AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Unless the solution is to push him down in a chair and shake my lady bits in front of him, I don’t think I do know.”
“You need to come home. It might be paradise, but it’s hell if you’re aching for a man you can’t have. Look, if he wants you, I guarantee he’ll come get you. But waiting and hoping isn’t a plan.”
Della sat up. “You’re one-hundred percent right about that. Whatever his problems are, they’re not something I can help him with.” She got up, slid her feet into her new sandals, and picked up her purse. “I’m going to call the manager and tell him to book me on a commercial flight. I’m coming home.”
And if he wants me, he knows where to find me.
“Is something wrong?” The clerk sorted through the clothing and sandals Della had purchased only hours ago.
“Not at all. I love everything, but there’s been a change in plans. I’m not staying after all.”
Soft music played in the pink and white store, and candles flickered on display tables. Only a few customers browsed the limited selection.
“I’m sorry to hear that.” She glanced at the receipt. “So, you’re basically returning everything?”
“I wore the swimsuit, coverup, and flipflops, so I’m keeping those. Oh, and the sunscreen.”
“All right. Give me a minute to—”
“Della,” Bex called.
Or at least it sounded like Bex. The man who came rushing into the store, though, had a moustache, hat, and sunglasses. She almost burst out laughing. It was his lamest disguise.
But he looked frazzled, and that was unlike the very composed and even-tempered man she’d come to know.
He raced right up to her. “What’re you doing? I’ve looked everywhere for you. Did you leave your phone on the plane?”
“No, I have it. I’ve just been…relaxing.”
He took in the situation. “You’re getting all this?”
“She’s returning it.” The clerk looked to him with a hopeful expression, as if he could change her mind.
He couldn’t. He was the reason she was leaving.
“You want to shop somewhere else? We can take a boat to Malé.”
“No, I’m leaving.” She wanted to see his expression so badly. Did it upset him? Would he fight for her to stay? But it would just give into her weakness.
“I thought you were going to stay a few days?”
“I changed my mind.”
He leaned closer. “Can I talk to you privately, please?”
She sighed. “Sure.”
He set his hand on her purchases. “Hold off on returning these.”
The clerk smiled. “You got it.”
Bex led her out of the store and across the tropical-themed lobby. Her flip flops smacked on the glossy wood floor, sounding cheap compared to the fancy leather sandals everyone else wore. Well, she wasn’t about to spend that kind of money on shoes she’d only wear a few days. That wouldn’t be right.
He took her into the empty business center and shut the door. “I’ve been looking for you for hours.”
“Well, that’s the problem right there. You’re not supposed to be looking for me, let alone thinking about me. Bex, you have serious issues in your life.” She wouldn’t say them out loud in case they were being recorded.
He got that intense expression that always excited her. “If those two issues are the problem, why am I not thinking about them? Why is the only thing on my mind you?”
