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Julie wedged herself between Aaron and me, and Nicoletta was between Zander and Diego.
“So, who’s single?” Nicoletta asked. She flicked her dark hair over her shoulder and looked at our faces expectantly.
“Apparently,” Julie started, “there have been some developments since we last watched the show.”
Nicoletta perked up. “Zander?”
He shook his head. “I’m seeing Viv and plan to continue.”
She hummed thoughtfully. “Fair enough,” she conceded, but her eyes were calculating. It seemed as if we had traded one snake in the grass for another. “Aaron, what about you?”
“Oh, uh, I’m seeing someone.” The words came out in a rush of mumbled nonsense, leaving me puzzled about who he could be talking about.
“Really?” Julie asked. “I thought Kayla left. Wasn’t that what Troy said?”
We all looked at Aaron, whose pale face had turned ruddy under scrutiny. “Sophie and I connected this week after that workshop on the lawn.”
It felt like a punch to the gut. I knew they’d been spending time together. But I thought it was just friendly, the way Sophie and Zander hung out. I didn’t realize it had changed.
That little spark of hope I’d felt earlier sputtered and died.
Julie patted my knee while Nicoletta looked between Diego and me. “So the two of you are…?”
“I’m single,” I said. “Not by choice, but it is what it is. I can’t speak for Diego, though.”
He and Cheryl had been spending time together lately, but I didn’t know what they got up to at all hours. Nor was it my business. I had no interest in sharing a bed with Diego unless Sophie was in it.
“Single.” The word rang clear in the cabana, Diego sure of his response. I unintentionally breathed a sigh of relief.
Kayla and Cheryl, the dynamic and dastardly duo, had seemed content to pick us off one by one once Sophie had moved on. I knew Diego was taking it hard, and I hoped he hadn’t shackled himself to part two of the duo. It was nonsensical for me to think that way, though. He was my competition for Sophie, but over the last few weeks, he’d somehow wormed his way into becoming a friend.
Strangely enough, without Sophie, we had become strangers again, only sharing eye rolls and exasperated looks when the two women started running their mouths about our girl.
Noticing the desperate need for a change of subject, Aaron redirected.
“So, Julie, what’s your type? Clearly the brainy sort, huh?” he asked, pointing between her and me.
She laughed. “Yes, brainy, attractive. I like dark hair. But I’m not too picky. As long as we have fun. I don’t care.” That was such a Julie answer. She was the sort to roll with the punches and go with the flow, even when it ended up with us in a tattoo parlor in a shady part of town and some questionable acquaintances.
“Are Daniel and Gia still together?” Julie asked. “They were so cute in week one.”
“They are,” I answered. “They’re on their island getaway at the moment.”
“So cute! I love it.”
We talked about our jobs and what we did for fun. Nicoletta shared she was a cheerleader for Zander’s NFL team, and Julie explained she did contract work for a marketing firm in London and was currently heading up a brand overhaul for a surf company.
My attention kept shifting to the girls and Ryan as they all hopped in the pool. It looked like Cheryl was asking the lion’s share of the questions while Viv clutched Sophie’s hand as they stood side by side at the far edge, more content to talk to each other than give Ryan any attention.
I hated that he was here.
The set of Sophie’s shoulders and how she kept braiding her hair, undoing it, and then redoing it showed the tension she felt. Ryan’s gaze hardly shifted from her, but when she didn’t give him what he wanted, he flirted with the others to try to make her jealous.
Behind Sophie, the sky was a brilliant blue, but the rain clouds on the horizon were the perfect metaphor for the storm brewing in the villa.
CHAPTERTWENTY-ONE
Sophie
