“You really picked that up quickly.” I panted a bit as I spoke, out of breath from our impromptu race.

“Hey, I had a pretty great teacher.” Xander glanced over his shoulder at me, smiling, as we paddled lazily back towards the beach. “So what do I get for winning?”

I pouted at his back. “You only won because you got such a big head start on me. I almost had you at the end there, cheater.”

His deep laugh echoed around the river. “Well of course, if I didn’t have a head start I wouldn’t have a chance against you, mister muscles.”

I suddenly felt self-conscious. I’d always been lean and a bit muscular, just from the constant physical activity I’d done all my life; hiking, kayaking, diving, even my job at the construction supply. I just seemed to get antsy when I didn’t move around enough. I’d never been very aware of being fit, it was just a byproduct of my chosen activities… so why, when he pointed it out, did it make me feel a bit embarrassed?

I shook off the discomfort to reply. “Well if you insist on a reward… why don’t we get a drink at the Roadhouse some time. My treat.”

There was a brief silence, Xanders pace slowing momentarily, when he replied, again aiming his usual cheerful grin towards me. “Yeah, that sounds great. I’ll text you later and we can work out a time.”

Why did he seem to pause when I asked that? Was it just my imagination?

Before I had time to think on the matter further, I realized we’d arrived back at the beach.

“Okay, go ahead and nose into the river bank, I’ll get our boats onto the…” I trailed off as Xander hopped gracefully out of his kayak, grabbing the nose and pulling it easily onto the shore.

“I guess that works too. Are you sure you haven’t done this before?” I eyed him skeptically as I followed suit, dragging my own boat onto the sandy ground.

He put his hands in the air in a mock show of surrender. “I swear, it really is my first time. I’m just a quick study, I guess.”

I eyed his face, jokingly pretending to inspect him for signs of deceit. “All right, I guess I’ll believe you this time, but I’ve got my eye on you.” I chuckled and bent down to retrieve our items from the well. “By the way, are you wearing contacts or something today? I just realized you don’t have your glasses on.”

“Wow, you seriously just noticed? I’m kind of hurt.” He pouted briefly at me.

“I actually don’t really need my glasses in situations like this. I just use them for reading and seeing details up close. I can see everything fine unless it’s right in front of me. Also, I heard that contacts and saltwater don’t mix, so I figured that would probably be a pretty bad idea.”

Setting his bag and towel on the log, I went back to retrieve my own items from the well. “Yeah I guess that makes sense. Hadn’t really ever thought about it, to be honest.” This statement was punctuated by a loud growl from my stomach.

I turned, embarrassed, to see Xander staring at me with an amused expression across his face. “Sounds like you’re ready for those sandwiches.”