Free The Lake (The Lake Trilogy, Book 1) by AnnaLisa Grant

immediately asks, “Have you been down to the lake…at night…I mean…yet? It’s really…beautiful.” He’s uncharacteristically stumbling over his words, which makes me smile a little because it’s cute.
    “No, actually, I haven’t. I hadn’t even thought of going down there at night. I’m not the best swimmer, so I figured I’d only go near water when there was some hope of rescue.” I laugh nervously. My heart is beating so fast that I’m sure he can hear it.
    He smiles that perfect smile and says, “I’d rescue you…again.”
    I smile nervously and step away from the car so Will can close the door. We walk around the side of the house and go through the gate there. I’m bubbling with curiosity with every step.
    What is he doing?
    The lights are on in the back of the house, both inside and out, and I can see Luke and Claire in the kitchen.
    “Hold on a sec…I just want to let them know I’m home.” I tap on the back door and open it quickly. Popping my head inside I say, “I’m back. I’m just going to walk down to the dock for a few minutes…with Will.” Claire grins and tells me its fine.
    “Don’t stay out there too late, Layla. The outside lights are on a timer and will go off at eleven.” Luke gives me a look that I can’t decipher , but he seems like he enjoyed giving some parental direction, so I just smile.
    I close the door and join Will. “Everything ok?” he asks.
    “Yeah.” I put my purse down on the patio table and lead the way to the dock.
    The path seems longer tonight and the farther we get from the house, the darker it becomes. Then suddenly, as if by magic, everything in front of me begins to glow. It’s angelic. I stop at the end of the path in total and complete awe. There are small lights glowing from each of the posts along the dock. They aren’t bright, but are just enough to light the way.  I’ve almost forgotten Will is with me until I hear him say, “I told you.”
    “You were so right,” is all I can say. I thought I had been in awe at the daytime view, but this… this is beyond words. “You’ve…been down here a lot?” I ask.
    “Not a lot. But enough to know it’s a view not to be missed,” he says staring out onto the glowing water. How does he do that? He’s too smooth and eloquent in his speech to be a typical 18-year-old boy. Maybe that’s just it. Will is anything but typical.
    At that moment , I am unexpectedly intrigued by him. It’s more than his face or stature, or even the hospitality he’s shown me. A switch has flipped and all I know is that I want to know him. I’ve never wanted to know someone like this before. There’s depth to him, more than I had initially given him credit for having. Tonight, and over the past few weeks, Will has shown himself to be the opposite of who I assumed he would be. Now…now I’m in trouble. I’ve spent so much time trying to push every thought of him out of my mind only to find myself now completely spellbound.
    I sit down on the dock, removing my shoes as I always do so that I don’t lose one…or both. Will removes his shoes, too, and sits down next to me on my left. He sits close, but not too close. We’re there for a long time, just staring at the water and the moon’s reflection. It’s a still night, so there’s no rustling of the trees, no ripples on the water. No sound but a cricket every twenty seconds.
    I’ve never been alone like this with a boy. Will is easy to be with, but it’s still foreign. A surge of nervousness shoots through me so hard that I can feel it in my teeth. A few slow, deep breaths and I’m fine again.
    “I’m sorry I was so evasive earlier…when you asked about Luke and Claire,” I say. “It is complicated, but I don’t mind telling you…if you’re still interested.” I look up and over at him to see what his response, if any, is, wondering if my refusal earlier cut him off from caring any further about the subject, but he surprises me.
    He turns