“Well to be fair,” Finn said. “The last person to lose had to strip naked and get into the water. Which I know because it was me.”
“And the water was cold,” Spence added helpfully.
“How do you know?” Finn asked. “You didn’t have to get in.”
Spence raised an eyebrow at him. “We could tell.”
Finn narrowed his eyes. “Hey, shrinkage is a real thing!”
“Truth,” Archer answered Elle.
She mentally cracked her knuckles. “What’s your most embarrassing moment?” she asked.
He didn’t say anything, just looked at her.
“Come on,” she taunted, having no idea why she was poking the bear. “I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours.”
His voice dropped to a pitch that sent tingles down her spine. “I already know yours.”
Actually he didn’t, but she refused to discuss it here. “Fine. I’ll adjust the question. What’s your biggest regret?”
Again he just looked at her. Mr. Talkative.
“Are you refusing to answer?” she asked. “Because you know what the dare is.”
“Watch out for shrinkage,” Spence muttered.
“Yes,” Archer said without hesitation, his gaze holding hers prisoner. “I’m refusing to answer.”
One hundred percent certain he’d choose to change his mind about talking if he thought he had to go for a dunk, she pointed to the river.
But she should’ve known better. There was no budging Archer when he’d made up his mind about something. Just as he’d clearly decided long ago that she was still a young, vulnerable street rat to be protected and nothing more, he wasn’t going to be pushed into answering a question he didn’t want to answer. Instead, he stood and walked to the water’s edge. The shadows shielded most of him from view but she could still see his general outline. And although he undeniably annoyed her by just breathing, there was also no denying that even just his outline affected her pulse.
Not twenty feet away, and apparently completely unconcerned by having an audience, he began to pull off his clothes. He did this quickly and efficiently, dropping both of his shirts to the ground, kicking off his boots and socks, shucking his jeans, all without looking back.
“Where’s your gun?” Joe called out.
“Locked in the truck,” he said. “To keep me from killing anyone who pisses me off tonight.”
Around the campfire, the others were talking amongst themselves, laughing and having a great time, but Elle couldn’t tear her gaze away from Archer.
He was stripped down to nothing but boxer briefs now. And then those were gone too and he walked out into the water a few steps before diving in and vanishing beneath the gleaming black surface of the rushing current.
Chapter 6
#CarpeDiem
Elle strained to stare at the spot where Archer had vanished. “He’s in the water!” she told everyone in horror.
“Yeah,” Finn said. “You dared him.”
“But . . . that’s crazy. He’ll get hypothermia.”
“I didn’t,” Finn said.
“Just shrinkage,” Spence said with a smirk.
Finn threw an empty beer can at him, which Spence easily dodged.
And still Archer didn’t surface.
Elle stood up. Waited. And then when she couldn’t stand it anymore, she started toward the river’s edge.
“You going to strip too?” Joe asked hopefully.
She turned back to glare at him.
He blinked and pointed at Spence. Spence gave him a shove that had Joe falling off his log.
“Hey, man,” Joe said from the dirt. “You really have been working out.”
“Told you.”
Elle kept walking toward the water.
“Elle, he’s fine, stay warm by the fire,” Finn said.
She stopped her forward motion but didn’t sit down.
“It’s okay, he’s a great swimmer,” Joe assured her. “One time I watched him dive off a thirty-foot embankment into the bay to save a jumper in a raging storm. He didn’t even blink an eye.”
In the river, which had to be freezing as it was winter for God’s sake, a dark head finally emerged. And then a body. Like an Adonis, Archer walked casually out of the water. On the shore, he ran his hands over the length of himself, sluicing off the water before bending to pick up his clothes and shoes. Then, still buck naked, he moved back to the fire and stood in front of it, letting it dry him.
“Truth,” Finn said to Pru.
Pru was staring at Archer, mouth open. “Huh?”
“Truth,” Finn repeated and then waved a hand in front of her face. “Hello? Woman, I said truth.”
“Sorry.” Pru grinned a little sheepishly. “I got distracted by the Greek god statue in front of the fire.”
“I thought I was your Greek god statue.”
“You totally are,” Pru said, still not taking her eyes off Archer as she patted Finn on the leg.
Kylie appeared to be having the same problem as Pru. Wow, she mouthed.
Archer began to pull on his clothes before taking a seat next to Elle on the log. He shook his head and water flew from his hair.
“Hey,” she said. “Not all of us are insane.” She glanced at him and realized he had to be freezing. “Here, let me give your jacket back—”
“I’m good.”
Well, fine. If he wanted to be stubborn, that worked for her because she wanted to be warm.
Pru was smiling at Finn. “I was hoping you’d say truth. So how did you get to be the poor sap who had to coax someone out here tonight? Why not Spence, Joe, or Archer?”
Finn smiled back. “None of them have a hottie to call.”
She laughed and Finn turned to Archer, sitting next to him. “Truth or dare?”
“Dare,” Archer said.
“Seriously?” Finn asked. “You don’t want to reevaluate and say truth to possibly spare yourself another dip?”
“Fine. Truth.”
Finn smiled, like gotcha. “What’s up with you and Elle?”
Elle sucked in a breath and did her best to look neutral. Switzerland.
Archer never took his eyes off Finn. “Nothing.”
“That’s not the truth,” Finn said.
But it was, Elle thought. There was nothing up with her and Archer.
And wasn’t that just her problem.
She wanted there to be. She had no idea why but she wanted it badly. Well, okay, so she did know. She suspected it was because he’d once been her hero, acting on her behalf for no other reason than he believed it the right thing to do. There’d been no ulterior motives, he hadn’t wanted a damn thing from her.
And that had been a shocking first for her. She’d never forgotten it. The only reason she even knew what it’d cost him was because she’d kept tabs on him the best she could. Which admittedly hadn’t been very well. She’d lost track of him years ago. Until she’d come to work in the Pacific Pier Building, that is.
“If you don’t think it’s the truth,” Archer said calmly to Finn. “Then give me a dare.”
Finn’s mouth curved. “Okay, I dare you to get Elle to say that there’s nothing going on between the two of you.”
Archer sighed. “We’ll need a moment to discuss.”
“No we won’t,” Elle said.
“Take as many moments as you need,” Finn said as if she hadn’t spoken, and he waggled his brow.
Archer pointed at Finn and made the motion of shooting a gun, but he gamely stood. The next thing Elle knew, he’d wrapped his big hand around one of hers and was dragging her away from the fire and into the woods.
“Hey,” she said, having to run to keep up with him. “My shoes—”
He slowed and without turning to her, reached back, hooked a hand around her thigh and hoisted her up so that he was carrying her piggy back.
It momentarily stunned her. Or, more accurately, the feel of his broad back to her chest stunned her. As did the feel of his arms now hooked around her legs. “Put me down!”
“The terrain’s uneven and God forbid but it’s dirty out here,” he said. “You really want to ruin your Guccis?”