A Turn in the Road - Debbie Macomber [34]
“Ruth,” Bethanne said, rolling her eyes. She was on her way to Florida and some of the most beautiful beaches in the world—and she was worried about showing her thighs. “Who’ll even notice?”
“What about you, Mom?” Annie asked.
Bethanne’s smile faded. “I don’t own a suit.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Annie said, staring up at the car ceiling. “Okay, you two, I don’t care if you have your bathing suits or not, we’re going swimming.”
“You can,” Ruth said, “but I’m staying out of the water.”
“Suit yourself, Grandma, but Mom and I are getting in the water.”
Bethanne hesitated. “You go on and I’ll join you later.”
“Mo-om,” Annie groaned. “Okay, if it’ll make you both feel better, I’ll swim in my underwear.”
Annie shucked off her shorts and cotton top, leaving them at the water’s edge, and walked into the lake with her arms raised. “Oh, boy, this is cold.”
Bethanne kept a keen eye on her daughter. The cool water lapped at her bare toes, and she felt the sweat roll down her neck. The sun was even fiercer now. Annie, meanwhile, was floating on her back.
“Are you coming in or not?” she shouted to Bethanne.
“Coming in.” Bethanne carefully removed her own clothes and waded into the water in her bra and underpants. The lake seemed even colder than before and shock made her gasp.
Ruth strolled down to the shore, watching them more intently than a lifeguard at the baby pool.
“Come on, Ruth,” Bethanne said. “You wanted adventure. Well, this is it!”
Her mother-in-law paced the shoreline. “I’ve never done any thing like this in my life.”
“Don’t be shy,” Annie said. “We could be here for hours. We might as well enjoy ourselves.”
Ruth cast them an anxious look. “You won’t tell anyone, will you?”
“Cross my heart,” Annie said, standing up to make the motions.
“Come on,” Bethanne encouraged her again, waving her in. “The water’s fabulous.”
Ruth took off her clothes and folded them in a neat pile. Then she walked straight into the water. Unlike Annie and Bethanne, who took time to adjust to the cold, Ruth plunged ahead. Maybe she feared one of them would comment on her thighs, Bethanne thought with amusement.
The three frolicked and played like schoolchildren splashing one another and diving under the water. Bethanne couldn’t remember the last time she’d swum in a lake. She was enjoying herself so much, she didn’t immediately hear the noise that attracted Ruth and Annie’s attention.
Both of them got to their feet and stood there, unmoving.
Bethanne turned around and was instantly overwhelmed by the sound of motorcycles moving toward them.
“Mom,” Annie said, grabbing Bethanne’s arm. “I remember where I heard about this lake,” she cried. “It was from the bikers at the restaurant.”
Nine
The motorcycles roared right to the edge of the lake, and lined up side by side.
Shivering in the water Bethanne huddled close to Ruth and Annie. No one seemed to know exactly what to do or how to react. The water suddenly went from comfortable to below freezing. All three of them crossed their arms, although Bethanne realized their efforts to hide themselves were futile.
“Didn’t Robin say something like this would happen?” Ruth wailed. “We’re goners for sure.”
“Over my dead body,” Bethanne said from between clenched teeth.
“That’s what I’m afraid of,” Ruth muttered. “How will I ever explain this to Grant? This is all my fault.”
“It’s no one’s fault,” Bethanne said. She wasn’t about to let these men intimidate her or her family. Squaring her shoulders, she began marching toward the shore, her legs making rippling, splashing movements in the water.
Annie tried to grab her arm. “Mom, what are you doing?”
“I’m going to ask them for help,” she said. If she treated them with respect, then they’d do the same. She hoped.
“Mom!” came Annie’s plaintive cry as Bethanne pulled her arm free.
With her back straight, Bethanne ignored Annie and Ruth’s pleas and the teasing catcalls from the bikers. She was all too aware that her wet underwear concealed nothing.