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“I’m fine,” she was saying. “I just had my hands tied behind my back and a cloth over my mouth.” She gripped a bottle of water and drank from it occasionally.
I stood next to her and kept my gaze focused. The world disappeared, and the truth sat in my gut.
I had to end what was between us and fast, before it was too late.
Before I started caring too much.
Two hours later, after several calls and intense discussions with police officers, our statements taken and a full medical check on Summer, we were finally on our way back to the resort. The relief I’d felt at seeing her alive and well still hadn’t worn off, but it was tainted now.
An undertone of unease drifted alongside it.
I had wanted her back so badly. And it hadn’t just been because she was Emilia’s best friend or because she was a person who deserved to be protected, as every person did. It was because living without her had seemed unimaginable.
That told me one thing.
I was in too deep.
The physical stuff wasn’t just physical.
Are you really going to fixate on that now? You just saved her.
I glanced at her, and she offered me a tired smile. “Hey,” she said. “Thanks for coming out there and finding me. I thought I was on my own.”
“It’s what I do,” I replied. “Are you OK? Feeling good?”
“I guess you could say that.” Summer scrubbed her eyes. “But I wish you’d told me about what was going on.”
“I didn’t know,” I replied. “My contacts told me Cruz was nowhere near the Bahamas. They didn’t account for a psycho daughter.”
“Clearly.” She rubbed her wrists. They were slightly red from where she’d been tied up, but she’d heal.
That redness brought a wave of anger. She’d been hurt. And it was my fault.
“How did you find me?” she asked.
“The app,” I replied. “I put it on your phone, remember?”
“Oh, right. Oh my god, I totally forgot about that. Thanks.” She let out a laugh. “I guess I owe you one. Call me a tester for the app. I pronounce it successful in function.” She was being too cheery, almost, and tension hung between us.
It was different this time, not just sexual, but something more. Words unsaid.
Fuck, what are you, going soft or something?
We fell into silence again. She closed her eyes and drifted in and out of sleep, exhausted from the ordeal, and my hands grew tighter and tighter on the wheel the closer we drew to the hotel.
Outside, a group of people waited for us, and, of course, Emilia was one of them. My trepidation built.
Shit, she’d want answers from me.
We got out of the car, and Emilia rushed toward Summer and threw her arms around her friend. “Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god. Are you OK?”
“I’m fine, Em. I mean, I’ve been better, but I’m fine.”
“Of course, she’s fine,” Chastity grumbled in the background. “Such a friggin’ drama queen. Like, it’s so clear she wants all of the attention.”
“Do you even know what’s going on?” I asked.
Chastity’s cheeks grew pink. She huffed, flipped her blonde hair back, and marched off inside. Of course, she didn’t know what had happened. She was too self-involved.
Summer and Emilia finally stopped clinging to each other. “I’m fine, Em, don’t worry,” Summer repeated. “That Pamela didn’t know what she got herself into when she messed with me.”
“It was Pamela?!” Emmy gasped.
Summer filled her in on the details. I stood by, my thoughts turning left and right. Did I stay? Did I walk Summer to her room? Did I fuck off before shit blew up?
I’d never been indecisive in my goddamn life. Why now?
“I’m just glad you’re safe. You have to tell me everything.” Emmy took Summer by the arm and guided her toward the hotel’s front doors. “I was so friggin’ close to canceling the wedding, you don’t even understand.”
“We’re glad you’re safe,” Scott added, walking on Summer’s other side.
She didn’t glance back at me, and that suited me fine. I was free to retreat before my sister started asking weird questions. Like, why had Pamela taken Summer instead of Emilia? The question would’ve been hard to answer without telling the truth.
That we wanted each other. That we’d put ourselves first.
I waited until they’d entered the lobby and made it into the restaurant’s bar before following and heading for the elevator instead.
A couple more days and Valentine’s Day would arrive. The wedding would take place. I would head back to Florida, and this would finally be over.
I’d put Summer, along with the memories and thoughts associated with her, behind me.
Keep telling yourself that.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Summer
I checked that the coast was clear then hurried down the hallway and stopped in front of Matt’s door. My heart pattered against the inside of my chest like a bird trapped in a cage.
