“I’m done.” I smile tightly, stepping away from the table.
“Alright, I’ll get this to go in case you want it later.” He waves the waitress over.
I stand near the door, ready to leave, while Marlen settles things with the waitress. I hear them laughing and turn to watch them. She touches his arm, letting her fingers drift slowing over his muscles while she smiles up at him, fluttering her long lashes. I see her writing something on a piece of paper and handing it to him.Did she just give him her number? What the actual fuck?Dark jealousy floods through me, spiking my heart rate. It’s irrational. It’s silly. But I can’t help it.
I spin away from the scene and leave the restaurant without waiting for him. I walk straight onto the beach, heading for the water to splash my feet and try to cool my thoughts.
Chapter 11 - Marlen
The waitress gushes over me, nothing I haven’t experienced before. Women often throw themselves at me. It gets boring after a while because it never feels genuine. Just raw attraction. To me, to my money.
I walk toward the exit and notice that Stef isn’t standing there anymore. When I leave the restaurant, I don’t find her outside either. What in the world is going on? Looking up and down the gravel street outside the little wooden deck, I frown, wondering why she’d run off like this.
Beyond the gravel road is the start of the beach. Instinctively, I step onto the sand and walk toward the water, then along the shore for a while before I spot her. She’s standing with her feet in the gently lapping waves and her sandals in her hand. Her short dress catches on a warm breeze blowing in from the ocean, and her hair moves gently in the wind.
She looks gorgeous, staring out at the water.
For a while, I just watch her, taking in her natural beauty.
She must feel my eyes on her because she turns to look at me. Instead of the smile I expect, she throws me an agitated scowl.
I frown, confused. A moment ago, we were laughing and having another incredible night together. The past few days on the island have been amazing. I’ve been getting to know her and enjoying every second of it. She’s a very special person—pure sunshine who refuses to let the world around her dampen her spirit. I’ve watched her interacting with the villagers, and it’s brought a smile to my face more than once. She is funny, caring, and sweet. And more beautiful than anyone I’ve ever met.
But why does she look furious now?
“Are you ok?” I ask, standing still as she walks toward me.
“Yes, let’s go,” she huffs, trying to walk past me.
I reach out and grab her arm, pulling her to a stop and forcing her to stand in front of me.
“Something’s wrong, tell me what it is,” I demand.
“Nothing is wrong, Marlen. I just want to go home. Don’t I have a right to go home? In fact. What abouthomehome?Why are we even here? Why would you bring me here and show me this place? What do you want from me? And then you take me to a nice dinner, and I start… I feel…” Her words drift away when she can’t find the right ones to explain herself.
“What do you feel?” I ask, trying to understand.
“What do you care what I feel?” she shouts, trying to pull her arm away from my grip, but I don’t let her. Her behavior doesn’t make sense. It’s in contrast to how the night has been going so far.
“I care,” I say defensively. “I brought you out here to enjoy yourself. You look like you’ve been having fun. Why the hell are you so angry with me? What happened?” My agitation is growing as the argument intensifies. I just want to know why she’s angry. Why won’t she tell me?
“Stop acting like we’re friends… Or anything at all… I’m nothing to you! I mean less to you than the waitress back there. In fact, why don’t youcallher and go spend the night with her?” she snaps with heated fire burning in her eyes as she stares up at me. Her breathing is heavy, her chest heaving. Her cheeks are flushed, and her lips parted. She looks gorgeous.
Well. She just slipped up.
That’s what’s going on.
“Are you jealous?” I ask, cocking my head to the side. Something inside me peaks. An acute awareness of her. A carnal sort of possessive streak that pulls tighter when she presses her lips together, unable to answer me, her eyes darting away from mine as her cheeks grow redder.
“Youarejealous,” I mutter, reaching up to wrap my hands around her jaw and pulling her face toward mine.
She scrunches her nose, angry with me. Angry because I worked it out.
But as our eyes meet, something stronger moves between us. A potent, feverish need that overpowers anything else.
Within seconds, my lips are pressed against hers. The anger shifts into passion, and her fingers claw at me, pulling me closer as she presses her lips harder into mine. There is no resistance. She doesn’t push me away or hesitate.
I slide my hands down her back, feeling the curve of her body beneath my touch. I slip them beneath her ass and lift her into my arms.
