Molly pulled a couple of strokes in closer to Rena. She was torn between not crowding the woman and being there by her side if needed. Molly could not allow her even to slip. It would break the fragile trust building between them. And she was loath to let Rena down.
So the coastal girl drew close but pretended to be searching the pond for more rocks. She even managed to find one. With Rena safely out of the way, Molly tossed it over on to the shore. See? Rena could have privacy if she wanted.
Unable to bite her tongue for long, despite all her good intentions, Molly found herself asking, “It’s not too cold, is it? I’ve been told that I’ve got a pretty high tolerance for cold water, so it’s hard for me to tell.”