“I’m the best man,” Milo says, then looks at me again. “And you…?”
“The Maid of Honor.”
“You’reAria’s sister?”
“The one and only.” I swallow the lump forming in my throat from the audacity of all of this, then look at him.
Great. I didn’t even make the connection on the plane. He’d only tossed out his name—I had no idea he was Ethan’s best man at the time. I’d seen photos of him over the years, of course, but he looks completely different now. Sharper. Grumpier. Way hotter, especially with that stubble coating his jaw.
The irony hits me like another pocket of turbulence.
“If you so much as disturbonesecond of my vacation,” I lean closer, eyes locked on his, so he knows I’m being serious. “I’ll find your room and duct tape you to the balcony railing.Nude. Consider this your only warning.”
“Bold of you to assume I’d let you get close enough to try,” he retorts. “But go ahead, Sienna. Bring the duct tape. Today just became the most interesting punishment I’ve ever been sentenced to. We’ll see who ends up tied to what.”
I snort before I can stop myself. “You think you can out-restrain me? That’s adorable. Your crotch is currently wet because of me—andnotin the way you wish it were.”
His gaze drops briefly, then lifts with zero shame. “I’m keeping the pants as evidence. Exhibit A in the case of Harlow versus human decency.”
“Oh, please,” I step closer, watching his pupils flare. “You loved every second of it. Admit it. You’ve been bored out of your skull for months, and I’m the first interesting thing to happen to you since your last performance review.”
He laughs like he didn’t mean to let it slip. “You think you’re interesting?”
“IknowI am,” I say matter-of-factly. “You’re just too busy being tragically composed to admit you’re entertained.”
Before he can respond, Terrance clears his throat. “Erm… the van’s ready whenever you two are done flirting.”
We snap our heads in his direction so fast we nearly get whiplash. “We’renotflirting.”
“Sure,” he murmurs, unconvinced, as he opens the sliding back door. “Come on, lovebirds. Hop in. The AC is blasting, and there is cold water in the cooler.”
Milo mutters something that sounds suspiciously like “kill me now” and heads for the van. I fall into step beside him, deliberately bumping his shoulder.
“Lovebirds. Cute. Should we practice our couple’s pose for the welcome photo? You can do the brooding thing you’ve got going on, and I’ll be the chaotic gremlin clinging to your arm like a koala on an endless supply of energy drinks.”
He side-eyes me. “I’d rather set myself on fire.”
“Hot,” I grin, wiggling my brows. “Very on brand for you.”
He stops abruptly, turns to face me fully, and exhales through his nose. “You’re going to make me regret every life choice that put me on that plane, aren’t you?”
“Misery loves company,” I flash my brightest smile. “And I’mexcellentcompany.”
Milo studies me for a beat too long, and my pulse kicks up. He shakes his head once and keeps walking. “Get in before I pay Terrance to leave you behind.”
I jog to catch up and slide into the van first. “You’d miss me too much. Who else is going to keep your pants interesting?”
His only response is a low grunt as he settles beside me. But I catch the tiniest upward curve on his lips, and the subtle head shake.
As we strap in, Terrance pulls away from the curb, still grinning in the rearview mirror. “You ready for a beautiful, love-filled two weeks? Paradise has a way of turning things into something… extraordinary.”
I hum in response and glance sideways at Milo. He’s staring out the window, jaw tight, but I don’t miss the way his fingers drum on his thigh, right over the faint watermark I left behind.
Leaning back with my arms crossed and sunglasses perched on my nose, I close my eyes and inhale a deep breath.
I’m completely, catastrophically screwed.
And not at all in the screaming-his-name-with-zero-regrets kind of way I was secretly hoping for on this vacation.
