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Dark brown hair hangs artfully over his forehead. His nose has a slight bump in it from being broken once or twice. I want to run my fingers over it, I want to kiss that bump even though I know that it doesn’t hurt anymore. His dark blue eyes sparkle down at me as he waits for me to say something.
“Fuck me,” I mutter.
I immediately regret it when he throws his head back and laughs.
He’s from Destiny Falls, too, and has always been the town’s golden boy. He was an amazing athlete in high school, leading us to four state championships. He stayed in Michigan for college and led Michigan State University to two Rose Bowls. Since then, he went pro and his career really started to take off.
He was a few years older than me, actually a year older than Taylor and the bridesmaids, and everyone knew him back home. He was a football god, a total hottie, and a genuinely good guy to boot.
I’ve never spoken to him.
I can’t believe that the first time I meet him I’m wearing a swimsuit.
My cheeks flame as I wrap my thin cover-up tighter around me.
“Uh, yeah. It could be better,” I say softly.
“Girls like that drive me crazy,” he says, giving me a reassuring smile.
My palms start to sweat and I try to think of something to say in response. Of course, my mind is blank.
The elevator doors open and we both step on. I pray that someone else will join us, but it appears that my luck has run out.
My cellphone dings and I groan, digging around in my tote until I finally find it. I pull it out and see that I have a few texts from Eloise, my best friend back in Destiny Falls. Her encouraging messages have been the only thing getting me through this trip.
There’s another one from Taylor, telling me to hurry up and get dressed. We’re going to get massages, then we’ll grab dinner and go to a few clubs after.
I chew on my bottom lip, trying to figure out how to get out of doing anything with them ever again.
“Problem?” Declan asks and I look over at him.
“They want me to go to the spa with them.”
“And you don’t want to? I’ve never been, but isn’t it pretty quiet and relaxing at the spa?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never been, but I don’t think those girls do anything quietly and they definitely don’t want me to relax while I’m here.”
Declan laughs at that, the sound deep and comforting as it washes over me. I can’t fight the smile that curves the edges of my lips.
The elevator stops at another floor and a large group gets on with us. I shift, trying to find a place to stand out of the way and Declan surprises me by gently tugging me closer to him.
“Thanks,” I whisper and he nods, staring at the doors as we start to move again.
It feels like forever when we finally hit my floor and I give him one last nod before I start to push through the crowd.
I have to hurry to make it down the long hall to my room and then once I’m inside, I race to change. What does one wear to the spa? I didn’t pack that many clothes, so I decide on my yoga pants and a flowy tunic. I tie my blonde hair up into a messy bun, hoping that I get a private room at the spa.
I do my best to put Declan out of my mind as I get dressed and join the girls downstairs in the spa, because of course they didn’t wait for me. Thoughts of him keep popping up, though, despite my best efforts to think about other things.
The spa starts out well enough. The massage is nice and I’m in a room by myself with low lighting and soothing music. It’s the manicure part where things turn sour once again.
Taylor and Chloe complain about the color, even though they were the ones who picked it out, and cause such a scene that they get their manicures for free. I have to dip into my savings to pay, but I feel so bad that I leave a huge tip, enough to cover what they would have made from Taylor and Chloe.
“I’m so sorry about them,” I whisper as Taylor lets out a huff and yells for me to hurry up as she heads for the door.
I join them back at the elevator and have to listen to Taylor berate me the whole way up to our floor.
“This is my weekend, Emma. I’m sick of having to wait for you. I can’t believe my parents made me bring you on this trip with us. You’re just ruining it. You need to start being more considerate.”
