Summer Girl by Casey Grant Page A

wakes
collided with each other, creating interference patterns, turning
the water into a frothing foam. Tamera was lying on her side and
the boats were coming remarkably close to get a view. Tamera waved
to one boat and then went back to reading.
    Brie reached the bottom of the dock.
“Tamera!” Brie waved. “I got you your beer.”
    Tamera stood up, her statuesque frame now
even more on display, yelling out, “Thank you, Brie! What
service!”
    Brie continued walking as a water skier arced
towards the dock, making a sharp turn, then abruptly pulling away,
covering Tamera in spray and knocking her into the water.
    “Tamera!” Brie yelled, running down the dock
and jumping in the water. She could see Tamera's head bobbing below
the surface, her arms were moving sluggishly.
    Brie dove in, surfacing behind Tamera. Brie's
strong swimmer's physique allowed her to lift Tamera's head above
the water. She noticed that Tamera's movements had ceased. Brie
swam the two hundred feet to shore, holding Tamera with one arm
while swimming with the other, “Tamera! Tamera! Come on—hold on!
Breathe!”
    Brie got to shore in less than a minute. When
it was shallow enough to walk, she cradled Tamera in her arms and
ran up out of the water and onto the lawn, dropping Tamera onto the
grass and onto her back. Brie put her mouth to Tamera's, breathing
into her while pushing down on her stomach. Brie heard a gurgle as
Tamera spit up what seemed like a gallon of lake-water into the
grass. Tamera took a huge gulp of air as her chest heaved,
breathing hard. “Yes! Tamera! Keep breathing!” said Brie excitedly,
watching Tamera for a full minute as she caught her wind and her
breathing stabilized. Tamera opened her eyes, looking up at Brie,
smiling, grabbing Brie's hand. Brie's feeling of relief had
transitioned to thinking of things that Brie would never admit to
thinking. It was just curiosity, Brie told herself. Giving Tamara
mouth-to-mouth resuscitation had already given Brie a taste of her
soft lips but what did those breasts feel like? What would it feel
like to run her hands over that flawless skin, its olive color the
consistency of foam? “We're going to do one more round of first aid
here to make sure everything's okay,” Brie said, tilting Tamera's
head back gently and again placing her mouth over Tamera's. Brie
knew this was superfluous, that Tamera was in no need of additional
first aid. And if anyone trained in mouth-to-mouth resuscitation
had been watching, Brie wasn't pushing hard enough on Tamera's
stomach to do much of anything. Instead Brie was using the flat of
her palm to caress Tamera's concave tummy. Instead of forcing air
into Tamera's lungs, Brie brushed her lips against Tamera's lips,
and this time around—and not to Brie's displeasure— Tamera was
pushing her lips back against Brie's, their mouths turning slowly
against the other. Brie was growing feverish, her emotions running
amok. A new injection of adrenaline surged through her, causing
every second to expand to a minute, stirred by the reality of
saving Tamera.
    Brie pulled Tamera upwards to a sitting
position, holding Tamera in her arms. Everyone on the lake knew
Brie, but Brie didn't care how many boaters saw her in this
embrace. Brie had saved Tamera's life, and the overwhelming emotion
coursing through Brie was gratitude and relief that Tamera had
survived. And if that also held elements of something else, so
what?
    She picked Tamera up and carried her up the
hill. Tamera was shocked by this sudden levitation, expecting this
kind of strength from her husband, not from another woman.
    When they reached the house, Brie lay Tamera
down on the sofa gently. “Let me check on Jackie,” Brie said,
running down the hall and into Jackie's room where the little girl
was in her crib playing. Brie lifted her out of the crib and
carried her back into the living room, plopping her on the floor
next to where Tamera was laying. There was a loud rapping on the
glass door