"What did I tell you about swimming?" James demanded.
I took a deep breath. "I don't care what you think," I said firmly. "When I'm underwater, I feel free. I don't have to be anyone but me, and I don't have to worry about anyone turning on me or stabbing me in the back!" That last part came out a bit sharper than I intended, but I didn't care.
"Who stabbed you in the back?" James asked.
I shrugged uncomfortably. "The omegas," I said. "They were my friends once. But ever since you made me Gamma, they haven't wanted to talk to me."
"Simon made you Gamma, not I," James reminded me, never uncrossing his arms. "I just went along with it, though I wished no part."
"I know," I said miserably. "You despise me. I get it. Feeling's mutual."
James raised an eyebrow. "I despise you?" he said.
I glared at him. "You despise me," I repeated. "I can feel it coming from you all the time, so don't even try to hide how much you hate me."
I knew I was going to catch heat for this. What I didn't expect was for James to push me into the pool. I surfaced, spitting water in shock. "What the hell?"
I soon found out "what the hell", when James dived in. I had time for one breath before he pulled me under, wrapping his arms around me in a near suffocating grip, and before I had time to even wonder what else the hell was going on, he pressed his lips to mine, and my eyes flew wide open in shock.
Again, what the hell?
I refused to kiss him back. Even when his hand went to the back of my head, I refused to even reciprocate, but it was hard when I was trapped underwater in his embrace, his body pressed so close to mine it was almost as if he wanted to pull me into him. And it seemed more and more likely that he wasn't going to let me up for air, not unless I gave in.
It didn't take my mind long to put two and two together - this was a dominance dance. And James was stronger. I had no chance of fighting him, not if I wanted to survive. My lungs were burning, my body convulsing against his as it fought for air. And James' grip remained as strong as ever, holding me tightly, refusing me even the smallest amount of room to wriggle free. He couldn't have been immune to my body's struggles, but he never relaxed his grip, and I finally had no choice but to give in and kiss him back.
Lightning crackled in my veins, and my whole body seemed to catch fire as I gave in. I wasn't sure if I passed out afterwards, but the next thing I know, I was lying on the banana lounge, with James standing over me, breathing heavily. I groaned as I opened my eyes, glaring at him. "You nearly bloody drowned me," I snapped.
James gave me back a calm look. "You nearly bloody drowned you," he said. "If you hadn't been so stubborn, you wouldn't have passed out from lack of air. You're lucky I was able to transfer some of my lifeforce to you; you would have drowned for sure."
I groaned again as I sat up. "Seriously?" I snapped. "And why the hell did you throw me in the pool and drag me under?"
James shrugged as he stretched. "I had to put you in your place," he said. "You're growing too impertinent, Gamma Stephanie."
"So you decided to try and drown me," I said, getting unsteadily to my feet. "You're an ass, and I'm going to bed. You can fetch your own damn water during the night."
Mercifully, he didn't try to stop me, and even more mercifully, my nerves waited until I'd crawled into bed before giving out, leaving me a sobbing, shaking, shattered mess. It was quite some time before I could finally get to sleep, but even as that sleep claimed me, I could feel the memory of that mysterious encounter intruding on my brain, ensuring I got next to nothing of sleep for the rest of the night.
I hated James. No way was I letting him kiss me again, underwater or above it.
I was not going through another dominance dance.
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