AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The sea stretched to the horizon, palms danced in the morning breeze, and a sense of calm washed over me as I voiced my fears.
“Diego and Oliver are both amazing and so, so different. But I’m not meant to have both of them. Nobody gets both of their crushes, and why-choose is just a genre.” I sighed. “It would be like landing AngelandSpike fromBuffy.”
Norbert looked up at me, his chin skin wobbling as he tilted his head to watch a bird sail over the pool. He got me.
“Listen to me, talking about crushes like I’m back in middle school. But that’s kind of how I feel, Norbert. Oliver is so sexy, sweet and so, so smart. He’s respectful and kind and seems to read me like a book. Diego is adventurous and excited about everything. It makes me look at life differently. Maybe I’ve become so jaded that I’ve missed the little things that bring joy.”
Norbert was a fantastic listener. I needed to figure out what iguanas ate so I could sneak him a snack later for being such a good boy.
Taking advantage of a non-judgmental and quiet sounding board, I voiced my thoughts with the overgrown lizard while I pondered everything. As the sun moved in the sky and I sketched a dress with a full skirt and cinched bodice to keep my hands busy while the cogs in my brain turned, someone called my name from the other side of the pool.
“Hey, Jess,” I answered, raising a hand in greeting. She had her own tumbler of coffee and joined me on the next lounger, looking at the lizard as she settled in.
“What’s up, Norbert?” she said.
My eyes widened in surprise.
“I’m psychic,” she said, taking a sip from her travel mug. “Just kidding. I was on duty when the motion sensors went off this morning.”
“Oh, damn. It was early when I came out here. Sorry if I woke you.”
“Nah, it’s cool. But I wasn’t the only one watching. Chris, one of the producers, called me while you were talking to your new friend here,” she said. Her brows dipped low, and she ran her thumb along the lip of her mug. “He said you can’t keep sleeping with two of the guys.”
She didn’t look happy delivering the news, and when her eyes darted to the side, I followed her line of sight. There was a camera pointed toward us. Was Chris still watching and listening?
“Listen,” she whispered, blocking her mouth with her coffee mug and keeping her head down. “I think he’s gonna meddle, so you’ll be forced to pick. Between Oliver, Diego, and then Aaron taking you on the date, he thinks you’re monopolizing the guys.”
I opened my mouth to respond, because I absolutely was, but she kept going with a gentle shake of her head. “I’m afraid of what’s coming and trying to head him off. All I know from what I overheard between him and one of the crew members was that someone named Amber was going to make a play. I don’t know what it means, but just so you’re aware.”
Subtly nodding my head, I let her words sink in. Chris’s concerns just underscored everything I had been thinking. It was stupid to think I could carry on the way I had been. Oliver and Diego deserved better, didn’t they? But to start fucking with things was a step too far.
And Aaron? He’d been on the other island with Kayla since yesterday. I wondered if the two of them would work it out while they were away and the date we’d had was just a blip.
Yesterday, he had been convinced it was over with her. Good for him. It was her loss, honestly. He was a good guy. A little frat boy reminiscent, but I saw another side of him on our date and again yesterday when he joined Zander and me for cards. He felt deeply and had his own moral compass. It took a man of substance to stick to his guns.
“I’m not with Aaron,” I countered as Jess looked out toward the sea as it stretched toward the blue sky.
“I know. But it’s optics.”
“I get it,” I said, not liking the words as they fell from my lips. “So, is that what brings you here this morning?”
“Nah,” she said, waving her hand off before I could apologize for dragging her over here for my weird lust triangle. “I have to do a weekend run down with everyone before my day off.”
“Hey, Jess,” Oliver greeted. He leaned down, kissing my lips softly when I looked up. The sun haloed his messy bedhead, giving him an angelic aura. His voice dropped to a husky whisper. “You were gone this morning when I woke up.”
“Mmm. Coffee was calling.”
He ran his tongue along his bottom lip. “Delicious.”
Jess groaned from the other side. “So stupid cute.”
My lips curled up into a grin, then morphed into a scowl when Oliver took my half-full coffee cup. He took a deep sip and sat in the chair beside me.
“Who’s this?” he asked, shocked at finding an iguana between our two chairs.
“Norbert,” Jess and I answered in unison.
“He’s been good company this morning,” I said. Oliver’s presence must have been one human too many because Norbert waddled his little butt away from us and toward the manicured grass. “Bye, Norbert,” I called.
