Vacation (5 page)

"Sex?" She turned her attention
back to me. "Was sex on my list?"

Her cheeks colored, and I had no doubt
that mine did as well. It was getting harder to breathe, but I had my facade
locked into place. Being a businessman for the last two and half years had
taught me good and well how to keep up a poker face. There was no way I was
letting her know just how badly she affected me.

Beautiful, smart and cheeky as hell?

She was scoring a hundred and fifty in my
book. Too bad the scale only went to ten.

Chapter
5

Vivian

Sex? I didn't remember mentioning sex. I
wasn't the type of girl who would casually talk about sex with a random guy.
Hell, I didn't even talk about sex with Casey.

I took a long drink from my glass and
watched him, trying to figure out how the hell I was going to backtrack enough
to get us out of what could possibly become an awkward conversation.

"I assumed by affair you meant
sex." He shrugged and sat his glass down before pulling out his phone.
"Did you mean something else?"

I was more than grateful when he started
to thumb through his contacts. He had to be as mortified as I felt, though we
were both somehow playing it off quite well.

"Oh, yeah. My first love is
food." I let out a soft laugh and glanced back out at the clouds, enjoying
the way the sun played across the sky. "I dream of being a food critic,
remember?"

"I like that, actually." He gave
me a serious look.

I glanced over at him and smiled before
faking a yawn. "I'm going to take a short nap. Wake me if I need to help
you with your oxygen mask."

His eyes moved across my face as he gave
me a cute smile. "I'll do just that. Sleep well."

Closing my eyes, I leaned back and enjoyed
the subtle tones of his cologne, letting my mind slip into how nice it would be
to have been with a man like him for the week. He seemed to have his shit
together. That he was incredibly good-looking and a bit funny didn't hurt too
much. Some part of me wanted to stay up and talk his ear off, learning more
about him, and divulging my secrets, but we would get to the part where I was
cheated on, without a doubt. He would do as most people did and show me pity. I
wasn't interested.

Sleep pulled me under, and waking to the
sound of his voice and the gentle brush of his fingers along my arm startled
me.

"Viv, we're here." He smiled and
unbuckled his seatbelt before rolling his shoulders and standing. "You
purr when you sleep. Has anyone ever told you that?"

Warmth covered my cheeks and I nodded.
"My brothers make fun of me. My nickname is Kat at home for that reason.
Don't tell anyone on me. You promise?"

He chuckled. "Not for a million
dollars. It was nice to meet you, pretty girl. Maybe fate will kick us back
together again for a drink while you're here." His eyebrow lifted.

"Why wait on fate?" Casey moved
up behind him. "Give him your number, Viv. We could use a handsome decoy
if things go south sometime during the week."

"Don't be silly. He's here on
business, no doubt." I turned my attention back to Easton and stood to
move out into the aisle.

"I am here on business, but I'll take
your number and we can have a drink before you leave to head back home. I
assume New York is home for you girls?" He glanced back at Casey, giving
me a lovely view of his yummy neck. I could spend hours brushing my nose along
it, nipping and kissing at it.
Stop it.
Now.

"Yeah. We're New York City born and
bred." Casey reached for his phone. "I'll put her number in your
phone."

"You don't have to do that. We'll be
fine." I slipped my hands into my pockets as Easton turned his dark green
gaze back toward me, stealing my breath for a moment.

"Maybe I won't be fine." He
wagged his eyebrows and took his phone back from Casey as first class started
to get off the plane. "Great to meet you both. Have fun in Miami and
remember what I said. No dark alleys, risk-taker."

I rolled my eyes before turning to Casey,
who moved into my seat and pushed me back a little. Easton turned and walked
toward the front of the plane as my best friend poked me in the side.

"Spill. What happened?" She
glanced over her shoulder and let out a sound of appreciation. "God, he's
so damn fine. I hope he calls. If you don't want him, I call dibs."

I laughed. "He's all yours. I'm not
interested in anyone that good looking. If he's single, there is a reason for
it."

"Maybe he's just not found the right
woman?" Casey reached out and tugged on the strap of my purse as she moved
back into the aisle. “Let's get out of here. I want to get the rental car and
get to the resort. We're going to make memories and have one of the best weeks
of our lives."

"You think?" I moved in behind
her as a jolt of excitement raced through me. Maybe there was more to look
forward to than I was contemplating. Just meeting Easton and talking to him on
the flight for a little while was fun, scary, but exhilarating as well.

The flight attendant at the front of the
plane smiled widely at me in a flirtatious manner and nodded. "Have a
great stay. Black's Beach is where you want to be on Thursday night."

"That so?" I asked, being half
pulled off the plane by Casey.

"If you want a wild experience. Don't
miss it." The guy called after me, but I was already too far away to
respond.

"Black's Beach. Is that like the one
in California?" I asked Casey as I repositioned my bag. "The nude
beach?"

"I have no idea, but I'm totally down
with it if you are." She gave me a sideways glance as we walked into the
terminal lobby. The place was crawling with people who seemed to be in a
serious hurry to get somewhere fast.

A woman bumped into my shoulder and sent
me spinning around from the force of it.

"Excuse me?" I mumbled and
turned, getting my bearings and jogging after Casey, who was talking a million
miles a minute to no one.

"So I think we can just hang around
the hotel area tonight until we understand the lay of the land a little bit
better. That okay with you?" She looked over at me.

"Yeah, but I didn't hear a word you
said." I shrugged and pointed toward the car rental check-in. "Over
there."

"I said I was good with the nudie
beach, though the boys are going to all be staring at you. Men love gingers,
especially drop-dead gorgeous ones." She pressed her shoulder against mine
and hit my hip with hers.

"Shut up. I'm just average at
best." I moved to the counter, ignoring her response. She was forever
telling me how pretty I was, but that's simply what best friends were for. It
was part of their job description, and she was good at it – too good, most
days.

After getting the keys to the compact car
we rented for the week, we grabbed our baggage from baggage claim and walked
out into the cool, spring afternoon. I breathed in deep and reached out,
grabbing Casey's shoulder and pulling her to a halt as a cab whipped past us,
the driver honking and flipping us off out the window.

"Nice. Fuck you too, buddy,"
Casey yelled after him before tugging away from my grasp. "Stupid ass. The
crosswalk is for people. People have the right-away."

"Hey, crazy. Over here." I moved
toward the car that's lights lit up as I pressed the key fab. "Easton was
pretty cute wasn't he? I hope we run into a million more guys just like
him."

Casey loved to talk about guys more than
anything else. It seemed no matter what the situation was or how we were
feeling, if I brought up men, she would quickly get back to being her normal,
upbeat self.

"Yeah, he was smoking hot. Now, let's
just hope that he calls you." She reached for the trunk as I popped it.
"What did you guys talk about during the flight?"

"Not much. I slept through most of
it." I put my bag in the back and glanced up at her, already knowing that
I was going to get a look from her.

"What a waste of a great seatmate. I
sat next to Father Time. He was snoring so loud that I honestly thought he
might die any minute." Casey smirked before turning and walking toward the
driver's side door. "I'm disappointed in you. Now, give me the keys and
I'll drive."

"You sure?" I tossed them to her
without a second thought. I hated driving.

"Yeah. Get in and let's go check this
place out. I'm going to give you a pass on not taking advantage of
hottie
business boy, but only this once. Next cute guy who
flirts with you gets some of your attention. Got it?" She got in the car
and turned to pin me with a stare.

I got in and buckled up, ignoring her
until she cleared her throat. "Yeah, I got it. He wasn't my type,
okay?"

"What?" She snorted and started
up the car. "Easton is everyone's type. Black hair and blue eyes, tanned
skin, strong arms, and a flat tummy? He had a great smile too." She let
out a girlie sigh. "And he smelled so good."

"Right, so he's your type.
Getcha
some of that." I pulled out my phone and hid my
disappointment. The only text I had was from Casey before we boarded the
flight. Having focused on nothing but school, her, and Jackson, I was without
too many friends when it was all said and done. I was going to have to right
the wrong when I got back to New York.

I turned to look out the window as we
drove from the airport toward the beachfront.

Casey turned on the radio and I couldn't
help but sing along with her as we rolled down the windows and let the cool air
blow our hair about. I could find relaxation and peace in the middle of the
beach scene, if nothing else. Casey was looking for a party, a good time, but I
was looking for rest and reprieve. I needed to find a bookstore.

"So I heard this place has six gourmet
restaurants." She tapped the steering wheel as we pulled up to the stoplight.

"I know. It's going to be
kick-ass." Excitement raced through me and I took a deep breath, trying to
reset my emotions. I could have a great time. I would make it happen.

"I say we try them all in the first
few days so that we know where to spend the rest of the week eating. You could
even write up some of your critiques and try to submit them to the paper when
we get back home.
Whatcha
think?" Her tone was
hopeful.

"I like it." I ran my fingers
through my hair and smiled as a dark-skinned boy waved at me.

"
Heya
,
beautiful. Want to pull over and come catch some waves with us? It's the
perfect day to make a new friend." He called out to me as Casey started to
pull away.

"Maybe another time?" I called
back and worked to get my hair out of my face.

He pressed both hands to his bare chest
over his heart and looked up to the sky as if heartbroken.

I leaned back in my seat and laughed.
"Is everyone here dramatic?"

"God, I hope so. New Yorkers can be
so focused sometimes that it's hard to crack through their shell of lust toward
success." Casey pointed to the large resort ahead of us that was nuzzled
on the beach. "That's it."

I leaned forward and let my eyes run
across the elaborate structure that seemed to go on for miles. "It's
beautiful. I hope it's filled with more than horny freshman and old
geezers."

"Oh I bet the mix is far and wide,
but we're looking for a specific type of man, or at least I am." She
pulled up to the gate and turned her attention to the good-looking guard as he
moved from his guard stand.

"Hi ladies. Are you staying the week
with us?" He leaned down and pressed his thick forearms to the window
frame as his eyes moved across Casey and then over to me.

"Yes, Sir. We'd not stay anywhere
else." Casey used her bedroom voice, which didn't seem to faze the big guy
too much. I had to stifle a laugh, as I always did around her. She was
inappropriate all the time.

"Good. Visitor parking is over there
to the left, and the check-in has a big white sign that says registration on
it. Make sure you get a schedule of events and try to be at Black's Beach on
Thursday." He moved back, and I couldn't help but lean across Casey to
catch the guy’s attention.

"Why? Someone else mentioned that to
us. What's the big deal?" I couldn't help but appreciate the thickness of
his arms and chest. The gym had to be stained in his sweat no doubt.

"It's something that's better
experienced than explained. Just go if you can, and welcome." He winked at
me and moved back to his guard stand, motioning us through.

"Weird. I want to know what we're
getting ourselves into before we just go over there. It might end up being
roofie
night for the idiot tourists." I sat back in my
seat and let out a frustrated sigh as Casey parked the car.

"I doubt that's the case, but we'll
figure it out. It's only Sunday. We still have a while." She turned and
looked out the back window at the beach as a smile lifted her lips. "This
place is hopping with people, Viv. There is no way in hell we're not going to
find ourselves right in the middle of the party. Look at this place.
Insane."

I got out of the car and turned to let my
eyes scan across the half-dressed bodies that moved about in the gold and white
sand. The sound of the water rushed up to greet me, and the breeze pulled in
the smell of salt water and coconut scented sun-tanning lotion.

I breathed in deeply and closed my eyes.
I'd never tell Casey in a million years that I was far more interested in
partying all by myself instead of with a crowd. I knew my friend well enough to
know that we'd have ten new people around us by nightfall. As long as they
appeared legit, and she promised to keep her phone with her, I'd let her go off
to "party" and I'd find a comfy spot to read and relax. The promise
of such a reprieve left me ready to dump our stuff and commence mingling.