Fortunately, the room wasn’t spinning as she stared dreamily at the popcorn ceiling. She was slightly tipsy, but not nearly as drunk as she wanted to be. While her intention in draggingMack back to the swim-up bar was to drink away the disaster of their dance lesson, Kayla had been sure Skye would show up there eventually. After all, Skye was a social butterfly and a hard partier, so a swim-up bar full of wasted, tanned women in bikinis should have been like catnip for her. Yet when the dance lesson ended and the couples scattered, Skye and Amy melted into the crowd and disappeared.
While the Plan of Seduction had taken a hard knock, her plan to cheer up Mack had gone swimmingly. They’d had a delicious margarita and then participated in a rousing game of chicken in the pool with a half dozen other couples. Mack’s shoulders had been solid as a rock, and Kayla’s competitive drive had helped her topple two women and one very indignant gay man into the pool, earning them the applause of the crowd and a lot of very adorable showing off from Mack. Even though Kayla had had more fun that afternoon than she could remember having in years, the continued absence of Skye had threatened to send her into a spiral of frustration. A second margarita had cured that tolerably well, but now Mack wanted to check out the resort’s excursion and restaurant options.
The mattress dipped beside her as Mack plopped down. “Mind if I get the first shower?”
“Go for it. I need to consult the Plan of Seduction.”
“Having second thoughts?” Mack asked with obvious hopefulness.
Kayla turned a wicked grin on her. “You hoping I’ll decide to marry you instead?”
Mack laughed heartily, and again Kayla was unaccountably annoyed that she didn’t even consider it. “You wish, LaLa.”
Kayla hopped up to grab her notebook and flip through a few pages. She could figure this out. “I think I need to adjust tactics. This lost day is a bummer, but at least we got the wedding moved to the last day.”
Mack rolled her eyes as she strutted to the bathroom. “Well, you’d better take it onto the balcony unless you want to catch an eyeful of me naked.”
“Now who’s wishing?” Kayla teased.
Kayla stopped at the mini fridge for a bottle of sparkling water before heading out to the balcony. She took the added precaution of pulling the curtains shut behind her. She tended to pace while she was thinking, and she didn’t want to make things weird for Mack if she paced the wrong direction at the wrong moment.
When she stepped out into the heady tropical air, however, all thoughts of her changed tactics flew out the window. The view from the balcony was far too amazing. It was late afternoon, and the sky was as clear and blue as she’d ever seen. Then there was the ocean. She’d thought water was blue until she’d seen the Caribbean. Was it green or turquoise or some form of teal? She couldn’t name the color because it was almost as clear as the sky. Even from way up here, she could see where the rocky cliff to her left had dropped craggy boulders into the water. Their outlines were as sharp as a photograph through the gentle swells. Kayla had never seen anything so beautiful.
That wasn’t overly surprising as she’d taken very few vacations in her life. Certainly none to a tropical beach. When she was young, she’d had a single-minded focus on her soccer career that kept her away when her family was taking advantage of summer break. She’d gone to some amazing places in those days. But even on her trip to Protugal, she’d never made it to the beach. They’d had a few hours to check out the town one day, but most of her memories had been of practice and game time. She vaguely recalled a picture-perfect café, but her teammates had hustled her out of there in favor of shopping.
Things hadn’t changed when her knee sabotaged that dream. She’d thrown herself into that first, disastrous career in financethe same way she had with soccer. She’d spent so much time trying to swing big that she’d fallen flat on her face and been fired without ever using a single vacation day.
“If there’s one bright side to my disaster of a love life, it’s getting this view for the week,” she said into the lazy breeze.
She hadn’t expected a reply, of course, but a burst of laughter from below her balcony grabbed her attention. Fortunately, it wasn’t a nosy neighbor listening to her talk to herself. On the ground level and across the walking lane was a break in the palm trees she hadn’t noticed before. Behind it was a pool, glistening like a gem in the sunshine. How had she not seen this? It was practically right in front of her. As she got her bearings, she realized the entrance to their room was on the side of the building, and this pool was completely blocked on that side, making it a little hidden oasis. But from her balcony, she could clearly see most of the water and the entire pool deck, dotted with loungers.
Her mind whirled, and she finally remembered the map their hostess had shown them on arrival. She had mentioned a pool that was exclusive to the balcony suite room and the fancy villas. The fancy villas where Skye was staying.
The moment the thought entered her mind, her eyes fell on a burst of green hair and a very familiar body clad in boy shorts and a skimpy bikini top. On the next lounger was the slightly less familiar form of Amy, her long blond hair tied up in a bright bow and a creamy white back exposed to the sun.
So that’s where they’d gone after dance class. Not fighting for space beside the main pool but taking advantage of a little privacy at their exclusive one instead. How could she have forgotten the pool? The worst part was Kayla could have been there too if she hadn’t been so stupid by not listening to the introduction of the resort. She’d thought she had everything allplanned out, and she’d let in an easy goal. She ground her teeth in frustration. What a stupid move.
Even as she chided herself for the oversight, she conceded that it was a strange choice for Skye. After all, she was more the type to romp around in the ocean and participate in a drunken game of chicken. Why hadn’t she done any of that? As Kayla watched Amy languidly adjust her legs and Skye look around the pool as though bored, she had a pretty good idea. This was Amy’s idea, not Skye’s. She was bending to what Dr. Wife Stealer wanted rather than asserting herself. It didn’t fit with Skye’s personality to do that, and a bubble of annoyance built in Kayla’s chest. How could she be marrying this woman who bullied her into a boring day at the quiet pool? Maybe the Plan of Seduction was as good a thing for Skye as it was for Kayla. She didn’t need to be stuck in a boring marriage with a wife who didn’t want the same things she did.
As Kayla stood there, mulling over the ramifications, two things happened at once. First, the balcony door slid open behind her, and Mack strolled out onto the balcony.
“Hey, are we headed back to the pool after we look at excursions or straight to dinner? What should I wear?”
At the same moment, Skye turned her face up and, even through her sunglasses, her gaze locked with Kayla’s. She felt the spark of their eyes meeting, even at this distance. It was electric between them. It always had been. Like Romeo looking up at Juliet on her balcony.
Then something terrible happened. Skye smiled up at her, and it wasn’t her usual leering smile that told Kayla she wanted to peel her out of whatever clothes she was wearing and break various furniture in the enthusiasm of their lovemaking. It was less passionate Romeo and more snoozefest Henry VIII. What the hell was going on? She should be pining the way Kayla was. Panic flooded through Kayla’s veins. What was she going to do?
Mack spoke just as the terry cloth of her bathrobe brushed against Kayla’s back. “LaLa? Did you hear me?”
Even through her panic, Mack’s words registered. Her presence registered. Kayla made a split-second decision. She needed to reignite that passion in Skye. She needed to make up for that disaster of a dance class. She needed to seize this moment and make it work for her. And she knew just how to do it.
Kayla reached back and pulled Mack’s arms around her waist. Mack made an abrupt little sound of confusion, but it ended quickly as Kayla twisted her neck and pulled Mack’s head down until their lips met. She’d had a plan. She intended to remind Skye of a particularly memorable kiss they’d shared before their first time making love, but maybe the recreation was a little too exact.
The moment their lips touched, a zing of what could only be described as bone-aching desire rocketed through Kayla’s body. Mack’s lips were perfect. Soft and strong and fitting just right against hers. Mack’s arms tightened around her waist. Was it surprise at the unexpected kiss or something more? Whatever the reason, she pulled Kayla tighter into her strong arms. Her lips felt too good against Kayla’s. The circle of her arms was too safe and secure. She dropped into the kiss. To the feel of Mack’s body against hers. To the firm caress of her lips. Her brain simply refused to work while they were locked together in this moment.
And God, the moment was getting better and better with every passing second. When had she told her hand to slip into Mack’s hair, still wet from the shower? When had she told her lips to part, inviting Mack to deepen the kiss? She didn’t deepen it, and Kayla could feel the disappointment in her limbs like the ache of a bruise. Even more so when the kiss came to a gentle end.Kayla’s body chased after Mack’s retreating lips. Was that why she was suddenly dizzy and disoriented?
Kayla slowly opened her eyes, but she recovered before Mack. She watched as Mack slowly blinked her eyes open. Her gaze was unfocused, and a crease of confusion cut between her brows. Kayla had to admit her own mind was a little jumbled. When was the last time a kiss had affected her like that? She let her gaze wander from Mack’s hazy eyes to her lips, still parted and slightly puffy from the kiss. It took all Kayla’s willpower to stop her body from leaning back into them.
