A Complicated Summer of Love (Complicated Love Series #3) (13 page)

I really don’t.

Karl and Joshua have stopped talking and they’re silent at the table. Everyone’s just eating quietly. Every once in a while I see Tracy glance out the corner of her eye. She looks concerned and keeps giving me a sympathetic look. I try to ignore her glances and concentrate on eating my meal and getting the hell out of here.

I’m furious beyond belief at Maddison. There was no need for her to announce our private life to everyone. I couldn’t look at Lily after she said what she did. I didn’t want her to find out that I’d slept with Maddison again. I know it’s none of her business, but it doesn’t stop me from wondering what she’s thinking.

I can’t believe it happened either—it just happened between us. Maddison came to get me, she flirted and was very forward. I really like her and I’m single so what’s the big deal really? She wants me and I’m sick of waiting around for a woman that doesn’t. It’s completely silent as everyone finishes their meals. I don’t even know if Annabelle has any idea how to break the tension that’s currently filling the room. Maddison looks really happy, but I can see that Lily is irritated. She tries not to show it, but I know she is. In a way, I want her to be affected. I want her to care and to be angry about Maddison and me. It’s stupid that I feel like this, but I just want to finally know whether she cares about what I do with another woman.

“That was delicious,” Annabelle breaks the silence and sits back, patting her tummy. “I think I’m full.”

“Darling you can’t be full before you even try dessert. I’m looking forward to this chocolate cake you’ve made.” He leans over and kisses Annabelle on the cheek.

“Yeah, Annabelle…I’m dying to try this cake.” Maddison turns her nose up. “I know from personal experience that your baking can be quite…what’s the word?...stale?” She giggles and then gulps down the whole glass of wine she’s holding.

“Maddison what’s up with you?” Joshua wraps his arms around Annabelle and glares at Maddison. “You don’t have to be such a bitch.”

She giggles again and I’m beginning to get annoyed with her. I’m not sure what’s going on with her tonight, but she seems hell bent on ruining the evening.

“Oh relax. I was only joking.” She’s wobbling in her chair and her eyes look slightly glazed. “Joshy, I’m only playing around. Annabelle knows I didn’t mean it.” She leans over and brushes Joshua’s arm with her hand. “I’m sorry, Joshy.” I’m confused about her interaction with Joshua. She seems to be very friendly with him, but I’m assuming it’s to do with the drinking. She’s had way too much to drink, and she’s probably forgetting the word ‘boundaries.’ Joshua looks annoyed and Annabelle looks at her before laughing it off.

“It’s okay. I knew you were playing with me. I will just go and let them know we’re ready for desert.” She gets up and makes her way to the back of the restaurant. I look over at Lily, but she still isn’t looking at me. She waves the waiter over and orders another drink before turning and engaging Tracy in conversation. Karl and Joshua are talking again and Maddison is trying to gain their attention, but they aren’t remotely interested in her. She leans back in her chair and crosses her arms while pouting. She acts so childishly sometimes and it’s a real turn off. Annabelle returns to the table and five minutes later the cake is served. We have a choice of cream or ice cream to go with it. Karl is awkward and asks for both while Tracy smacks him on the arm for being greedy. He just grins and kisses her passionately at the table. When he pulls away, Tracy is blushing a deep shade of red. He laughs before tucking into his dessert. Everyone is busy eating and chatting. I taste the cake and it’s actually not bad. I think she’s done a great job.

“Are you enjoying your dessert?” I hear a mumble from across the table. Lily is looking at me expectantly and I see a faint smile on her face.

“Uh, yeah, it’s really good actually.”

“Don’t sound so surprised since you’re sitting next to the person who made it,” she whispers. We both laugh. It’s good to see her smiling again after the awkward tension earlier.

“I better be careful with what I say then.” I wink and see a slight blush grace her lovely neck and face. I’m trying to think of something else to say when I feel a pair of arms wrap around my neck from behind. I can smell her perfume, so I know who it is before she whispers in my ear.

“Baby. I’m lonely all the way over there by myself. Can I sit with you?” I’m still staring at Lily and I hate that she’s no longer smiling. She won’t look at me now and I detest that we were making progress before Maddison came over.

“There isn’t anywhere to sit.”

She giggles that stupid giggle again. “I know where I can sit.” She plonks herself on my lap and keeps her arm wrapped around my neck. She glances over at Lily before planting her lips on mine. I don’t want this right now, but I’m in shock that she’s doing it in front of everyone.

What’s gotten into her tonight?
She’s doing everything she can to piss everyone off. She pulls away and I see a smirk on her face. I know she did it just for Lily’s benefit. I hear a chair scrape across the floor. Lily gets up and collects her bag. She looks over at me before speaking to Annabelle.

“I’m not very hungry, so I’m going to take off. Thank you for the meal, it’s been…great.”

“Okay. Are you sure you’re okay?” Annabelle is looking at her, concerned.

“Yeah, I’m fine…just a bit tired.” I know she’s lying by the way she’s looking down and not looking at anyone else.

“Well, I was going to suggest we go to the Fisherman’s Bar after, so you’ll know where we’ll be if you fancy it.” Annabelle smiles and Lily nods before rushing out of the restaurant. I’m not sure what’s going on and my chest feels tight, watching her rushing out like she has. I have to go and see if she’s okay. Without telling Maddison, I lift her up and plonk her back on the chair before rushing outside. I don’t even wait to see her reaction, but I’m sure she’ll be furious.

I see Lily walking on the beach toward the bungalows.

“Lily, wait!” She spins around and spots me running toward her. I wish I was fitter than I am because when I stop a foot away from her, I’m panting and really out of breath.

“What are you doing Brandon?”

“I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

She huffs and crosses her arms. “I said I was fine. I’m just tired and ready to call it a night.”

“You aren’t going to the Fisherman’s Bar?” I really want her to come.

“Uh…nah. I might just have a quiet one.”

“Lily, what’s going on?” She jerks her head up and our eyes lock for only a few seconds before she looks away.

“What do you mean?” I close the distance between us.

“I think you’re lying about wanting an early night. I think you’re upset with Maddison and her forwardness at the table.” I twirl a bit of her hair around my finger. “I think you’re jealous seeing me with her.” I get a reaction to that comment, she pushes me away and I stumble slightly.

“I’m not jealous of you and that…that hussy! You can sleep with as many people as you like because I don’t give a shit what you do.”

“Why can’t you ever been honest with me?” I’m angry now. She’s so annoying and is consistently avoiding this thing between us.

“I am being honest with you.”

“No, you’re not!” I bark. “We have something between us that you keep denying.”

She’s glaring at me now. “We have nothing between us, okay? How can you be here telling me we have something between us when you’ve been sleeping with that whore?”

“She’s not a whore. This isn’t about her. This is about us.”

“There is no
us
Brandon, so just leave me alone.” She turns to walk off. I’m so sick of this bullshit so I grab her arm and swing her around until she’s flush against me. Before she has time to think, I kiss her firmly on the lips. It’s a bruising kiss that has her moaning. She wraps her arms around my neck and threads her fingers through my hair. I grab her by the waist and pull her as close to me as possible. She’s letting out these little moans and she opens her mouth willingly to accept my tongue. Our tongues are dancing and tangling together and I feel my cock growing really hard. All I want to do is take her right here on the beach. This chemistry we have is electric and it fizzles all around us. I love this feeling, and if I’m being honest with myself, I never have this feeling with Maddison. My heart feels like it’s about to beat out of my chest. She pulls away abruptly and takes a few steps away from me. We stand there staring at each other, panting. I can’t read her expression, so I’m not sure what she’s thinking.

“Baby?” I glance over and see Maddison standing outside the restaurant. I can see Annabelle and Joshua walking with Tracy and Karl in the other direction. They must be going to the Fisherman’s Bar.

“Are you coming?” I look back at Lily. She’s still staring at me and I’m not sure what to do. I want her to tell me that she wants me to come with her. That she wants me, but she stands there with her arms crossed.

“Go on then. Your whore’s waiting for you.”

“Lily?”

“Don’t, okay! Go and enjoy your night.”

I can’t leave it like this. “Listen, about what happened, just—”

“Nothing happened. Nothing will ever happen.” She doesn’t wait for me to reply. She walks off toward the bungalows and doesn’t look back. I feel crushed and rejected, but I’ve let her do it to me again. I’ve let her screw with my head only for her to push me away.

“Baby?” I look towards the restaurant and notice Maddison standing there. She must have seen the whole episode between me and Lily. I smile before making my way to her.

“Let’s go and have a good time, yeah?” She smiles a devilish smile.

“Oh, I plan on it.”

She grabs my hand and drags me along toward the Fisherman’s Bar. All I want to do is drown myself in booze for the rest of the night. I’m really not feeling it anymore, but I’m in need of something strong and alcoholic that will stop me thinking and feeling…just for a little while.

The Fisherman’s Bar we are sitting in now is really busy at this time of night. We managed to get a table in the corner next to the toilets. Tracy keeps moaning that it smells where we are, but everyone else doesn’t seem to mind. I’m surprised Maddison isn’t complaining as well, but I think she’s a bit drunk with the way she sitting on her chair, falling all over Joshua. He keeps trying to push her upright, but it’s not working at all. It’s quite funny to watch actually. We’ve been sitting here for around thirty minutes now, just chatting and enjoying the night. This bar looks fantastic. There are seashells, lobsters and starfish plastered all over the back of the bar with netting hung from the ceiling. There’s even one wall dedicated to the different types of fish. It has loads of pictures all over this section of the bar, so I can definitely understand why it’s called a Fisherman’s Bar. Everyone seems to be enjoying themselves and I’m so glad the night’s going well. I’m not sure what’s up with Maddison though. She’s been coming out with mean comments and snide remarks to everything we say. I’m putting it down to the fact that she’s drunk, but I’m not so sure. She hasn’t been herself since we arrived here six days ago. I’ve been meaning to talk to her about it, but she’s always off doing something so I never get the chance. Lily hasn’t turned up and I don’t think she will. She seriously has a thing for Brandon and I think this thing between Brandon and Maddison is getting to her.

“Hey, do you want to go to the bar and order some shots? I saw a notice advertising the new Apple Bombs.” Tracy has to lean over and shout in my ear for me to hear her as it’s so loud.

“Yeah sure…why not.” She grabs my hand and we try to find a path forward, toward the bar. I feel like I’m attempting to work through a maze, the way we’re weaving and nudging people to get there. We finally make it to the bar and Tracy orders eight shots.

“Eight?” She looks at me with a devilish grin.

“One for us now before we go back.”

“Well…it would be rude not too.” I giggle and glance back at our table. I’ve got no idea where Brandon went. I haven’t seen him since we got here. He came in with Maddison but soon scampered. I wonder if he’s followed Lily home. I saw them talking on the beach when we came out of the restaurant, but they both didn’t seem happy. Maddison looked furious when Brandon followed Lily out of the restaurant and she looked furious when she saw them on the beach. I didn’t know that she liked him that much. I just thought she was having a summer fling, or something along those lines, so it shocked me to see that she was being like that. The bartender places our shots in front of us on a tray. Tracy passes me one and we click glasses before gulping down the green liquid concoction. It tastes really sweet and very fruity.

“Oh my God, these are good.” Tracy grabs the tray and we start making our way back to the table. I notice Maddison and Joshua having a heated discussion.
What’s up there?
Joshua pushes her off of him before trying to move as far away as possible. She looks irritated, but she just sits there and crosses her arms. She hasn’t mentioned anything about Brandon disappearing, but I think she isn’t taking it well. Tracy places the shots on the table and we all take one. We all go to click glasses, but Maddison downs the shot before we have a chance and stands up.

“I’m going to find Brandon,” she mumbles before stumbling away through the crowd.

“Wow! What’s up with her?” I’m concerned about her.

“Don’t worry about her darling. She’s just in a mood.” Joshua takes Maddison’s seat and drapes his arm around my shoulders.

“Why did you look so annoyed with her?” He won’t look at me and he keeps looking at Karl. I glance at Karl too and notice that he’s sipping his beer and keeping quiet. Are they keeping something from us?

“Uh…I wasn’t annoyed with her. She was being stupid and she’s too drunk to know what she’s saying.”

“What was she saying?” I see the look between Karl and Joshua again.

“Oh, nothing we need to repeat. I’m sure she won’t even remember in the morning.” He kisses me on the cheek and takes a swig of his beer. I glance at Tracy and she’s frowning. I think she thinks something’s up too and they’re leaving us out of whatever has just happened. Tracy shrugs and I decide to let it go. Tracy starts chatting about her latest designs at work, but I can’t stop looking and noticing the little looks being shared between Karl and Joshua.

What the hell is going on?

My God, this night can’t be over quick enough. I’m sitting here wondering what’s going to happen next. While Annabelle and Tracy were at the bar, Maddison decides to start causing a bit of trouble. She was pissed off because Brandon had disappeared and she suspected that he’d gone chasing after Lily. She informed Karl and me that she wasn’t really interested in him anyway and that he was just a bit of fun. I froze when she was saying this because Karl was finding it all rather amusing. Well, he was until Maddison started flirting with me. She moved closer and kept touching my hand and thigh. The blood in my veins froze when she went on to tell Karl about our plan to be together when we got home. Karl looked at me with a frown on his face when she said it. I just put it down to the fact that she’s slightly drunk, but she kept on by telling Karl about our kiss. She said I’ve always wanted her and had been dying to kiss her for ages. She went so far as to tell him that we had sex in my office. I tried to shut her up, but she was getting louder and louder and I was afraid that Annabelle would walk over and accidentally hear. Karl’s face was as white as a sheet and he kept looking at me. He wouldn’t say anything, and the silence was making me nervous. I didn’t know what he was thinking.

Maddison kept giggling and throwing her arms around me. I snapped and I’m assuming that’s what Annabelle saw. I told her that she was delusional and pathetic and that I don’t want to be with her…ever. Let’s just say that she didn’t take that well and I was a bucket of nerves when Annabelle and Tracy came back to the table. Maddison was sitting there with an indignant look on her face and Karl hasn’t spoken since it all came out. I’m glad that Maddison just downed her shot and hightailed it out of there. I’m looking forward to this holiday being over, but I’m not sure what to do about my psychotic PA. I have to find a way to get rid of her without having to explain to Annabelle why I’m firing her. The girls decided they wanted another drink, so Karl and I said we’d go up to the bar this time. Tracy is gossiping with Annabelle about some woman she works with. We’re at the bar giving our drink orders. I have no idea what to say to Karl. I can’t imagine what he’s thinking.

“Karl, look, about what Maddison said—”

“You didn’t have sex with her, did you?” He’s looking at me.

“How can you ask me that? You know me mate. Does it sounds like something I’d do?” I’m actually a bit irritated that he’d even ask me.

“I’m sorry, but what was I supposed to think. Why is she spouting all this about you and her?”

“She’s psychotic, that’s why. I don’t understand why she thinks what she does, but I know that it’s all bullshit. I kissed her, but that was only because she kissed me. It didn’t mean anything and once I realized what was happening, I pushed her away. I never had sex with her, though. She’s obsessed with me and thinks that I’m going to leaving Annabelle for her. I love Annabelle, so much mate…I can’t lose her because this woman is in her own little dream world.”

“What makes you think you’re going to lose her?”

“If she finds out it’s going to hurt her, and we went through so much when Tammy did what she did. She won’t take it well and I can’t tell her. I just can’t.” The bartender places the drinks down on and tray in front of us and Karl takes his beer and chugs down half. He wipes the foam from his mouth.

“Well, you’re in a bit of a pickle, mate. What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to fire Maddison and hopefully make her leave and disappear out of our life before she can cause any damage.” I sip my beer.

“I won’t say anything mate even though Tracy will kill me if this ever gets out.” He tries to smile, but I know I’m putting him in an awkward position.

“Thanks, mate.”

“I have to say, though…Maddison isn’t going to go quietly. You might have to prepare yourself that this secret of yours might end up coming out anyway. If she can think what she thinks and believes it, then she isn’t going to care about telling Annabelle. Maybe it might be better coming from you because if it comes from Maddison then it’s going to be a lot more than what actually happened.” He grabs his beer and Tracy’s cocktail and makes his way back to the table leaving me at the bar.

I’m not sure what to do and I’m beginning to think that Karl might be right.
I have to tell her
. It’s the only way for Annabelle to know the truth and not some bullshit from someone who wants to cause trouble. I’ll tell her when we get home. I don’t wish to spoil this night and we’re going home tomorrow morning, so telling her at home will be the right time. Away from everyone and especially away from her. For now, I’m going to try and enjoy the rest of the night with my gorgeous wife. I plaster on a smile and take mine and Annabelle’s drinks back to the table. I try to put on a front, but inside I’m a bag of nerves and scared of what will happen to our relationship.

I’ve spent most of the night pacing back and forth on this stupid, annoying, calm, perfect beach. I’m beginning to hate this place so much and I’m looking forward to going home. I went with Maddison to the Fisherman’s Bar, but my heart wasn’t in it. All I could think about was Lily and the argument we’d had on the beach. She’s such a bitch sometimes and so grumpy it’s unbelievable, but if I’m honest she’s gotten under my skin. I don’t know how, and I’m not sure why after the way she treats me, but she’s there in my heart and in my soul. I’m so confused about Lily and Maddison.