My Brother, My Mate

#Chapter 7: Nothing Underneath

Rowena

I looked up at my brother, who still had his arm wrapped tightly around my waist. His fingers pressed into my soft skin, making me wince.

“You’re hurting me, Eric.”

Eric’s eyes widened slightly, and his grip loosened. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but suddenly, there was a tap on his shoulder. We both turned to see one of the waiters from the party standing there.

“What is it?” Eric asked. 

The waiter paused, then leaned in and whispered something in Eric’s ear. Eric furrowed his brow as he listened, and then his eyes widened ever so slightly.

“They’re what?” he asked.

I was still trying to prise myself away from my brother’s strong grip when a noise suddenly came from the distance; the sound of cheering caught my attention, and then the door burst open, causing my blood to run cold as I saw the source of the commotion.

It was Emma and the cheerleaders. Just who I needed to see at my eighteenth birthday party.

“There’s the birthday girl!” Emma cried out as they approached.

I felt my face flush red, and Eric’s grip on me tightened once more. The cheerleaders, Emma included, were all wearing plain white t-shirts—the type that I would normally wear—except they weren’t really all that plain at all. Someone had written on them: “Nerd exclusive”, in black paint pens.

“Happy birthday, Rowena!” they cheered in unison, and then…

They tore off their t-shirts to reveal the skimpiest bathing suits I had ever seen. They were barely pieces of fabric with strings connecting them, hardly even covering a single n****e. 

All around me, the male warriors burst into loud cheers as the cheerleaders danced around, showing off their bodies. Emma’s gaze stayed fixed on me, however, her eyes snakelike and her lips curled up into a smirk.

I swallowed, looking up at Eric again.

“Did you plan this?” I asked, remembering how he had allowed the cheerleaders to relocate their party here.

His eyes narrowed. “No. I didn’t.”

Finally, Eric released his iron grip around my waist, and I felt as though I could breath. I watched as he approached the group, throwing his hands up in the air.

“Welcome, warrior camp cheerleaders!” he announced, his voice booming over the loud music and causing the nearby warriors to stop and stare. The music seemed to dim at that moment, and I found my hand moving of its own accord to shield my beet-red face.

“How very nice of you,” Eric continued, “to volunteer for such a prestigious position!”

Emma and the others exchanged confused glances. “What position?” Emma asked, shooting Eric a wary look.

Eric paused, a slow grin spreading across his handsome, tanned face before he finally spoke. “Pool party bunnies, of course!”

The crowd burst into laughter, the atmosphere turning even more electric. Emma’s face turned hard and red, and she quickly looked away; even from where I stood, I could see her hand trembling slightly as she clutched her white t-shirt. I couldn’t help but chuckle.

After all, Eric had practically called her a w***e with a straight face, right in front of everyone.

“Well, we’ll be in the pool,” Emma finally said once she had composed herself.

“Enjoy yourself,” Eric said, turning back to me once more. There was that flash of anger again; he was trying to hide it, but he couldn’t. Not from me, at least. “In fact, why don’t we all go to the pool?”

Another cheer caused the room to tremble, and a stampede of excited warriors made their way out to the large, heated in-ground pool out the back. But I was still frozen to my spot, my arms folded across my chest. My waist still burned from where Eric had been holding me with his iron grip.

“What was that?” I asked once we were alone.

“The cheerleaders,” Eric said. “I didn’t expect—”

“No.” I shook my head. “I’m talking about the game.”

Eric opened his mouth as if to respond, then closed it again, quickly looking away. I stared at him incredulously, waiting for some form of explanation, but there was none. Finally, with a huff, I brushed past him.

“I was finally getting close with Adrian,” I hissed. “And besides, I can’t swim. Enjoy your pool party, but I’m going to my room.”

Suddenly, Eric’s hand shot out and caught me. “Look,” he said, his bright blue eyes meeting mine, “I just don’t think that game was appropriate.”

“And who are you to decide?” I asked, yanking my hand away. “I’m eighteen now, remember? And besides, you’ve been gone for three years, so it’s not like you know what’s appropriate for me and what’s not.”

Eric stood there silently, staring at me for a moment, before he finally sighed and ran a hand through his lazy blond hair. “Alright, alright,” he said. “Don’t run off, though. Come to the pool party.”

I frowned. “I can’t swim.”

“You don’t have to swim,” he said. “You can just sit on the edge of the pool, dip your toes in a little. Besides, Adrian will be there.”

At the mention of Adrian’s name, I felt my cheeks heat up. We had been so close to kissing, and I could tell that the atmosphere between us had been electric.

Finally, I nodded. “Alright. But I’m only dipping my toes in.”

…

I was sitting on the edge of the pool with my dress hiked up around my legs, dangling my feet in the water. The air outside was cool, but the water was heated just enough to feel comfortable and refreshing. 

Music pumped through the large speakers, and I watched as the other warriors played in the pool, splashing each other and joking around.

My eyes were on Eric, though. He was showing off on the diving board, his perfectly toned upper body and sculpted muscles glistening in the purple light of the pool.

“Do a flip, Eric!” one of the cheerleaders, whose name I didn’t know, called out.

“Yeah!” another warrior cried out. “Do a flip!”

Eric chuckled, running a hand through his hair. “Okay, okay,” he said, approaching the edge of the diving board. “Watch this!”

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes as I watched him show off. He was always like this; always the life of the party, always wanting attention. Even when we were kids, he had been like this. I remembered more than one birthday party that had gone the same, with Eric stealing the spotlight in one way or another.

But there was something different about tonight. Rather than being annoyed, I was intrigued.

It was just because we hadn’t seen each other in so long, though. I was sure of it. After three years apart, he looked so different, so much older. Maybe I had more of a tolerance for him now that I was older, too. 

I watched as Eric approached the edge of the diving board, bouncing on his toes as he prepared to jump. Then, with a resounding splash, he flipped backwards off of the board and dove gracefully into the water.

The warriors cheered. I even found myself smiling a bit.

But then, suddenly, a hand wrapped around my ankle and pulled me into the water.