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Stella flips over onto her belly into the spot I left in bed and lets out a long, sleepy sigh. I hold my breath for what feels like a whole minute, waiting to see if she’s still asleep.
I tiptoe into the bathroom and slide the door closed.
Get yourself together, Madden.I turn on the faucet and splash some water on my face, relieving some of the pain in my head if only for a moment.
I stare at my reflection in the mirror. God, I look like a wreck. My hair is all pushed to one side, my shirt mussed, and my skin looks sallow from the alcohol. My eyes flick to a spot on my neck, dark and purple. Is that…is that a hickey?
I touch it carefully and wince. Yep. That’s a hickey. Things really got out of hand last night.
My stomach flips and nausea creeps in. Not only am I hungover, but I’m on a boat hungover. That’s a combination for losing my lunch if I ever heard one.
“Flynn?” I hear Stella call out in a weak voice.
“Yeah, I’m in here, I’m…” I slide the bathroom door back open and find Stella sitting up in bed rubbing her eyes. I have to suck in a tight breath. Stella looks gorgeous, all crinkly with slumber. “Morning.”
“What time is it?” she asks, massaging her forehead. “God, my head.”
“Not sure, I just got up,” I say. “And have no idea where my phone is.”
Stella drops her hands, the strap of her silvery mini dress falling off her shoulder, nearly exposing her chest to me. “I don’t remember getting back on the boat last night.”
“Me either,” I say, retracing my steps through the tiny cabin for my phone.
“Oh god, did we –”
“No!” I say, all too aggressively. “I mean we did but we didn’t.”
Stella furrows her brow. “What’s that mean?” Then, her eyes widen. “What happened to your neck?”
That kiss must have unlocked something in me because I can’t even look at her now without fearing I might get hard. I focus harder on finding my phone, tossing one of the blankets aside to find it twirled up in a sheet. “You happened to it, I think,” I mutter, checking the time. “Nearly eleven.”
Stella’s shoulders drop. “Oh god, Flynn, I’m sorry.”
I swallow. I wish she wouldn’t apologize. It probably shouldn’t have happened but that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it. “Don’t apologize. It was – I was there too.”
“Right, of course, just… I should have known what tequila would do to me.”
It’s clear she regrets it. And that hurts more than I’d like it to. “Listen, we were both drunk, sometimes it just happens. I think we can both agree on that.”
“Yeah, of course.Of course,” Stella says.
I can’t stand in this small cabin with her looking all bed-flushed and beautiful. I can practically smell her from here and it’s getting hard to resist these feelings that have been building in me.
“Let’s just pretend it didn’t happen,” Stella murmurs softly.
How the hell am I supposed to do that?“Agreed. It was a mistake,” I reply though I don’t mean it.
It’s as if all the closeness we’ve built in this short time disappears into thin air. Back to begrudging pretend lovers.
“We’ve got a sea day today and half of tomorrow, so let’s just try and take some space,” Stella says, pulling the blankets up over her chest as if she’s naked.
I feel my cheeks burning with heat, my stomach starting to twist not just from the leftover alcohol, but shame. I can’t believe I was so dumb as to kiss her. More than that, I can’t believe I let myself want her.
“I need some air,” I say and leave the cabin without another word. I don’t just need some air. I need a cold plunge in the ocean or a slap in the face.
I need to get as far as possible from Stella as possible.
“Beers!” Theo shouts, cracking open the cooler.
