Swept Away Read Free

shirt. His was dripping wet and covered in dirt. Lily was the only one of them wearing a shirt, dry or otherwise. And damn, if she didn’t look really good in it. Her hips swayed ever so slightly as she walked. She wasn’t very tall, but her legs stretched long and lean beneath the faded blue shirt. Her damp hair fell just below her shoulders. Carson couldn’t tell if it was light brown or dark blonde, but either way it would look great spread across his pillow.
    He didn’t need to peek at Cody to know he was thinking the same thing. They were way past the age of acting like horny teenagers. Or they should be. Besides, Carson wasn’t going to stick around; he had no business lusting after her.
    She was just something else he would leave behind.
    * * * *
    “So, Lily, what were you doing swimming in such high water?” one of the brothers asked. The one who’d pulled them both from the river. He’d also given her the shirt off his back. Literally.
    “I wasn’t swimming.” Lily didn’t like the defensive tone in her voice. “I… I fell in.”
    “Well, it’s a good thing we came along when we did,” the other brother said. He tried to keep his tone light, but Lily sensed an undercurrent of worry. They all knew what might have happened if the brothers hadn’t been there.
    Some Mother’s Day this turned out to be. Not that she was fortunate enough to be a mother. And instead of being a good daughter, spending an uncomfortable day not talking about her divorce with her mom, she’d decided to relax in the sun, finally diving into that novel she bought for herself last Christmas. With everything that happened to her in the last few months, Lily hadn’t had time for small pleasures. Now she had all the time in the world. The next few months, at least. She planned on taking the summer off before looking for another bookkeeping job, or even landing clients of her own.
    Lily had felt a little reckless sunbathing on that rock like a teenager. She’d even switched to SPF 15 instead of her usual 50. UV rays had turned out to be the least of her worries. She should have waited for the paperback or gotten an eBook. With the bulk and weight of a hardcover edition, the book had slipped out of her hands and as she reached for it, she’d tumbled head first into Hidden Creek.
    She was a strong swimmer, an experienced swimmer, but the swift current had taken her by surprise. She’d tried swimming back toward the rock, but there was no way she could fight the force of all that water. Disoriented and a little ticked off at the twenty-seven dollars she’d spent on that book she’d never get to finish, she’d started flailing about, reaching for something, anything to grab onto so she could get her feet back under her.
    She’d been in the water ten minutes, maybe longer, when she’d heard a deep male voice, felt strong arms around her, and realized she wasn’t alone in the water.
    The rest happened so fast. She was in the water. Then out. Somewhere along the way, she’d lost her bathing suit top and this man was holding her close. There was a second man, identical to the first. He gave up his shirt and flirted with her. The first guy seemed worried about her. But she was fine. Really. They were making too much of a fuss over her. “Sorry to interrupt your fishing trip.” Lily tried to steady her voice, to sound like a woman who could take care of herself.
    “Hey, it’s okay,” one of the guys said. “The water’s a little high for good fishing, anyway.”
    “We caught something much better.” His brother smiled and spoke with a light-hearted tone. He was definitely flirting with her. She remembered flirting. It’s what her ex had done with every woman but her.
    “Tell me again who’s who.” They’d reached the end of the trail. Lily was trying to keep them straight, knowing it must be hard to be constantly mistaken for your twin.
    “I’m Cody, the good-looking one.” The first brother flashed his dimples