Page 23 of Tequila Lime and Sunshine

I need to get out of here. I need some space away from him. Thank God, I’m spending the day with my parents on a tour of some nearby Mayan ruins. A day of history should surely get my mind off of Hawke.

* * *

As it turns out, distance from Hawke was a good thing until I see him again back at the resort. He’s sitting on his bed with his laptop and a furrowed brow. He looks devastatingly gorgeous while he’s focused, and it makes me want him all over again. Damn it.

“What’s so serious?” I ask, trying to sound chill.

He looks up from his screen. “Just reviewing some pictures I took for a fall campaign.”

“Can I see?”

“As long as you swear you won’t copyright my image,” he teases.

“I pinky promise I will not illegally distribute copies of your pictures.” I hold out my pinky to him. He slips his around mine, and we shake on it.

He turns his screen to me, and I lean down to get a closer look. They’re stunning. Most of them are women, but there are a few men. The shoot was done around a series of classic cars, the models wearing beautiful shades of blacks and grays with a few blues sprinkled in.

“These are really good, Hawke.”

“You think so?” He smiles up at me, and I realize how close we are. When he glances at my mouth, I know I should step back, but I can’t seem to make myself move.

“Yeah,” I breathe barely above a whisper. “I do.”

We’re frozen in time, neither of us moving closer or away. His tongue makes a slow sweep along his bottom lip, my eyes following it and wanting to know what it would feel like, what he would taste like.

But a text alert from a phone near Hawke pulls us out of whatever force field we were caught in.

I look away first and wipe my sweaty palms on my shorts. Since when does Hawke Wilson make my palms sweaty?

“It’s Holden. He wants to know if we want to get drinks at the bar tonight.”

Nothing should sober me up more than spending time with my ex-boyfriend, right? “Sure. Sounds fun.” It does not sound fun, actually. But it beats sitting in this room, sexually frustrated about someone I absolutely can not be with.

Hawke types something, and I try to move on to a new topic while keeping a good distance from him.

“How was your day?” I ask. My mom mentioned how excited his parents are getting for their vow renewal. And how happy they are that both of their boys could be here.

“Good. Went golfing with Dad and Holden. Then I walked around with Mom. She wants me to take pictures of them tomorrow night. Apparently, she’s going to the spa tomorrow to get her hair done. A trial run before the ceremony or something.”

“Yeah, I got roped into going too.” Spas are not my typical go-to vacation activity. They can be nice if I’m super stressed, but I’m pretty low maintenance. But I couldn’t say no to my mom, so I’ll be getting a pedicure and some sort of facial with them tomorrow.

“Have fun with that.” He laughs.

I shoot him a look. “Thanks.”

I pull a cropped tank top and some linen shorts from my bag. I need to change out of these sweaty clothes if we’re going to the bar.

Half an hour later, we’re changed, and I’ve put on some light makeup and tamed my unruly curls a bit.

Holden and Carly are sitting at the bar by one of the pools. It’s pretty crowded tonight, and there’s a DJ in the corner.

“Hey, hey.” Holden greets us when we walk up. Carly offers a pleasant smile. I still can’t get a read on whether she likes me. I imagine she doesn’t on principle since I used to sleep with her boyfriend, so it’s awkward. Hawke sits next to Holden, probably sensing that I don’t want to be in the middle of them.

Hawke taps his hands on the bar. “Let’s get some shots rolling.”

“Hell yes, man.” Holden slaps him on the back. I guess it’s going to be that kind of night.

Several tequila shots and at least two Mai Tais later, I’m thoroughly buzzed. We all are. And honestly, it feels nice to just relax. Carly even danced with me by the DJ.