‘That’s a pity.’
He laughed.
‘Wow, I thought that flip was funny. But damn, I didn’t expect her to put on a show!’ cackled Holly from the side, and Ellie’s stomach churned.
‘Shut it,’ hissed Savannah, and then louder she asked, ‘Are you okay, Ellie?’
Ellie swallowed the bile rising in her throat and shook her head. ‘Not really…’ She turned her head to whisper to Alex. ‘You know what? I think I’d like to go inside for lunch.’
‘No problem.’
‘Maybe I should go eat in our room. For the rest of the day or, like, for ever.’
Chapter Twenty-Four
Alex had taken Ellie back to their room, where she could lick her wounds. After changing out of her bikini she’d thrown it in the bathroom bin, but he’d insisted on fishing it out and hanging it up to dry. There was no way he’d let her get rid of something she’d looked so stunning in. He’d managed to convince her by pointing out that she only had to double-knot the ties in future.
‘More like triple,’ she’d grumbled, flopping on the bed and staring up at the ceiling with a miserable expression.
‘I’ll go fix you some lunch,’ he said, and left quietly, so she could have some time to think. She was obviously embarrassed and shaken up by the lilo accident. Alex made his way downstairs feeling a little guilty that he’d been so turned on by her accidental flashing. But…Man, she has a great ass.
All plump and round, something he could really grab hold of in bed. He flushed at his wayward thoughts. Seeing Ellie in her bikini today had really pushed all of his buttons. She was gorgeous already, but put her curvaceous hourglass in a tiny bikini and she became a goddess. He’d spent most of the day staring intently into her face to avoid another erection.
He swallowed the knot in his throat. His attraction to her was getting out of control.
Dare he take it any further?More than once he’d caught her looking at him with similar desire, and they were already good friends. Could the natural progression to a romantic relationship be the perfect solution for both of them?
But she’d told him at the start she wasn’t ready to date again, and they’d made a deal. There was only the wedding and then a couple of days left in the Bahamas before they went home. Itwould be wiser to wait, to see how it changed when they were away from the romance and drama of the islands.
He began to rummage through the fridge helpfully labelledlunch. A variety of sandwiches, salads and fruit platters were waiting inside for anyone who wanted them.
‘How’s Ellie?’ asked Savannah, and the slice of watermelon Alex was about to take a bite of stopped inches from his mouth. He turned towards her, uncertain.
To be fair, he reminded himself, Savannah had been nothing but kind to Ellie since she’d arrived. Unfortunately, he couldn’t say the same thing about his own manners towards his ex.
‘She’s fine. A little embarrassed about mooning you all, but she’ll get over it. I think she’d like to pretend it never happened – could you tell the others?’
‘No problem,’ she said firmly. ‘Consider it done.’
‘Thanks.’
He thought she’d leave then, but she hovered around, watching him as he plated up lunch for him and Ellie. For once, he didn’t mind her presence; it didn’t prick at his skin as it might have done before. But it was still a little odd. He waited, giving her the space to speak if she wanted to.
‘Alex, I’m sorry,’ she finally said, her voice hushed and fragile.
‘It’s fine.’
‘But you’ve never let me explain.’ She rushed the words as if a dam had been broken between them and she was scared to miss her opportunity to speak.
‘I said, it’s fine,’ he said with a sigh, grabbing the tray of snacks and heading towards the door. Savannah’s fingers grabbed his arm and stalled him.
‘It’s not fine, and I’m sorry for that. Please don’t blame Liam. It was my fault. I told him that things were over between us… and they were, weren’t they? We’d not seen each other in over two months, barely talked, and when we did, we didn’t havemuch to say to each other. We were never suited and, well, I presumed you’d moved on and not told me.’
‘We never broke up!’ snapped Alex, frustrated that they were only now having this conversation. He took a deep breath, before adding more calmly, ‘We never even talked about breaking up. You cheated on me, Savannah. And with mybrotherof all people. I know I wasn’t the best boyfriend, but I didn’t deserve the lies. I didn’t deserve all of this only a few months later!’ He threw his hands wide as if he could describe the effect all their plans had had on him.
Savannah winced. ‘We had to improve the narrative. A wedding was the perfect distraction.’
Narrative… distraction…he’d heard those words before. Were all of their lives smoke and mirrors?
