Banking On My Bodyguard

chapter 29

The next day was Sunday and we'd heard rumours that the Academy's pool had officially finished being built.

There'd been a lot of anticipation around it, apparently Ophelia's family had paid for it, probably hoping it would act as a bribe for her grades. That wasn't uncommon at the Academy, money could buy you anything it seemed.

Despite the immoral reasons for its existence, I was still excited to take advantage of the pool. I grabbed a towel from my drawers as there was a knock on the door. I yelled for them to come in and Kingsley opened it.

"Are you ready?" He poked his head into the room.

"Yep, have you got a towel?" I pushed my drawer closed and grabbed the keys from my desk.

He nodded and I went over to the door, leaving the room and locking it behind me. I turned around but before I could begin making my way through the school, Kingsley glanced both ways along the corridor and pressed me against the wooden material.

He lifted his hand and slid it under my top, tracing his fingers dangerously close to my waist band. I gasped slightly from the contact, he always seemed to know how to tease me in all the right ways.

"I can't wait to see you in a swimsuit." He smirked down at me as his cool fingers ran along to my hip bone, tracing small circles there.

"Don't be such a pervert." I said jokingly, trying not to react to his teasing touches. I lifted my head slightly and placed a quick kiss on his jaw.

He chuckled deeply before pulling away and we began to make our way down the corridor, weaving through the school until we reached the door for the pool building.

I turned the handle and entered into the space, happy to see that the rumours were true as my eyes fell onto the large blue body of water. It was an impressive sight, not just your average swimming pool, and it somehow had Ophelia's overly-wealthy touch written all over it.

A lot of our friends were already here and they waved at us in greeting. Naila and Paul, Jess and Amelia, Jasper, and much to my discomfort, Eli and his group.

I cringed internally, knowing that he was going to notice the new dynamic between me and my bodyguard. I'd been careful up until now, not wanting to show too much of what was going on between us. Eli was still my friend after all and I could tell by the forlorn looks he shot me at lunchtimes that he hadn't quite gotten over my rejection of him yet.

I glanced towards Naila and she shrugged at me slightly, as if to convey that she'd had no choice in letting the boy tag along. I nodded slightly, indicating that it was okay, and tried to ignore the feeling of his gaze on us as we entered the room.

We walked around the edge of the pool as everyone splashed around and threw a beach ball between them. Once we reached the seating on the other side I placed my stuff down and quickly began to strip out of my clothes.

I could feel Kingsley's eyes on me and turned to face him as his stare shamelessly roamed along my body. I blushed slightly and adjusted my bikini, making sure it was properly secure.

"What you were expecting?" I played with the end of my hair, suddenly very aware of myself. Up until this point he hadn't seen me so exposed, so vulnerable. I'd avoided thinking about the possibility of it on purpose, knowing my insecurities would eat at me.

He grinned reassuringly and stepped closer, gripping my waist with his warm hands. I shivered from the difference in temperature and ran my hands along his exposed chest.

"Better, way better."

I smiled at him, relieved at his reaction, before mustering all my strength and pushing him backwards. He yelled loudly as he fell and hit the pool water with a smack.

I began laughing as his angry head surfaced I bent over, clutching my side. This only caused him to glare more and I quickly slid into the pool before he could get revenge.

I tried to swim over to join the group but he was too quick, wrapping his arms around my waist and turning me to face him.

The water dripped from his hair, making it appear darker than ever and the dangerous glint in his eyes stirred something in my stomach.

"Did you think that was funny?" His voice was menacingly low and I swallowed nervously.

"A bit..."

He smirked and moved his hands down to my thighs, lifting me up with ease in the water. I wrapped my legs around him automatically and it felt like our position on New Years all over again. Except this time there was even less between us, just the thin material of our swimsuits.

I began to blush profusely and it was obvious from his satisfied expression that he was regarding the same thing.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, pressing our bodies together as he hissed from the contact. I could feel a slight shift between our groins, realising that I wasn't the only one getting excited by the intimate position.

"You're driving me insane." He whispered huskily into my ear.

"This isn't any easier for me you know." I giggled in response. It was true, something about his presence ignited every nerve in my body and I craved him like a physical itch.

Over the last few evenings we'd spent together he'd been careful not to push me too far, only stealing heated kisses or tracing my body with his hands. It made him even more attractive, knowing he didn't want to rush it. We had time after all, but the more contact we had the more my desire had been growing.

I felt him smile against my neck before he dunked me backwards into the pool and pulled me back up. I spluttered the water from my lungs as he laughed, clearly amused by his revenge.

I held onto his neck with one arm and tried to rub the water from my eyes with the other, the chlorine stinging me.

When I eventually recovered I slapped his chest playfully and he kissed his way up my neck, apologising after each one.

"Get a room you two!" I heard Jess yell from behind us and glanced over to see the group smirking at us. I'd almost completely forgotten they were there, Kingsley's touch always seemed to have that affect on me, clouding my brain and better judgement.

He flipped them off jokingly and they all snickered in amusement and went back to their ball game.

All apart from Eli.

His eyes were flicking between us as the pieces seemed to click into place in his mind. He narrowed his gaze at us slightly and I could see a strange sort of judgement there, the same type of look my father had given me when I'd nearly dropped Artie as a baby.

Disapproving and cold.

He turned around, muttering something to his friends before he swam to the edge of the pool and pulled himself out.

I felt Kingsley press me closer into him as my eyes followed Eli guiltily. He grabbed his towel and clothes before exiting the room and the door slammed shut behind him.