Rory Holt is the best swimmer on the team at State U. and he knows it. Swimming is his life, and if Rory hopes to attain his dreams of Olympic gold one day, he can’t let anything distract him. Every morning finds him practicing at the campus fitness center, and every afternoon he blows his teammates away with his speed and finesse in the water. The new semester brings with it new tryouts, including the bright, up-and-coming Chase Cohen. Chase is sexy and sure of himself, both in and out of the pool, and seems determined to catch Rory’s eye. Rory doesn’t want to share the podium with anyone else, and he doesn’t like hearing his coach say Chase might even be better than he is when he already knows he’s the best. Chase’s attentions are annoying at first, but the more he persists, the harder Rory finds it to ignore him. Soon Rory can’t deny the growing attraction he feels towards his new teammate. But when that attraction costs him his top spot on the leaderboard, Rory is pissed. Is Chase after Rory’s position on the team, or Rory himself?

Playing the Field: Getting Wet

Relays are a whole different ballpark entirely. They’re hectic and crazy, four teams of four swimmers, who must each swim two laps before switching off with the next teammate waiting at the block. Rory loves them, but he knows the coach will be hesitant to put him in if he doesn’t get some time in the water earlier in the day. So he has to swim the medley, no matter how much it galls him to go in after Chase.


God, he wishes that guy had never even tried out for the team.


There are four heats for each event, followed by the race itself to determine the winner. Each heat has five swimmers; only the top two advance to the final race. Coach Sweeney never runs all her best swimmers in the same heat; that way the team’s front runners aren’t facing off against each other, and the chances are higher that more of them will make it to the final. So Rory won’t race against Chase in the heats—they’ll only be in the pool at the same time if they both make it into the finals.


Chapter 18