A Complicated Summer of Love (Complicated Love Series #3) (2 page)

The volleyball game was really awesome, but we didn’t win. Even though we had all the bravado and we kept digging at the guys all through the game, we realized that we don’t really know much about volleyball. But what we do know now is that we are rubbish at it. I thought it would be a great way to get Tracy and Karl doing things together, instead of just gazing longingly at each other and doing these silly waves whenever they are caught staring at each other. They both need a kick in the butt. I know they deserve to be together, and I
will
make sure that happens. I am aware that it’s none of my business, but it frustrates me that they’re so good together. Unfortunately, Tracy’s insecurities are stopping them from being happy. If I have anything to do with it, they will be together by the end of this holiday.

It’s evening and I’m standing outside our bungalow looking out over the beautiful, shimmering blue sea. A pair of strong arms wrap around me and I know instantly who it is. I sink against his chest and it feels so right here in his arms.

“It really is gorgeous here, isn’t it?”

“It sure is, but not as gorgeous as you.”

He always knows what to say and my heart flutters with the love I feel for him.

“You’re such a sweetie. I’m lucky that I met you, Joshua. I love you.” He spins me around to face him and he cups my cheek.

“I’m the lucky one. I love you so much, and you and Ella mean the world to me. I couldn’t ask for a better life.” He suddenly frowns. “I’m sorry for not spending enough time with you and Ella lately. I have been really busy at work and I do feel guilty, but I’m glad we’re having this holiday to get us back on track.” I smile feeling my heart swell. Standing on my tip toes, I plant a kiss on his lips. I go to pull away, but he grabs me and slams his lips back to mine. He nips my lips, he knows it drives me wild when he does that. He coaxes me to open my mouth and he plunges his tongue inside. He massages my tongue with his and then he pulls me closer. His hand travels down to my ass and he squeezes every time he groans. He’s getting me all hot and bothered, and I feel a tingling starting between my legs.

“Joshua…I have missed you,” I glide my hands up and down his back while he pushes me against the bungalow wall. I’m giddy with excitement that this is it. I’m finally going to scratch this itch I’ve had for ages. Joshua has been so busy and I was completely horny all the time.
All these thoughts were going through my mind about whether he was cheating on me, or maybe he didn’t find me attractive anymore.
This was part of the reason why I wanted this holiday. I wanted to get back what we had before life got in the way, and I’m so happy that we’re here enjoying this wonderful place and enjoying each other’s company. I can feel his hard-on rubbing against my leg, and I’m salivating at the thought of having him inside me. He pulls away and looks me in the eyes. They show me the love and devotion he has for me, and I don’t think I have any doubt left that he still loves and wants me. He gives me a quick peck on the lips.

“Man, it’s been a tiring day. I’m going to get some sleep…do you want to join me?” My face lights up when he asks, but I don’t want to look giddy like a teenager so I try to play it cool and nod my head. He holds out his hand and I place mine in his. He leads me to our bedroom and closes the door behind us.

Thirty minutes later, and I’m lying in this comfortable king sized bed with my husband snoring loudly beside me. It wasn’t the type of night I thought we were going to have.

After we entered the bedroom, he headed to the bathroom and got cleaned up before dressing in his bed shorts. I stood there confused as to what was going on. He hadn’t even looked at me. When he finished getting ready, he looked at me and frowned.

“What are you doing standing there? Aren’t you coming to bed?” I stared open mouthed but instead of yelling or shouting at him, because I was beyond annoyed by how this night was turning out, I grabbed my nightie from my suitcase and headed to the bathroom. I decided since I had been on the beach all day that I would have a shower. I undressed and slid into the shower stall. The water was so refreshing and cool against my skin. I washed my hair with the complimentary strawberry shampoo and it smells absolutely gorgeous. I got out and dried myself before pulling on my nightie. I brushed my hair and used the hairdryer to dry it thoroughly.

What the hell was this all about?

One minute he was all over me, and the next he was drained and going to bed. I didn’t know what to think and I was so angry at him. I opened the bathroom door and made my way to the bed, slipping under the covers. I turned over toward Joshua to give him a kiss, maybe I can entice him to give me what I want. What I didn’t expect was to turn over and find Joshua asleep.

For a moment, I look at him and smile because he seems so peaceful. I love him so much and I hate sounding like such a needy woman, but I want sex with my husband. I want to have that intimacy with him again. It seems like forever since we’ve been together like that and I’m angry that he has shunned me like this. I roll over onto my back and face the ceiling. This is going to be a long night because I’m angry at him for the way tonight has played out. I just hope that the rest of the holiday goes better than today.

The first day here has been epic. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed spending my time on the deck outside my bungalow reading a book. Karl has been off gallivanting with Joshua, Annabelle, and Tracy are on the beach and Lily and Maddison have been sleeping for most of the day. They keep complaining about jet lag. Karl has this stupid notion that he’s going to win Tracy over and I can’t help but find it amusing that he’s so loved up. We’re getting on better now, but I was shocked when he invited me on this holiday. In all honesty, I’m happy that he did because I’ve been very lonely for a long time. I don’t have many friends, and my work at the magazine keeps me busy most of the time. I thought being here around Tracy might be awkward, but it really isn’t and she’s been nothing but nice.

Our friendship is like it always was, and that shows me that we’re more friends than lovers. It’s late evening and it’s so quiet out now, and as I look out to sea it’s pitch black, but the decking is lit up with tall lanterns which casts a beautiful light over everything. I’ve spent most of today on my own, but I do like my own time and my own company. I can hear Lily and Maddison giggling next door. They’ve only just met and they seem to be getting on really well.

Things between Lily and I have been really weird. After that night when Tracy got so wasted that Karl had to take her home, which lead to me taking Lily home, we haven’t seen each other. We did speak a lot that night in the car and she seems like a really good laugh.

She has a great personality, and naturally I can’t help but notice how beautiful she is. She is so tiny and her gorgeous red hair is shiny and looks so silky. Ever since that night I’ve had thoughts of running my fingers through her beautiful hair over and over again. I don’t know why I never asked for her number when I took her home, or why I never tried to see her again, but it’s too late now. I haven’t carried on a conversation with her yet, and every time we are in the same room, she ignores me. I see her glancing at me sometimes, but every time I look at her, she turns away. It’s only day one, and I’m confused by her attitude. I’m not into playing games, so I’m not really interested in trying to make conversation with her if she wants to be like that. It’s kind of immature.

I hear footsteps on the decking and I look up to see Maddison coming towards me. Here’s another woman that blew my breath away when I first met her after getting off the plane. I don’t know much about her because she seems shy, and when I tried speaking to her, she didn’t really say much, basically just gave me one-word answers. She’s absolutely stunning with curly brown hair and this cute little button nose. She has an amazing smile, and I’d love to speak to her more. She dresses differently to other women. She doesn’t wear revealing clothes and she always looks classy and sophisticated in everything she wears. I can’t help but check her out as she’s walking toward me swaying her hips. She looks so stunning in the low light, but I’m feeling out of sorts when my mind starts picturing Lily. Her gorgeous red hair swinging back and forth as she walks toward me. They’re both entirely different women.

“Hey, Brandon.” Maddison plops down in a chair next to me. “What are you up to?” She smiles shyly.

“Nothing much. I just wanted to chill for a bit today. I’m still tired from the flight, so I thought sitting around with a good book was a great relaxer.”

“Sounds bliss. What are you reading?” I smile and show her the cover.

“It’s called
The Accident
.”

“Oh, sounds interesting. I might have to check it out sometime. I’m reading
The Girl on the Train
and I’m so obsessed with it. I find it impossible to put it down.” She laughs a gorgeous laugh.

“I can’t say I’ve read that, but I might have to check it out.” I smile and she smiles back at me. This is the longest we’ve ever spoken.

“What are you doing tomorrow? Lily doesn’t seem to know what she wants to do, and I’m not sure what the two couples are doing.”

“Two couples?” I laugh.

“Yeah. You know…Annabelle and Joshua and Tracy and Karl. I know Karl and Tracy aren’t together, but I know it’s only a matter of time before they are as loved up as Annabelle and Joshua.” She does have a point I guess. We all know it’s going to happen, but I think the only person that doesn’t know is Tracy.

“I’m not sure what to do tomorrow, really. Why do you have something in mind?” I ask. She bites her bottom lip nervously while she seems to be choosing her words carefully.

“Well, I was wondering if you want to come on a tour with me? There’s one tomorrow and it’s for the whole day. We would have to get on a small boat to take us to Kuda Bandos, which is a small island where we could have a picnic and maybe do some sunbathing or water sports if you fancy it…”

It sounds like it could be fun, but before I can say anything, she’s already trying to take back her offer.

“You know what, it seems like a silly idea. We don’t really know each other, and maybe I shouldn’t have said anything…”

I place my hand on her arm to stop her from babbling. “It seems like a great idea, Maddison. I would be honored.” She smiles a really dazzling smile and she appears to have relaxed a little.

“Great…I can’t wait,” she whispers quietly so I only just hear her.

“There you are, girl! I wondered where you scurried off to.” Lilly comes bouncing toward her before perching down on the arm of Maddison’s chair. “What are you two out here talking about?” I look at Maddison and she’s looking down twiddling with her fingers, so I answer for her.

“We were just talking, mainly about the books we’re reading.”

Lily huffs. “How boring! You are here in the Maldives and you're sitting around discussing the book you’re currently reading. My God…lame!” She fakes a yawn. “Let’s do something fun. Tracy has already gone to bed, and I’m not sure where Karl is. I think he went to bed too. They have been playing volleyball this afternoon. Annabelle and Joshua also headed off to bed, so it’s just the three of us.” Maddison and I glance at each other.

“Okay,” I say. “What do you have in mind?” She looks at us both before she smirks.

“Let’s play spin the bottle!” She squeals and claps her hands together. I can’t help but think she’s completely crackers, but utterly gorgeous. Her smile is infectious and she’s so upbeat that you could say she’s a live wire. She’s always ready to have fun. Maddison doesn’t look happy with Lily’s suggestion.

“Come on…that’s a girly game for teenagers.” She crosses her arms and looks slightly embarrassed that Lily has even mentioned playing spin the bottle.

“So what? It’ll be fun. Let’s have a few drinks and have some fun!” She bounces and I’m slightly concerned that maybe she’s taken something because this amount of energy can’t be normal.

I sigh and decide one game won’t hurt. “Okay…I’m in.” She squeals and claps her hands before strutting off toward her bungalow.

“Awesome. I’ll go in and get us some beverages and an empty bottle.” Lily’s gone before we can say anything more.

“Well, this is going to be fun.” Maddison giggles and I smile at her.

“Yeah…” She looks down and won’t look me in the eyes. She’d finally relaxed around me when we were talking, but now she seems nervous again. Lily comes back with an empty bottle and two bottles of rose wine and some beers.

“Are you ready, guys? Let’s play!” She places the bottle on the table and we all sit around it. “Right, if the bottle lands on you, you can choose either truth or dare. It will be much more fun than just kissing each other even though that would be fun too.” She bats her eyelashes but then laughs. “The person who spins the bottle will choose the truth or dare for the person it lands on. Does that make sense?” We both nod our heads and Lily smirks before spinning the bottle.

This might just end up being a fun night.

The night is going really well. I know I’ve had too much wine, but I’m trying to control my jealousy at seeing Brandon and Maddison chatting alone. They looked so comfortable together and they have similar interests. To find out that they have been talking about books of all things has me raging with jealousy. I hate feeling like this, but I can’t seem to reel it in.

When we were back in Los Angeles and he took me home after Tracy got wasted, we spoke in the car and I loved talking to him about anything. He’s completely different to the men I usually go for because he’s quiet, nerdy, and I hate that he seems to know more than me. I feel like I don’t measure up, and sometimes he says things that I don’t understand or don’t know about. So I find it hard to carry on a long conversation with him. He was kind, though, even though he didn’t know me. He asked me questions about myself and made me laugh, he was so charming and I felt my heart skip a beat. He made me feel things that I never thought I was capable of feeling, and I’m not going to lie I love that feeling.

Coming on this holiday was a chance to get to know the man that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about since I met him. I never saw him again after he dropped me off at my place that night, but it didn’t keep me from dreaming and fantasizing about seeing him again. I didn’t realize that Maddison was coming on this holiday too. Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against the woman, but I hate she’s so like Brandon. We’ve only been here a day and they seem to be getting on like a house on fire. I hate it so much that my stomach is always in knots when I watch them together. This is why I needed to come outside and see if I could get them to participate in something. I don’t want them to get to know one another too well, so I racked my brain for something to do.

I kind of feel stupid coming up with spin the bottle, but at least I put a spin on it with the truth or dare part. I go inside to get some beverages, I think I’m going to need some liquor in me for this game. We sit around a table on the decking and I place the empty bottle in the middle on its side. I fill mine and Maddison’s glasses with wine and pass a beer to Brandon, taking a large gulp from my glass. I see Brandon and Maddison sharing secretive smiles. I’m dreading this night now, and I’m not sure how it’s going to play out.