Julius's initial assumption as to why anyone in their right mind would be taking a dip in an icy cold pond--which he was pretty sure it should have been frozen over was it not for the falls--was that maybe she was from somewhere cold. Like Finland. Didn't they warm up in a sauna before diving into ice water? Supposedly it was good for your health, but Julius didn't particularly care for extremes in temperatures. It was telling of the life he'd led to this point that his second choice was some sort of species of thing connected with water.
But then she opened her mouth and that pleasant Louisiana drawl spilled out--not quite like Marie's but with a similar warmth--and he was forced to go with his second choice. "I wish I had that luxury," he commented. He liked swimming, but manmade, chlorinated pools were no substitute for fresh water--or salt water for that matter. He leaned his fishing pole against the boulder he was half sitting on for the moment and flicked the ash from the tip of his cigarette away from the water. He also wished he could just automatically dry himself off like that. That probably came in handy now and then.
"What a pleasure," he said with a grin. "Julius FĂrinne, owner of In Vino Veritas here in town."