Chapter 8: Di

Jason's open palms covered Di's stomach and thighs as he held her up in the water. She had been practicing the front crawl for him, kicking her feet and pulling long strokes with her cupped hands for a half-hour. He had gotten them in the pool he used to work at before it opened because a friend of his still worked there. She was grateful because it kept her from feeling self-conscious about her scars when she got into the water with him.

There was always something wrong with her form that required his attention, but she suspected it was just an excuse to keep his hands on her body. Di didn't mind because she craved his touch. The light tickling of his fingers made her warm despite the chill in the air.

There had been no mistaking his reaction when she applied the coconut oil to them both the night before. She worried he would see her hands trembling as she reached for his leg, but he quickly relaxed and she found herself enjoying touching him as much as he obviously enjoyed being touched.

When she oiled her own legs, she made sure to flash a little panty his way and saw his erection pushing out the front of his shorts. He was careful when he adjusted himself but she still saw him do it out of the corner of her eye. It was intensely satisfying to know he was attracted to her, which had fueled a long session with her fingers later as she imagined surprising him in his bed.

Jason had been very paternal that morning, keeping his distance and reminding her subtly of their very different ages and roles. While they ate a quick breakfast, he talked about swimming like he was an instructor. At the time she was still in the same long nightshirt and panties from the night before and noticed he still couldn't keep his eyes off her.

It was so freeing. She had hidden her scarred legs her entire life, but after seeing his scars her fears evaporated. He looked at her like she was beautiful, even though he probably didn't intend to. And for the first time in her life she had started to believe it.

"Okay," Jason said as he allowed her to sink so she could stand in the waist deep pool. "You seem to have the form down now. Let's see how you do on your own." He took her hand to lead her to the edge of the pool.

"Wanna race?" she asked with a laugh.

"I've got to watch you to make sure you've got it down," he said with an indulgent smile as he pulled her to the edge by her hand.

She leaned against him and looked up in his eyes to whisper, "You just wanna stare at my ass." His face cooled so fast she was afraid she'd screwed up, but then a flush began to creep up his neck.

"Don't." It wasn't a command, it was almost a plea as he backed up to the edge of the pool like she was dangerous.

"Sorry," she said and pushed away. The haunted look in his face when she dropped his hand made her feel guilty.

Pushing off against the wall before she screwed up again, Di concentrated on her form as she swam across the pool. Worry ate at her as she kicked and crawled through the water, temporarily driving away her fear of drowning.

She knew he liked her. There was the obvious age difference and the fact that he was legally responsible for her, but in her heart those things took a second place to the way she felt about him. When Di hit the other wall, she turned around and swam back to Jason. As she reached him, he surprised her by pulling her up into a gentle hug.

"No, I'm sorry. You didn't do anything wrong," Jason whispered against the wet skin of her neck making chill bumps break out down her arms and back.

She took a moment to press herself against him, clinging to his broad chest until he relaxed his hold and let her slip back into the water. Their eyes met and she thought he might kiss her. Then the moment passed and he moved away with a carefully blank expression.

"Wanna float in the lazy river for a while?" he asked, pointing to the pile of inflated rubber donuts. They were stacked near the entrance to the water path that flowed around the outside of the pool area.