The double-meaning of the word wet was indeed lost on him, but her tone wasn't. She laughed like it was a dirty joke and he found himself grinning too, keen to feel he was in on it rather than on the outside. The farther out she ventured the more conspicuous he felt for not having moved yet. If her wading out into the lake was a metaphor for other kinds of adventurous behavior, he didn't want to give them impression that he was content to be left behind... even though he certainly hadn't had any intention of going swimming when he'd set out to walk the shores of the lake this afternoon. So he dropped down into the grass and set about removing his shoes and socks, then to cuffing his pant legs up to his mid-calf.

"What about trouble, do you like that too?" he bantered back. "The sort of trouble we'd be in if one of the matrons saw us?"

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