Shooting Mia the dirtiest look I had in my arsenal, I noticed she’d stripped off down to her bikini. There was nothing of her, the bitch. She had the smallest, perkiest boobs known to man, and her stomach was as flat as a board. The way her red string bikini sat made it look like it was made for her. And on my other side, Zoe with her long brown hair, wore a navy bikini covered with fat white spots and a towel draped around her hips. She too looked like she’d just stepped from the pages of a magazine. She was every guy’s wet dream. All curves and attitude.
Up ahead I spied Payton and Julia and wanted to throw up. Julia, true to Barbie’s style, sported what I think was supposed to be a pink string bikini, but it looked about two sizes too small. The triangles which should have been covering her over-sized, over-inflated boobs barely covered her nipples. In all honesty, I was preparing myself for a nip-slip at any moment. And Payton, Payton just made me want to sit her down and force feed her, her own damn pastries. A baker should not look like that. Her tankini and short board shorts looked perfect. She didn’t look like she was trying, and I think that’s what pissed me off the most. For me to look half decent it took a hell of a lot of effort, and Payton, well, she looked stunning. And it looked effortless.
“Well, ladies, we going in?” Zoe asked as she kicked off her thongs, dropped her towel, and strode confidently towards the water.
“Have fun!” I encouraged, stepping backwards and plonking my fat ass on the sand. There was no way I was stripping down to my bathing suit. Not now. Not after seeing the others in theirs. I already hated my fat ass and thunder thighs, I didn’t need to display them so others would be sick too.
I watched as Zoe duck dived into the water before coming back up and pushing her long hair off her face. It looked cool and refreshing, and I was jealous as all hell. I wanted to go in. It was like a freaking sauna sitting out here. There wasn’t a breath of wind, the sun was high in the sky beating down on us, and my tank top was clinging to my every curve like a second skin.
Ten minutes later and the others were wading about, floating, and flicking water at each other. I was dying to be in there with them, but with this many people around, there was no way I was peeling my shorts off and joining them. No one wanted to see that. Not even me.
“Why aren’t you in there with them?” a seductive voice asked as a warm shoulder nudged mine.
Turning around, I got caught in a steely gaze. It took a moment…okay, it took too long for me to stop choking on my tongue at the sight of a shirtless Nate beside me before I could form actual words.
“Didn’t feel like it,” I lied quickly.
“Bullshit!”
“Excuse me?” I felt my whole body stiffen. How dare he call bullshit on me. He didn’t know me. He had no fucking idea who I was or what I wanted. The presumptive asshole.
“Did I not make myself clear, Josie? I called bullshit. You’re dying to be in there with them. I can see it written all over your pretty little face. The only thing I can’t figure out is, what’s stopping you?”
“Nothing. I don’t want to go in. That’s all.”
“Like I said, bullshit. It’s hot as hell out here and I can see your skin burning. Why don’t you just take a dip? Cool off?”
This guy was a prick. And he was pissing me off. If I didn’t want to go swimming, that was my business. Not his. Fuck! He didn’t even know me.
“What part of ‘I don’t want to’ don’t you understand?”
He smirked at me. He fucking smirked at me. As if I weren’t hot enough from the sun beating down on me, now I was burning with rage at that damn smirk. The arrogant, egotistical…“Whoa!” Before I had a chance to finish my thought, I was lifted up and being carried towards the sparkling water.
“What the fuck!” Wriggling in my abductor’s arms, I came face to face with Derek. Asshole thought he was so fucking hilarious. “Derek! Put me down, or so help me god, I will cut your balls off in your sleep.”
“You wouldn’t…”
“Want to try me?” I dared him.
An agonizing pained expression crossed his face as he set me down in the ankle deep water.
“That’s what I thought,” I said smugly, folding my arms across my chest.
“You’re a mean, mean woman, Josie!” Derek declared as he strode into the water backwards, leaving me with a wicked wink and a smile.
The water was perfect. Even just being ankle deep was enough. It was refreshing and soothing. The longing to dive in was almost enough to have me stripping out of my clothes and doing just that. Thankfully, I didn’t lose my head and I hung on to reality. Just. Within minutes the once calm water was like a washing machine as the guys jumped in and started splashing about.
“He might be afraid of you, but I’m not,” a warm breath whispered into my ear, caressing my neck. My eyes closed involuntary and my head tilted back. I didn’t want to look who it was. I didn’t want to be shattered. Let me live in my imagination. But this was me. And nothing in my life ever went right. With the exception of Matilda, my life was one giant clusterfuck. Why should today be any different?
“Incoming!” The deep, masculine and sexy as hell voice called out barely a breath before I was once again manhandled off my feet and carried out into the water, only to be unceremoniously dumped in the thigh high water.
After going under, I came up spluttering and fuming. Turning on the idiot responsible, I came face to chest with Nate. He’d obviously gone under as well, because his wide chest was covered in beading water that made my mouth water, and the craving to lick the salty water away was all-consuming. Suddenly I was grateful for the water surrounding me to cool my raging hormones. I noticed the tattoo on his chest and realised he was the one I’d been drooling over from afar.
“Fuck!” I admonished myself. Why couldn’t it have been someone else? Anyone else. No, I had to go develop a crush on Nate. The one person I couldn’t have a crush on. Needing a moment to myself to deal with my stupidity, I dove beneath the water and kicked away.
It wasn’t much fun swimming in denim and a tank top. Figuring I was safe in the water, I swam to the shallows and peeled the wet clothes from my body. While I was in the water, no one would see my fat ass or flabby belly. Getting out would be another issue, but I’d deal with that later on. First things first. Revenge.
