“You’re telling me. She once put chewing gum in my hair because I bumped her when she was holding one and it fell in the dirt. The worst part was, when Mum found out, I was the one in trouble for making Mia cry. She didn’t even care that I had to have a chunk of hair chopped out to get the purple gum out.”
“Are you still bitching about that?” Mia sighed, squatting down and grabbing a bottle of water from the cooler.
“I lost a chunk of my hair!”
“I lost my custard tart!”
“Girls!” Zoe reprimanded. “It was years ago. Time to move on.”
“Yeah,” Mia added. I wish I had something I could throw at her. Anything to wipe the smugness from her face. She was my best friend, my sister, my confidant. The one person in the world I could tell my secrets to and know that without a doubt, they’d never be repeated. But right now, right now I wanted to strangle the life out of her skinny neck.
Noticing sets of eyes firmly fixed on me, I gave up the fight. It wasn’t worth it. It’d been years ago. Time to get over it. We’d both lived another lifetime since then.
“And Julia here, she works part time with Derek. She takes care of all the paperwork and admin stuff. Basically she is the one that keeps the station running. Do not tell Derek I said that.” Mia pointed directly at me.
“Don’t tell Derek what?”
“Shit!” Mia spun around, slack jawed. She’d been sprung.
I watched with delight as Mia slowly turned and came face to face with her fiancé. His face was an incredible combination of arrogance and amusement. Mia attempted to step backwards, but Derek was quicker, grabbing her and pulling her against him. “Don’t tell Derek what, Mia?” his voice was gravelly and deep.
“Nothing, darling,” she denied, fluttering her eyelashes at him.
He sucked in a deep breath. “Mia…why don’t I believe you?”
“Trust issues?” I suggested.
I hadn’t meant to say anything. I should have kept my mouth shut. I knew it the moment I said it, but I couldn’t help myself. It was too easy. Derek was so much fun to get all riled up. Especially when he was on edge, and Mia, my tiny pixie sister, had to try and calm him back down. Watching the big bad cop being tamed by Tinkerbell. Priceless.
Derek turned to me. “So Josie, whatcha doing?”
“Enjoying the view?”
“The view, hey?”
“Yep. It’s gorgeous.”
“Sure it is.” Derek winked at me, dropped a kiss on Mia’s cheek, and grabbed a couple of water bottles from the cooler before making his way back down the hill where the others were waiting for him.
It was almost as if we all had the same thought at the same moment. As soon as he’d moved out of hearing distance, the giggles started. I laughed so hard my sides ached and I was seriously worried if I didn’t get myself under control soon I’d have a bigger, more embarrassing problem on my hands. Since giving birth to Matilda, my bladder control was nothing like it used to be, and the idea of peeing myself wasn’t just an obscure possibility, but a very real concern.
Down below us, I heard the rev of the engine as the boat started up. A few piled in, Derek behind the wheel, and a moment later they were off. From our viewpoint we could hear the cheering and their unique brand of encouragement echoing across the vastness. Other than the hum of the engine and the deep throaty laughter, it was silent and peaceful.
Ignoring the world again, I turned my attention back to my book. My latest book boyfriend was calling. At least he was everything I wanted. Sweet, sexy, and as alpha as they came. Until recently I’d never been into that sort of guy, the dominating, bossy, arrogant persona with a heart of gold buried underneath, but now, now I couldn’t get enough of them. If only they existed in real life. With a heavy sigh, I laid back.
“Josie! Josie! Wake up!”
Forcing my eyelids open was harder than I thought. I hadn’t meant to fall asleep, it just kinda happened. I was warm and comfortable and it was just too easy. And the dream. Let’s just say, I hoped Mia woke me before she heard me moaning. The image of that perfect back and tattoo I was dying to trace with my tongue lingered in my mind longer than it should have.
“What?” I groaned as I forced myself upright.
The moment I did I regretted crashing. The ache in my shoulders was now amplified and every single piece of my body was in agony. Note to self—sleeping on the ground is not the best idea.
“Come on! We’re going to go down and cool off for a bit.”
Mia was practically bouncing where she stood. She loved this sort of shit. Me, I’d prefer to fade in the background and just be left alone. Alone and quiet, that was my dream life.
“Great! Have a good time. I’ll stay here and mind the stuff,” I dodged as I found my feet and wandered over to the table. Snagging a grape, I bit into it and was instantly ravenous. Grabbing the bunch, I headed back towards my towel, but I was accosted on both sides. With an arm wrapped around each of mine, Zoe and Mia frogmarched me to the water’s edge.
