Gina
I lie there in the comfy bed, curled up in a ball, and all I can think about is Hunter’s twinkling blue eyes and the way my body had felt when he'd been standing next to me. I can't believe that I'm in the same house as him. I can't believe that for the next couple of weeks or months, he's going to be in my daily presence. I'm not even sure where his bedroom is. What if it's next to mine? What if it's only two doors away, and we spend the summer sneaking back and forth? Would he accidentally walk into my room? Will I accidentally walk into his? Naked. “Get your mind out of the gutter, Gina. You're not here for a summer fling,” I mumble to myself. I’m hot and bothered and know I need to stop thinking about him.
I roll out of the bed, knowing that it is futile to think I will be able to fall asleep right away. I head over to the window,look outside at the vast grounds of the Waverly Estate, and admire how perfectly manicured everything is. In the far distance, I see the ocean waves as they crash into the rocks, illuminated by the full moon shining brightly in the sky. It's almost ethereal,looking down at the water. I'm about to call Emma and see if she's up when my phone starts ringing. I grab it with a small smile, thinking that it's her, but my heart drops when I see that it's Patrick.
“Why are you calling me?” I mutter under my breath, not wanting to talk to him. I debate whether or not to answer the phone, but my nosiness gets the better of me. I need to know why he’s calling me.
“Hello?” I say sharply into the phone. I don’t want him thinking for a second that I have any real interest in talking to him.
“Gina.” His voice is warm and friendly. Like he wasn’t just porking another girl in an alleyway.
“This is she. How can I help you?”
“It’s me, Patrick.” He sounds happy. Is he a psychopath?
“I know. What do you want?”
“I thought you'd be happy to hear from me.”
“Are you crazy? You were cheating on me in an alleyway, and you dumped me.” I am loud and want to cuss him out. “I never wanted to hear from you again.”
“Calm down, jeez.” He sounds taken aback. “Was it really cheating, though?” he says in a low, throaty voice, and I’m almost positive I hear a chuckle. “We weren’t technically together.”
“What do you mean, we weren’t technically together?” This man is lucky he’s not next to me because his life would have been over.
“You and I never had sex, so it wasn’t like we had a real relationship. I have needs.” He’s nonchalant. “You weren’t meeting them. I figured once we finally banged, we’d see if we wanted to take the next step.”
“Next step?”
“Like if we would move on from just friends.”
“I don’t know if you think that I’m stupid or that I’m going to forgive you, but I’m not.” I’m about to hang up. I’m not even mad at him. I’m angrier at myself. How did I give this man the time of day? I am never going down this road with another loser man again.
“Gina, we had something special. Are you really going to throw it away?”
“What do you want?” I cut him off. This man is not going to gaslight me! I let out a deep sigh and rub my forehead. It’s crazy to me that I feel absolutely nothing but distaste for him. To think that there had been a time when I’d hoped that our relationship would go to the next step makes me want to throw up. Suddenly, I’m grateful that I never slept with him.
“So, hey, you’re friends with Emma, right?”
“Yes. You know that. You’ve met her.”
“And she’s one of the Bonds.”
“Yeah. Can you get to the point?” I snap. “I’m about to hang up.”
“I didn’t realize that she was related to Maverick Bond. I kind of heard about him tonight from some friends.”
“Patrick, what is this about?”
“I was wondering if you may be able to introduce me to her brothers. As I?—”
“Patrick, I’m not introducing you to anyone, and certainly not my best friend’s brother. Why do you want to meet Maverick?”
“I think we can do business together.”
“What sort of business, Patrick? I still don’t really understand what line of business you’re in.”
“Gina, you sound so hostile. Are we not friends? Can we not get over this little tiff?”
