Perfect tranquility.
Greg floated on his back on the surface, his arms and legs akimbo in a slightly undignified star shape, closed his eyes and listened to the ambient sounds - birdsong, the soft lapping of water on the sides of the pool, the distant barking of a dog - and felt truly content for the first time in a long time.
The pool at the end of the garden was his refuge, the one place where he could forget, at least for a while, everything he'd been through in the last few years. The private space where he could strip off his worries with his clothes and truly relax.
The sun warmed his eyelids, and he exhaled happily, but then caught his breath as he heard a sound very close by. He was not alone.
His eyes shot open and he was confronted by an inquisitive face looking down at his nakedness and panting. Recovering from his momentary panic, Greg grinned at the intruder.
"Well, hello, handsome! Where did you come from?"
His new canine companion didn't reply, unsurprisingly, but turned his head towards the woods at the bottom of the garden and barked loudly. At the dog's feet was a well-chewed tennis ball. He really was a very handsome beast - a youngish German Shepherd, Greg guessed, and well splattered with mud from his adventures in the great outdoors. Greg stood up in the shallow end of the pool and scanned the distance for any sign of the dog's owner, but there was nobody in sight.
Just as he was wondering what to do about this unexpected intrusion on his peaceful reveries, he heard a loud splash, and jerked his head round to see that his new friend had launched himself straight into the deep end and was splashing around with every sign of huge enjoyment. Oh, great! Now what to do?
"King! Where are you?"
The dog turned his head and barked at the sound of the female voice, before getting a muzzle full of chlorinated water and spluttering comically, making Greg laugh out loud for the first time in months.
"Don't try to bark and swim at the same time, chum!"
Greg raised his voice.
"Over here!"
A figure appeared behind the bushes at the bottom of the lawn, peering anxiously into the garden.
"King, there you are! Oh, I'm so sorry, he just ran off when I was walking him ..."
Greg smiled.
"No need to be sorry. I guess he couldn't resist the cool water on a day like this. I don't blame him, it's sweltering."
"It is. And your pool does look very inviting, but he still shouldn't have run off."
She couldn't hide her own smile. Partly relief at finding her dog, but there was also a keen sense of humour in her eyes. Greg looked at her appraisingly: petite, a good bit younger than him. Maybe late twenties? Long, dark hair worn loose, some stray strands plastered to her forehead by a film of perspiration. A simple yellow cotton sundress now spattered with mud and bits of leaves where she'd had to scramble through the undergrowth to reach the garden. An intelligent, pretty face. She looked lovely.
"You look very hot and bothered. Why don't you join us and cool off?"
"I'd love to, but we're intruding, and besides, I don't happen to have a swimming costume on me."
"Neither do I."
That grin again.
"I had noticed. Do you always swim in the buff?"
"Yes. It's very secluded here, and it just feels better - more natural."
"Hmmm. You're very persuasive, but I'm not in the habit of getting naked in front of complete strangers."
"Habits are made to be broken, and I promise I won't look. Go on, I dare you!"
She laughed out loud at that. She didn't believe him, and she didn't know why she was even considering it - it was so out of character for her. She'd barely recovered from the surprise of seeing her beloved dog frolicking in a swimming pool with a naked man, albeit a rather handsome man, with dark hair and a nicely tanned body. She was actually quite jealous of the pair of them, cooling off and looking happy and relaxed whilst she was all muddy and sweaty. She couldn't really take him up on his offer, though, could she? On the other hand, the idea made her feel deliciously naughty, and he'd dared her. How did he know that she could never resist a dare? She made up her mind on an impulse.
"Turn around!"
Dutifully he faced away from her, then twisted his head just enough to catch a glimpse out of the corner of his eye of her pulling the yellow dress over her head. She hesitated for a moment, then reached behind her back to unfasten her white bra, and, after another second's indecision, hooked her fingers into the sides of plain cotton panties and eased them down. A fleeting vision of small but well-rounded breasts, a smooth stomach and a neat dark triangle between her thighs, and then she was slipping into the water at the other end of the pool with barely a splash.
"Ooh, that's cold!"
"You'll soon warm up, trust me!"
She was sceptical.
"Hmmm, I hope so. And can I? Trust you, I mean."
"Of course. I'm a perfect gentleman!"
King joyfully doggy-paddled over to her, tail wagging furiously, and began licking her face as she laughed.
"I can't believe I'm doing this. This is all your fault, you daft dog!"
She hugged the animal as it squirmed and wriggled out of her grasp before swimming away again.
Greg watched the pair of them happily, delighted at this unexpected turn of events. He caught the girl looking at him from the opposite end of the pool, and the eye contact made him breathe a little faster. It was she who finally broke it, smiling at him and launching herself into an easy breast stroke, moving gracefully through the water towards him.
Close up, she looked gorgeous, and in spite of some evident shyness, her eyes were sparkling. She spoke softly.
"Hello!"
"Hello! I'm Greg. Pleased to meet you, ma'am!"
She giggled at the formality, and responded in kind.
"Why, thank you, good sir. I'm Alice."
They shook hands, smiling, and he tried to maintain eye contact, even though he was acutely aware of her naked breasts bobbing just below the surface of the water, and he could see delightful impressions of bare female flesh shimmering in the depths. He saw her eyes flick downwards, too, and hoped that she couldn't see exactly how pleased he was to see her. Slightly embarrassed, he swam off in a rather self-conscious front crawl.
"Oh, this is bliss. I could seriously get used to swimming like this."
"Have you never been skinny dipping?"
"Not since I was about five!"
"It's the only way to swim. Be warned, though - once you've done it, you won't ever want to go back to clammy swimming costumes!"
