Blind Ambition Read Online Free PDF Page B

worrying about how far she had to go. Dan had once told her that he made it through the tough days of his training by focusing only on his next milestone. The rocks seemed too far, so she concentrated on five strokes at a time. When she reached five, she started over. Just five more. All she had to do was keep making it to five.  
    Too many counts later, her hand touched the rough surface of the hardened lava that rose from the water. The sharp rock dug into her palm as she gripped the outcropping and looked for Dan. He motioned her to the far side of the formation, and she pulled her way along until she was out of sight of the beach.
    “I’ll be right back,” he whispered, and then dipped beneath the surface. He reappeared silently a few seconds later. “It’s about fifteen feet deep.” Treading water, he studied the hazardous rocks with their jagged edges and slippery moss.
    The sea pulled at her in a relentless game of tug-of-war. She clung to their place of refuge with all her might, but her fingers had gone numb. The next swell knocked her loose and she slid under the surface.  
    Waves forced water into her nose and mouth. She tried to right herself, but her muscles wouldn’t cooperate. Panic banded her chest. Her lungs screamed for air, sending out a treacherous signal that took all of her strength to fight.
    A strong arm snagged her waist and dragged her up into the chilly air. She sucked in a desperate breath, and then coughed. Too loud. She closed her mouth to mute the sound and fought against the irritation in her throat, the burning in her nose.
    “It’s okay. I’ve got you,” Dan whispered in her ear.
    The warmth of his torso against her back soothed her frayed nerves and she quit hyperventilating. She nodded, unable to speak, and tried not to cough again.
    He took a couple of strokes backward, towing her to a tall rock that had split down the center. He treaded water, keeping her close. “Face me,” he said, and she struggled to comply. “Take off your pants. They’re not helping you conserve heat in the water, and I want to tie us together.”
    “Okay.” Teeth chattering, she tried to work the button with her numb fingers. “I can’t.”
    Dan gripped her wrists and pulled her arms around his neck. “I’ll do it.”
    She steeled herself for his touch. When his fingers slipped beneath her waistband, she closed her eyes against the sight of his determined jaw still smeared with face paint. The intimate act was almost more than she could handle.
    He unfastened her button and zipper and tugged the pants down her hips. “Lift your knees and I’ll pull them off.” Once he had them in hand, he wrapped the crotch of the chinos against her back, and tied the pant legs behind him.
    She felt his hands brush her lower belly as he worked on his belt buckle. Memories of them frantically removing clothes to make love against the wall of her small hut crashed through her, sending her stomach spiraling.
    He stripped off his pants and hung the belt over her shoulders. Then he looped his pants through hers, tied them at the ankles, and fastened the belt to the makeshift sling, hooking it on a crevice in the rock. “That should keep us afloat.”
    “Brilliant.” She almost managed a smile.
    “Not if we freeze to death. We need to keep still and close to conserve body heat. Wrap your legs around me.”
    “I’ll bet you say that to all the girls.”
    He hesitated for a half a breath, then his teeth shone white against his paint-darkened face. “Only the ones I’ve kissed.”
    She hooked her ankles behind his back and tucked herself against him, letting her shaky arms relax. The feel of his hard body jolted her clear to her toes.
    He inhaled sharply and looked away.
    Had he felt it too? Her heartbeat kicked up. “Dan…”
    With a sigh, he met her gaze, his arms tightening around her waist as he used his feet to keep them from slamming into the rocks with each wave. Their faces were only inches apart