It would appearAldridge had settled on the pool. There were tapas and a pitcher of tamarind pineapple quencher. Marisol had already brought a glass to my room while I was changing.
“I can’t believe we were in Vegas just a few hours ago,” I said. Aldridge pulled his attention from the ocean in front of us to look at me and performed a double take. Friends didn’t look at each other the way he was staring at me. His eyes tripping over my body like he was taking inventory or a mental picture to be called up at a later date. The swimsuit options were plentiful and for my part, I chose the tiniest one. My cups runneth over and my ass was on display.
“A place like this can really shift your perspective.”
“Have you been here before?” I dropped into the queen-sized lounger next to him.
“Yeah, I came here for a few days before I landed in Vegas. Just needed to get my mind right, you know.”
“I imagine this place tunes you right up.” His lips twitched with a ghost of a smile. “What?”
“This is just nice. You, me, paradise.”
“I can’t thank you enough for this.”
“Stop, you deserve to be celebrated.”
“You could’ve just gotten me a cake.”
“There’s cake.” I returned his goofy smile. “So just sit back, relax, and have a good time.”
“Done and done.” Putting on my sunglasses, I melted into the cushion. I’d been on edge all morning over that email, so to finally be able to breathe and have it be in a practical nature preserve was very satisfying. A random thought popped into myhead and I needed confirmation. “Did your moving truck ever show up?”
“Yeah, it came just like you said.”
“Great, I was just wondering because I never got a thank you card.”
Aldridge chuckled. “You want a thank you card?”
“It’s usually customary when someone does you a solid.”
“Okay, here’s your thank you card.” He flipped me the finger.
“Wow, who raised you?”
“Katherine Mosley from Northeast Philadelphia and she ain’t spending five dollars on a funky thank you card.”
“We used to be a society. When I scratched your back, you returned the favor with a card and money inside.”
“You sound like Jemini.”
“I’m offended and gravely injured.” Waving my hand over the space I continued. “I’ll just consider this the thank you note.”
Aldridge returned to his phone checking out SportsCenter’s newsfeed, so I decided to check my missed messages. Nothing out of the ordinary, final closing documents, clients with questions, and a text from some guy I didn’t remember giving my number to asking me on a date. Ignoring all of that I texted Anika.
Danessa: Guess where I’m at?
Anika: Three guesses, the gym, Trader Joes, or that Thai place we love.
Danessa: Nope. Mexico.
Anika: Excuse me?
I loved it when I could shock my sister, it was usually the other way around.
Danessa: Aldridge took me. A quick overnight trip.
Anika: What happened to being just friends?
