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Chapter 13
Jenna
“Brett is a nice guy,” I say to the girls when we walk around in the mall.
“Where is that coming from?” Stacey asks. “I thought you hated his guts. Because he’s an asshole.”
“He is an asshole,” I say. “But a nice asshole.”
Nina laughs. “That doesn’t even make any sense.”
“Stranded on the island getting to you, huh?” Kelsey asks.
I roll my eyes, but that’s exactly what it is. We were only alone on that island for a few hours, but that changed how I see him. Brett took the lead, and he made sure that we were okay. It wasn’t that we were in any kind of life-threatening danger—not really—but it was enough that I saw his true colors.
And as much as it irks me to admit it, his true colors aren’t ugly.
At all.
“I don’t know what to make of it,” I say.
We walk into a clothes store and I look at a rack of sarongs on sale. I page through the hangers, looking but not really seeing.
“I think it’s a good thing,” Stacey says, hooking her dark hair behind her ear. “You deserve to let your hair down once in a while, you know? And after Charlie, you haven’t really had anyone show you that men have redeeming qualities.” She takes out a sarong and holds it against her. "What do you think?"
"It brings out your eyes," I say. "Charlie was a prime specimen of a class-A neanderthal. All they did was dress him up in a suit and put him in an office and that was what had me fooled.”
Nina snorts. “You’re very poetic when it comes to the men in your life.” She pulls a face at a bathing suit she picked up and shakes her head. She pulled her short hair into a tiny ponytail and pinned down everything that wouldn't stay in the ponytail holder. It makes her look very young.
I roll my eyes. “You should have seen this guy. Seriously. Was I drunk the whole time we were dating? How didn’t I see it? Or…” I freeze and stare at the girls. “Is this the same thing? I’m blinded by washboard abs and puppy dog eyes and I stop seeing the jerk behind it all?”
The girls erupt in a fit of laughter.
"Did Charlie have washboard abs?" Kelsey asks.
I shake my head. He definitely looked nothing like Brett does.
“That’s not what’s happening here,” Stacey says. “Trust me, I know.”
“How do you know? You don’t know Brett.”
“No,” she admits. “You’re right. But I do know Marc. And even though he has a streak of jerk in him sometimes, too, he doesn’t hang out with perpetual assholes. He’s not the type to entertain repeat offenders.”
“I feel like I missed out on a lot of juicy drama,” Nina says. “I wish I knew all the guys you keep complaining about. This Noah guy you dated, and Brett when you were in school, and Charlie…just to get the bigger picture.”
I groan. “Trust me; you’re lucky you missed out on most of that.”
Nina laughs. “Well, we all have our stories, I guess. But mine sound so boring in comparison.”
“You’re a total source of entertainment,” Kelsey claims.
“Thanks,” I say sarcastically, but I can’t help smiling. It feels good to just let off some steam and get it off my chest. “I mean, it’s not just the sex, is it?” I ask. “When we’re together—”
“Wait,” Stacey says, interrupting me. “When we’re together? You mean…it happened more than once?”
“I didn’t even know about the first time!” Kelsey complains. “Why didn’t anyone tell me?”
I blush. Hard. “We uh…we were stranded together, and one thing led to another, and…”
