Which brother should I choose
The Pool

"I would like that, Alice." he said.

I kept staring in his eyes, unbelievingly. Did he really want me to call him Antonio? His dark eyes molten with a warm hue, that I did not recognize before. His sharp features of face have looked softened for a second. The setting sun's lights were dancing on his dark hair. His large, muscular torso was heaving. I traced the edges of perfection of his body with my eyes. He was a scene to behold. It was a pity that he was so mean. I mean, generally. But intriguingly, not now. "Are you serious?" I asked finally.

"Dead serious!" he said with a small smile.

"Well, I thought you would be annoyed by calling Antonio. Since your name is Anton."

"The finance world knows me as Anton. But my name is Antonio, originally."

My jaw dropped. I was confused. I searched for them on the internet before I started and he was mentioned as Anton in every article he took place.

"You should make your research more detailed." he said as if to read my mind.

"But why are they calling you Anton, then?"

"Antonio is my childhood name. My mom calls me that. And my childhood friends. Like Daryl as you have heard today. He was the son of a friend of my father and we grew up together. So, he uses my family name. But after I grew up and went to college, first my college friends then financial contacts started calling me Anton. And it got carried away. But I liked that, because it reminds me business is business, and I am not Antonio in that world, I am Anton Alonzo and I must do what it takes to be successful."

It could be the saddest thing I have ever heard. But he was not aware of that. He was proud to leave his childhood and innocence behind, to be this thick skinned. To be this menacing and fearful. It must be hard to play a role all the time. And it was sad, because I would like to know the real person, not this avatar standing next to me. But maybe this afternoon, the person I was seeing in this soft sunset light was really Antonio. I never saw him talk this relaxed, acts this relaxed. I kinda liked this.

"Okay Antonio," I said. I extended my hand "Nice to meet you, my name is Alice."

He smiled, took my hand, then covered my hand with his other hand too. Like caressing my hand. Then gently gave me a two-handed handshake.

"Nice to meet you too, Alice." he said in a soft sensual tone. I felt blood rushing to my cheeks in no time. I drew my hand, and instantly missed the warmth of his hands. What is wrong with me? Just a couple genuine words, and I was hooked. But I should have known better that this man was Anton Alonzo, and he would become cold as ever as soon as this moment passed.

I sipped from my cocktail again, like an effort to dismiss all odd ideas. It was delicious actually. I was never fond of alcohol but I must admit, I never had drunk properly prepared cocktails either. I tried alcohol in college parties or in cheap bars we visited with friends. And it was different. Different from this heavenly delicious thing I was holding in my hand. If alcohol was something like that, I could have drunk more.

I took another large sip. Let the crushed ice in the cocktail cool down its road to my stomach.

I raised my head and Anton's eyes were still on me.

"You better go slow with that.It's not orange juice you know" he said smart-alecky pointing at my cocktail. Well should I say, welcome back Anton?

"You know, I really don't like when you act like I am not capable of handling my own drink or even choosing my own meal." I said retorting.

He looked taken aback. And a little bit sad. It made me feel worse. For the first time this man acted like a normal human being, and I didn't encourage him. I took another gulp from my heavenly drink. It reminded me how he was not trusting me for even a drink. I left my glass on the side table and went to the pool without saying a word. I needed some cool water to calm my nerves.

I dived in the water and glided under it with ease. I always liked swimming. It was like a ritual letting me mute all the world for a couple minutes when I was under the water. I swam around the bodies in the pool effortlessly. The water was cold, and clear. I broke the surface to take a big breath and I dived back again. The cool sensation, the touch of water on my body, the swaying of my hair with the motion of my body was like a hypnotic trance. Then I felt a touch of a hand. When I turned under the water to see what it was, I saw him. He was gliding on me with his huge body. But in the water he was moving weightlessly. He gently wrapped his arm around my waist and I let him. It was like we were in a different realm. And in this realm everything was possible. Everything was natural and at ease. He looked at me to confirm my willingness. And I gave him permission to whatever he was asking for, by a nod. Then he started gliding with me by pulling me closer to his body. I just let myself go, he took me and turned me under the water. Our bodies touched each other everywhere. It was mesmerizing. The gentleness of his touch on my skin was killing me. His chest was touching mine by his movements and the areas he touched were leaving a burning sensation behind. I was dizzy with the heat and him. He gave me a tour under the water, it was like skiing but on a killingly handsome billionaire ski. Then he took us to the surface to take a breath. When we broke the surface of water, it was like breaking the spell. I pushed myself away gently. To break his grip on me. He didn't let me go. His arms were still wrapped around my waist tighter now. His wet hair falling on his dark brows, circling his black eyes. For a second, none of us dared to look away. His gaze fell down to my lips. He licked his lower lip. I gulped. He followed the motion of my neck with his eyes. Then looked lower to my breasts. That's enough! I pushed him away again, with much more force now. His arms were iron cages around my waist and I thought he won't let me go again. After a hesitant moment, he loosened his arms around me and I swam away from him. When I found the edge of the pool, I pulled myself out and went back to my sun bed.

I was trying to avoid what had just happened. I took my drink again, And sipped it hesitantly to clear my head. With the slurping sound of straw in the glass, I understood I already finished it. I motioned to the closest waitress, she came in no time and I took another fancy looking colorful thing from her tray by disposing of my old glass.

I took a sip again, and it was divine too. Hell, how I missed these babies for all those years. I took genuine sips before Mr. smart-ass came and gave me lectures. And I wanted to clear my head before he came. What happened under the water, why did I burn under his touch?

Then like an answer to all my questions, but maybe like more of a question himself, Antonio climbed out of the pool in front of me. His muscular arms grabbed the edge of the pool. His muscles rippled when he pulled his huge torso from the water. His large chest is seen first, then his six packs then his... Oh my god Alice, turn away. It was not nice to check out someone's bulge. He climbed off and stood in front of me. The water was gliding all over his body, drawing traces on his perfect chest. I thought that I could trace one of those drops with my finger on his body. Touch everywhere it goes. I wanted to feel those hard muscles under my touch. What would it be like? I guessed it would be like heaven. My eyes swept up from his torso to his strong jaw, and his full lips. What would it be like to be kissed with those lips?

I took another generous sip from my drink. Instead of clearing my mind, it made me feel more dizzy. But I liked the sensation. I liked being lost in the moment with a nice drink in my hand and a nice view in front of me. My hands ached with the need to touch his perfect body. I wanted to feel him. I never touched a man sensually. And I was starting to feel like I was missing a lot. Not that I have seen such a body before. God, was he working out every day?

The scene of him made my head even dizzier. I needed to run away from there, I needed to clear my mind. I stood up, and regretted it instantly.

My whole world turned upside down, one minute I was standing the next I was falling face first to the ground. I was inches away from the floor when strong hands wrapped around my waist stopped me falling on the floor. And the rest went blank...