The Honeymoon Prize (7 page)

So quiet and peaceful.

Nowhere to be. No one to worry about. No one to accuse her of stealing her grandmother’s cottage.

A feeling of contentment settled over her. She loved everything about Starfish Island: the
bure,
Mama Lani, the entire resort. Addie lay against her pillow, not tired but wanting to relish in the moment, something she hadn’t felt like doing in . . . years.

Today would be her first full day of vacation. Her first full day with the film crew, too, but she wouldn’t think about them. She would, however, think of Nick, her handsome in-name-only husband. She rolled onto her right side, facing the large, empty place where he would sleep if they were married for real. The covers were messed up, and the pillow had an indention mark.

Nick must have done that before heading to the patio’s day bed last night or first thing this morning. He’d done a good job. Anyone looking at the king-sized bed would assume a couple had slept together. But a kiss on the forehead was the only wedding night action after a spectacular and romantic dinner on the dock.

For the best.

She and Nick were friends, good friends. They might not have spent much time together lately, but they’d picked up without missing a beat—talking, joking, flirting the way they had back in high school. She’d managed to keep her shoes on the entire evening, too, and hadn’t needed carrying. An omen they could pull this off honeymoon-marriage sham? She hoped so.

Things were going so well she would believe almost anything. Naïve? Yes, but this was her vacation on a fantasy island. She was willing to forget reality. Last night, she’d felt sixteen again with a life full of possibilities ahead of her. Nick had made her feel comfortable and pretty. He’d listened when she said she wanted to stay and changed his mind about leaving. This place was paradise.

Humming the theme from Disneyland’s Tiki Room, she sat. The sheet dropped to her lap. Whether their contest entry had been randomly picked or purposely chosen, she no longer cared.

Emily must have known they would have never come if she’d told them about the reality TV show. Way to skirt the issue, but then again, she was an expert at that and one reason she was so good at advertising. Still Addie owed Emily for entering their names into the contest. A honeymoon-between-friends was the perfect start to their in-name-only marriage.

Nick walked from the bathroom area, his hair wet and a towel wrapped low around his hips. “You’re awake.”

You’re almost naked.
She gulped. Nodded.

Wowza.
Her gaze traveled down his muscular chest covered with tattoos to his rock solid abs. He’d had a nice body in high school, but nothing like the awe-inspiring hotness standing in front of her.

Ripped. Cut. She’d run out of adjectives to describe his amazing better-than-an-underwear-model physique before she was ready to stop looking.

Oops. No staring. Nick might get the wrong idea.

Or maybe she would.

Addie fingered the edge of the sheet, wanting to look anywhere but at him, except her gaze kept straying back to his chest, his abs and lower.

“See something you like?”

Busted. Her cheeks warmed. She needed to say something. Fast. But she’d die of embarrassment before admitting being struck by a sudden case of lust due to his killer body. “Isn’t the shower great? I wondered what standing under a waterfall would feel like. Now I know.”

“You should try the real thing. There might be a waterfall or two on the island. I’ll ask.”

She jerked her gaze up to his face, realizing she’d been distracted by his abs again. At least she could own up to what she’d been looking at. “You’ve been working out.”

He stared at her with an interested expression. “Yeah.”

“Ladies must like that.”

“A side benefit. I need to be in shape for my job.”

She fought the urge to cringe. The guy was a bodyguard. Working out was a job requirement. “Right. I knew that.”

What was wrong with her? She hadn’t drunk enough champagne to be buzzed this morning. Lust was one thing, but maybe not dating for years had taken a toll and pushed her over the edge. Gawking over Nick, her friend, in a towel would be proof. The last thing she wanted to be was one of his lovers. No way was she joining that endangered species list.

He raised an eyebrow. “Nice jammies.”

“Part of the new wardrobe.” One of the nightie’s spaghetti straps fell off her shoulder. She pushed the thin white satin ribbon into place. “I have one for each night. A little excessive.”

“Not at all.” A mischievous smile spread across his face. “Looking forward to the bedtime fashion shows.”

His playful tone set off a warning bell in her head. She remembered when they’d been at the beach boogie boarding. Sophomore, no, junior year. Her bikini strap had broken. He’d come to her rescue, but not before he’d gotten a look at her exposed left breast.

She glanced down. The white fabric of her nightie covered her, but was sheer, something she hadn’t realized being so tired last night.

Double oops. She pulled up the sheet to her neck. “I . . .”

“You have nothing to be shy about,” Nick teased. “Don’t forget, I’m your husband. You’re beautiful, and the nightgown is perfect for you.”

Perfect for a bride on her honeymoon to entice her groom. Not perfect for a friend rooming with a friend of the opposite sex. But Nick seemed cool about this. Maybe she shouldn’t be so uptight. They would be living together for the next five years. At some point she would see him in a towel again.

She loosened her grip on the sheet. “Well, I’m your wife. I don’t see you prancing around naked showing off your wares.”

He grabbed onto the edge of towel. “I can remedy that.”

Nick wouldn’t. Oh, yes, he would.

She squeezed her eyes closed and covered her head with the sheet.

He laughed. Of course he would find this funny.

Something thudded against the bamboo floor. The towel? She saw light through the sheet but nothing else. “What was that?”

“My towel.”

Her pulse kicked up a notch. Temptation flared until common sense kicked in. Naked or not, this was still Nick. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Following orders.”

His body might have improved, but his sense of humor was the same. He must be grinning from ear to ear. “I was joking.”

“Sure about that?”

No. Yes. Stop. No second-guessing.
Nick made a habit of getting naked in front of women, and she was a woman, but that didn’t mean . . . “Yes, I’m sure. Are you still naked?”

“Why don’t you find out?”

He was playing with her, teasing, seeing how far he could push her. Part of Addie was amused. The other part imagined him strutting around with nothing on but a smile.

She fanned herself with her hand. “No, thank you.”

“So polite.”

Not exactly. The thoughts running through her head ran more to the naughty side. She swallowed. Maybe leaving the island hadn’t been such a bad idea. “Nick?”

“Hmmm.”

“It’s warm under here.”

“I’m quite comfy.”

Heat rushed up her neck. “I can imagine. I mean . . .”

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing.” Nine days of this would be . . . challenging. “No, there’s something. I think we need, um, ground rules.”

“About?”

“This.”

“What?”

“Nakedness.”

“Not a fan of birthday suits?”

She could tell he was smiling. “I never said that.”

“When was the last time you saw a man naked?”

Addie blew out a puff of air. “A week and a half ago.”

“Living a secret life I know nothing about?”

“Nothing so clandestine or exciting.” Though maybe that was what she needed to keep from overreacting to Nick.

“Gotta give me more than that,” he said.

“It’s nothing.”

“A naked guy is not nothing.”

“Says the naked guy.”

“Tell me.”

Might as well. Maybe he’d take advantage of the time to dress. “After brunch, Emily and I stopped by to watch the surfers. We were standing right next to one guy when he changed out of his wetsuit.”

“Liked what you saw?”

The man was incorrigible. “I’m not going to answer.”

“Did you take any pics?”

“Ewww.”

“You’re right. Not your style. But Emily . . .”

Addie had taken away Emily’s cell phone. Time to get this conversation back on track. Where were they? Oh, right. Ground rules. “An in-name-only, no-sex marriage probably should exclude being naked around each other.”

“Probably?”

Laughter sounded in his voice. No doubt he enjoyed making Addie squirm. He was doing a good job. Not that he could see her under the sheet. “Definitely.”

“Fine, as long as this rule doesn’t keep me from seeing your new jammies each night. Fashion show, remember?”

“Nick . . .”

“Otherwise, nakedness shall be acceptable here. You decide.”

Not much of a decision. She blew out a puff of air. “Fine. You get to see the pajamas.” She’d show him the lingerie on a hanger. He’d left wiggle room for that to be okay. “Now will you get dressed?”

“I’m dressed. Have been for a while.”

She groaned, but kept the sheet over her head. “Really?”

“I’m a guy. Doesn’t take me long. A minute max.”

Addie lowered the sheet to her chin. His royal blue swim trunks intensified the color his eyes. “You could have told me.”

“And miss all the fun of a blushing bride hiding under the covers. No way.”

“You are . . .”

“The best.” He winked. “Get dressed. Mama Lani was setting the table on the patio when I was coming back from my run. Let’s eat then hit the beach. Maybe we can sneak away before Brad and company are up.”

“I wonder what I’m supposed to wear.”

He motioned to his swim trunks. “A matching bikini and cover up are in the bathroom for you.”

“They must think if our clothes match, we do, too.”

“We match. Not romantically, but in other ways, or our friendship would have never lasted this long.”

“I guess.”

“It’s true.” He grinned wryly. “Romantic or not, we are the cutest couple on this island.”

“Not going to let that die.”

“Nope.”

“Even if we’re not a couple.”

“Hey, we’re a couple of good friends. That’s better than two people who will divorce in a year or two and never see each other again.”

“We’ll be divorced in five years,” she half-joked, thinking of the end date to his marriage plan.

“But after the divorce, nothing will change. You and I will still be friends.” His eyes darkened. “Not many married people can say that.”

Not many engaged couples, either. He didn’t have to say the words for her to know he must be thinking about Carrie. Nick had never been one to get serious, but the woman had ruined him for wanting any type of long-term relationship in the future. “Never thought of the end of our fake marriage that way.”

“Lots of ways to spin this.” He sat on the bed. “Today when they’re filming us, we may be asked to do things you’re not comfortable doing with me. If that’s the case, let me know. We’ll figure something out.”

“And if we can’t . . .”

“We suck it up and do our best.”

“That’s what I was afraid you’d say.”

Nick touched her shoulder, his hand warm against her skin. “Listen, no matter what happens in front of the camera, nothing changes between us. We’re friends, Addie. Single, married, divorced. No matter what, we’ll always be friends. No stupid reality TV show is going to change that.”

“Good, because I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“Right back at you, kiddo. I’m not going anywhere. You’re stuck with me.”

His words wrapped around her heart like a bear hug, making her feel like she was part of a family again. And in a way she was, her and Nick. And though she worried what Brad and the film crew would want them to do, she had a feeling this island adventure would only strengthen their friendship.

W
e’ll always befriends. No stupid reality TV show is going to change that.

Three hours later, standing in waist deep water in a secluded cove with the film crew on a dinghy ten feet away, Nick believed the words whole-heartedly. But he wondered if the tiny scraps of blue fabric someone decided to call a bikini might change everything.

Sweat beaded on the back of his neck. If he liked seeing Addie in a swimsuit back in high school, he loved seeing her now.

Hot. Hot. Hot.

He wasn’t talking air temperature.

She frolicked twenty feet from him, her breasts jiggling, her skin wet, her luscious curves barely covered. “Having fun?”

If he ignored the urge to tear the itty-bitty bikini off Addie and pretended the film crew didn’t exist, he’d be having a blast. But she was all bubbly and smiles. No reason to ruin her fun. “Oh, yeah. How about you?”

She nodded, then pushed her wet hair off her face. She’d ditched her ponytail again. Good. He much preferred her hair worn loose, past her shoulders. “Being watched and filmed is creepy, but at least we aren’t having to wear microphones.”

Nick knew what she meant. The filming this morning had them paddleboarding to the cove while wearing microphones to capture their conversation. “Dunking wearing mikes would be dangerous.”