt on fire, from embarrassment and what Warrick had been doing to me. My heart felt like it was trying to get out of my chest and I had this frightening need just to hop off this bed and kiss him again.

“Kale you saw?” Warrick groaned, running a hand through his now dry hair.

“Not much.” Kale quickly said, squeezing past Fox. “We just wanted to bring your clothes.” Kale put down my white knapsack on the bed before putting a folded pile of Warrick’s clothes down too. Right on top where a pair of grey briefs. I looked over at Warrick, and my face burned even more. I had been caught staring at his briefs! God, could this get more embarrassing?

“Come on shorty; let’s give them some room to… change.” Fox lifted his eye brows, a wide grin spread across his face.

“Get out!” Warrick took a step forward and Fox dodged out of the room, Kale quickly following with an apologetic smile, closing the door behind her. A small giggle escaped me and his attention snapped back to me. The look on his face made my giggles become a full out laughter. “And what is so funny?” But he was laughing too.

“Ow.” I complained, rubbing my neck again as I opened my knapsack. “Can you turn around so I can change?” I asked.

“Seriously?” Warrick gave me his infamous grin but turned around anyways. I took a moment to look at the rippling muscles that made up his back. I bit my lip as I slid off the bed, trying not to think the thought but not being able to help it. Was it bad I thought Warrick had a nice butt?

KeitaWolf -

Warrick: Dear reviewer, I would much rather spend all my time drinking, while getting merrily fat and living off of my fathers money but the evil writer likes to keep the readers on their toes.

If he breaks the rules, they can take away his right to see his friends.

ohhhhhhhhh -

Yeah, my cousin had the same problems but even though I don't support the war, I do support the soldiers and thats a persons personal choice, I appreciate it too!

Lover of ALL Books -

Oh yeah, been there done that! HOpefully you like their little alone time in this chapter!

insanity-ward -

Well I'm glad you like it!

DOLCEVITA -

Haha I'm glad you got that, some people don't... he's not positive about it, he's still on the fence so anything really can happen!

arouralai -

Thank you, some aren't too happy with the decision...

beve -

Haha maybe he will be! Oh yeah, he's not mine either... actually he's moved away from here and I haven't seen him in a long time but when I started this story thats who Warrick was based off and no, he's never been to juvi but he has been in loads of trouble.

Luthiel-earfalas -

Nope, its like 10 times better now thank you!

Tecna -

Is this soon enough? I know its not once a week or anything like that but I've got 20 days left of my highschool career and everythings a bit hectic... but I am trying my hardest! Hopefully that was enough developement in this chapter to satisfy you!

superficialSagacity -

Glad to hear you say it! And thank you

Mimi

Ellkay -

I'm glad its worthy enough to be an addiction. Maybe Fox will and maybe he won't... and I really like long reviews more than short ones.

LeneElaine -

Even if I have, its good to hear it again, thank you

rinky

Inkless

BrownEyedBeauty

Miz Em -

Still got a year to decide whether thats what he wants or not sooo that means a couple more chapters!

BrideofMirkwood -

I can't really update any faster, I've got 20 days left of my senior year and everything is very choatic right now.

violet-eyez -

Because it's a good idea to him.

Pirate'sBlackWolfs -

Maybe!