Chapter 1323

Stella turned to see Marshall smiling at her in the water not too far away. He wore a short-sleeved swimsuit, no longer concealing his scarred arms that he used to keep hidden under long sleeves.

The sudden change surprised Stella. She had always seen Marshall as someone who was a bit reserved. ‘It must have taken a lot of determination to make such change,’ she thought.

Stella was not one to hold back her praise, so she gave him a thumbs-up and said, “Looking dashing, Mr. Moore!”

Seemingly a bit shy, Marshall looked down, and his ears turned red.

Keegan’s eyes twitched upon seeing that. ‘Why the hell is he blushing?!’ He pushed Stella’s raised thumb back into the water and said, “I’m not done learning yet!”

His reaction left Stella at a loss for words. “You’re never gonna learn how to swim if you don’t get your breathing right, ” she said.

“The water keeps getting into my ears. It’s uncomfortable,” Keegan pouted.

“Then… You can just float around with your flamingo,” Stella said as she let go of him.

After that, she dove into the water and swam a few feet away. When she resurfaced, she glanced back at Keegan with a smile and mouthed a few words before diving back down.

Marshall could see how exasperated Keegan was and focused his ‘Nice bird,” he commented before swimming after Stella.

Keegan was not happy. He glared at the pink flamingo and had an irrational desire to strangle it.

Stella was a good swimmer. She switched between freestyle, breaststroke, and backstroke effortlessly, maintaining a steady pace.

Meanwhile, Marshall trailed not too far behind.

Stella finally stopped after completing two laps around the pool. It had been a while since she last swam; it was more tiring than anticipated. She might have considered giving up after the first lap if Marshall had not been behind her.

Resting her arms on the pool’s edge, she caught her breath and steadied herself. She then stole a glance at Marshall, who appeared unfazed.

“Don’t breathe through your mouth, and remember to take slow breaths,” he advised. To Marshall, those laps were as easy as walking a few steps.

After a while, Stella’s breathing began to stabilize. Impressed, she said, “Your stamina is quite impressive, Mr.

Moore.”

Marshall chuckled and said, “Back when I was abroad, I participated in swimming marathons. I trained extensively during that time. I guess it’s just muscle memory.”

Stella was shocked to hear that. ‘I didn’t know he was a professional,’ she thought.

“I saw the attorney profiles at your firm before, and it says that you’re into skydiving and scuba diving.

You’re quite the thrill-seeker. Is it safe to do these extreme sports?”

“It can be dangerous when doing those activities, but with proper precautions, the rush of the experience often outweighs those risks. Plus, exercising is a great way to release built-up stress,”

Marshall explained.

Keegan also often exercised to decompress.

Stella pondered for a moment and asked, “Mr. Moore, you and Keegan grew up together. Was he always this afraid of going into the water?”

Marshall seemed somewhat surprised upon hearing that.” He never told you?”

“Told me what?”

“He had a near-drowning experience as a kid.”

Stella was taken aback. ‘Keegan has never shared this incident with me before. But then again, I hadn’t explicitly asked him about it either. I guess I can’t blame that guy since he only reveals things when prodded.’