“Yep. Good plan.” I roll my lips together to hide a smile and toss the used tissues in the trash bin under the vanity. Since she’s still frozen in shock, I can’t walk past her, and she doesn’t seem to want to squeeze past me either, so I open the cupboard. This is where she’s stashed her things, and, well, it’s within arm’s reach. “Small, medium, large…or supersize? We all know size matters.”
“Tristan!”
Oh,thatticked her off, or at least zapped her out of her stupor.
Lexi finally drops her hands. “Do you mind? Now that you’redone?” She is blushing so hard I want to pull her into my arms, hide her face in my neck, and laugh at the situation together. I’m not half as embarrassed as she seems to be. I mean, shit, jerking off happens. A lot. It would happen even more if she was a regular—and willing—voyeur, for her evident pleasure.
“Who says I’m done?”
“Oh, fuck off.” Her hand lands on my chest and she pushes me out of the way. “You need a shower.”
“I do.” I trap her hand with my own, laughing, letting her feel my heart’s frantic beating, if nothing else will get through to her. This seems like an intersection of sorts for us. “Care to join me?”
“Join you?” She gasps as she pushes, but I hold strong. “I have a meeting, my period just started out of nowhere, and… And I just saw my fake fiancé jerk off! And now you want me in the shower?”
“If you want to put it so directly,yes. Because I’m not done, and clearly you need to blow off some steam. I can help with that, you know.” I bet that’s a fake period. Someone’s trying to locate a missing toy. Either way, I’m happy to help her out.
The blush is back in full force. “Yes, I need to blow off some steam! Thanks toyou! But I’m not blowing anything else! And not in the shower! Not with you!”
“Wow. Don’t let this get out of hand. I’m just teasing you, babes.” Her eyes shoot daggers, and I bite down on my smirk. “God, Lexi, you shouldn’t make it so easy to get under your skin.” I let go of her, and she shows me her back as she starts digging in the cupboard, muttering curses under her breath. “There’s a little storm cloud right there, all right. With lightning bolts and all.” I point and circle my finger just above her head as her eyes catch mine in the mirror. Then I lean closer to where my lips should start a rush of goosebumps down her neck to those perkytits I’m so desperate to fondle, and whisper in her ear, “Don’t get wet now, babes.”
Before she can turn around and give me a well-deserved punch, I stalk off to the closet to get some clothes for the day and protect my treasure.Finders keepers. When she stomps past seconds later, her face is a picture of befuddled, frustrated annoyance.
“Miss you already, babes!” I call after her, unable to stop myself. I have officially gone off the rails. This time I’m rewarded with a double flip-off that basically makes my day.
Chapter Twenty
LEXI
The point of coming to Ne’emba was to have fewer problems. Two weeks in, and now I have more than ever before. Not only do I have a magic wand MIA, I’ve also been stunned by Tristan Martinelli’s version of the real deal. I’m still flustered, and it’s been four hours since I walked in on him.
The visual of him, bare-chested, all tensed-up muscle as he held himself in check, that tanned hand gripping the vanity, and then…God. I bite my lip. Epic lady porn. I’ve never seen anything like it.
Making a coherent sentence at that point was a tall order, and then he brushed over the whole intimate affair and had the audacity to invite me to shower with him as a joke? I swallow and bite my lip harder, trying not to squirm in my seat. Tristan’s invitation to have a fun time was maybe meant to tease me, but his honesty about what he wants took me by surprise.
He hadn’t wanted me five years ago, but now… Many a truth is spoken in jest.
Worst part is, if it weren’t for my period, I would’ve stepped right into that shower without thinking twice. The desert-dryweeks and the months we still need to spend together on this island stretch out in front of me. There’s no way we’re going to hold out at this rate. Human nature is going to be my Achilles heel.
And then he said hemissed me already. I’ve never been annoyed with a guy to the point that I want to physically wrestle him. But that’s where I am, and it’s both a fun and ridiculous idea, because Tristan’s tall and built and would let me toy with him for the fun of it. And then he’d flip me over and pin me down in a second with his thigh pressingright there. I’m out of breath just thinking of it.
This morning was a flashback to the Tristan I knew long ago—playful and full of jokes, except now they’re thick with innuendos, or even worse, including no innuendos whatsoever. For some reason, the way he wanted to make light of the situation riled me up even more, because it put him in that space where I don’t need him to be: the space where I fall in love with him again. And again.
I’m staring at my computer screen, wondering how to deal with whatever comes next.
How to look him in the eye after?—
My phone beeps with a string of messages and plucks me out of my thoughts. As I reach for it, I meet Jem’s gaze where she’s studying me. She doesn’t say anything, but she doesn’t have to.You’re on the clock, honey, and your private life has no place at work.
She can fuck off already. I’m hardly ever on my phone. Ever since my responses to friends and family have ground to a halt, what with the time difference and work, people have given up on me. Not Tessa though. It must be really late for her to message me now.
Tessa
Third day of filming and today I had to shoot the same freaking scene twenty times.
Twenty times!!
Fuckit girl, I sucked sooo bad. I’ve never felt so dumb in my life. By the end of it, I bet they regret giving me the role.
