Copyright © 2019 by Tracy Lorraine
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Cover design and formatting by Dandelion Cover Design
Andy and Amelia
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
The Flirt Club!
The Spring Breakers
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About the Author
Also by Tracy Lorraine
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Lacey
“Everything is going to be fine. I have done this before, you know,” Mom says, trying to shoo me out the front door.
“I know, but—”
“No buts, Lacey. Go and enjoy yourself.”
After pulling Jacob into my arms for another bone-crushing hug, I give my mom a teary-eyed smile and turn towards where the girls are waiting for me.
“Spring break, baby!” Bryony screams in excitement as I start heading her way.
None of this was my idea, but I can’t deny that my belly’s full of excitement as I load my suitcase in the trunk and join Bryony and Cherry inside the taxi.
“To spring break,” Bryony says, pulling a bottle of pink champagne and three plastic glasses out from her giant purse. “Sun, sand, and more importantly, sex.”
“To sun, sand, and…sea,” Cherry says with a laugh, clinking her glass against mine while Bryony’s face twists.
“I know you two haven’t done this before, but it’s tradition to hook up with at least one guy during spring break.”
“Yeah, it’s also tradition to do it before you’re twenty-eight,” I admit with a wince.
“Age is only a number. Come on, get excited.”
“Trust me, I am. But I intend on having a relaxing week with plenty of sun and cocktails…not cocks.”
Rolling her eyes at Cherry and me, Bryony swallows what’s left of her champagne and pulls her phone from her pocket. The idea of a traditional spring break isn’t really our idea of fun. Cherry and I are more on the introvert end of the scale, so the prospect of getting in the middle of a load of drunk and horny spring breakers doesn’t appeal to us at all. But the moment Bryony found out we’d never experienced it before and started talking about having a few days in Florida, I couldn’t help but agree. I didn’t get to experience all the fun I was meant to have at college, or as a young adult, due to being a mom. I don’t feel like I missed out because having Jacob was the best thing that ever happened to me, but I can’t deny that the idea of having no responsibilities and just enjoying myself is appealing.
By the time we pull up outside St. Louis International, the champagne is racing through my veins and having the effect I think Bryony was hoping for because I am so ready for this. Not only is this my very first girly holiday, but it’s my first one ever as an adult without Jacob. I hate leaving him behind, but I know it’s going to do me a world of good.
“This place is incredible,” Cherry says excitedly, staring out the window as our hotel complex comes into view.
“I told you we were doing spring break in style. Not my fault you two didn’t believe me,” Bryony sulks. But when I look over, her eyes are sparkling with excitement.
Before I’ve had time to blink, we’ve got our room key and we’re heading up the elevator towards our home for the next few days. Originally we planned to stay all week, but Cherry couldn’t get the time off, so sadly we had to cut the trip a little short.
“Holy crap, look at the view,” I say, dropping my suitcase and rushing towards the window. “How did you manage to get a room like this at short notice?” Our balcony looks over one of the hotels pools but also the sandy white beach beyond.
It’s paradise.
“I’ve planned a wedding or two here and I know the general manager quite well.” The wink Bryony gives me a clue as to just how well that might be.
“Of course. Well, we appreciate it, even if you are a hussy.”
“No problem. Not being able to find the one has to come with some perks, right?”
Cherry and I both laugh at her as we start unpacking and familiarizing ourselves with our surroundings.
“So, what’s the plan then, ladies?”
After a quick discussion, we set about getting ourselves ready for a night with a few cocktails in one of the hotel bars. I know Bryony’s itching to go crazy, but I’m glad she’s humoring us and allowing us a quiet night. After working every day of the week up to this trip, trying to organize Jacob and my mom and then the journey, I’m just about ready to crash…and it’s only early evening.
Dressed in one of my new holiday outfits, I follow the others down to the bar, ready to get this holiday started.
When I wake the next morning, it’s with the sun streaming in through the light curtains. It only takes a second to remember where I am and for excitement to race through me. Sitting up, I stretch and look over at my roommates. Bryony’s still fast asleep, but Cherry’s awake and reading her Kindle. Her body clock is shot to pieces with all the crazy shifts she does as a nurse.
“Morning,” I whisper. “Are you ready to do nothing?”
“So ready!”
Once we start moving about, it’s not long before Bryony starts groaning about being woken up. The second she sees both of us ready and raring to go in our bikinis though, she soon perks up a little.
With a stomach full of pancakes, bacon, and syrup, we head out towards one of the hotel pools to start work on our suntans.
“God, this has been a long time coming,” I moan, laying back and allowing the sun to warm my skin.
“I can’t believe you haven’t done this before.”
“Don’t get a lot of chance when you’re raising a kid, Bry.”
“I’d hate to have to give this up.”
“It’s totally worth the sacrifice. I wouldn’t change my life for anything.” She raises an eyebrow as she looks over at me, and I can’t help but defend myself. “I don’t need a man. I’m perfectly happy how I am.”
“I didn’t say anything about need. Just look around you. You can’t tell me you wouldn’t like just a little bit of some of these.”
Keeping my sunglasses firmly in place, I sweep my eyes around the pool. Yeah, there are quite a few dad bods, but I can’t deny that there are also some that I wouldn’t mind having a closer inspection of. “I’m happy just looking.”
“If you say so. I, on the other hand, think I might go and make a friend…or two.”
After reapplying her sun lotion, she stands and elegantly sways as she heads towards the bar. Multiple sets of eyes follow her every movement. I can’t help but laugh—they’ve got no idea what they’re about to get themselves into.
“How did we end up here?” Cherry asks, clearly having similar thoughts.
“I’m not sure. It feels damn good, though.”
Cherry and I have been friends for years, but I didn’t meet Bryony until fairly recently. We’re not the most obvious of friends, being each other’s complete opposite, but when my colleague, Rose, introduced us after she started working with me at the bookshop, we just kind of hit it off.
The day is everything I hoped it would be. We soak up the sun, swim, eat, drink, and I even manage
to get a little nap in. It’s pure bliss. If the next few days are like this, then I’ll be one happy girl.
“Holy shit, guys. We’re at the wrong pool. You should see the fucking lifeguard at the other one,” Bryony exclaims when she reappears.
“What are you doing?” Looking over the top of my glasses, I watch as she starts collecting our stuff and shoving it into our bags.
“We’re moving.”
“We’re fine here.”
“Trust me, you’ll be better at the other pool. He is F. I. N. E!”
“Bry, we’re not here for guys. This is perfect.”
Standing with her hands on her hips and a determined look on her face, she waits. She glances over at Cherry. A moment later, Cherry relents, blowing out a long breath before getting up and gathering her towel. “Some fresh eye candy is never a bad thing, I guess.”
“Seriously?” I mutter, following suit.
“I’ve already reserved us some chairs,” Bryony calls as she leads us to our new location. “Aww, looks like he’s gone.”
Getting settled in our new places, I take in our surroundings. They aren’t all that different from the ones before.
“Drinks?” I ask, pulling my wallet from my purse.
“Yes! Anything with an umbrella sticking out of it, please,” Bryony requests. Cherry nods in agreement.
I’m too busy watching a couple of kids trying to jump onto an inflatable dolphin in the pool to notice I’m walking directly into a guy.
“Shit, sorry,” I say quietly. I go to side-step him, but we collide.
“Lacey?”
I stop breathing. Everything around me vanishes as his voice washes over me. Surely it’s not…
I drag my eyes up from his red shorts, over the lines and planes of his torso. Sucking in a breath, I take in his stubbled chin until I get to a very familiar pair of dark green eyes.
Fuck.
“Holy shit. Lacey.” He releases a long breath, staring at me. The beginning of a smile twitches at his lips as his eyes take in every inch of my face. It’s like he’s noting every single difference from the last time he saw me.
Ten years ago.
We stare at each other as if the world isn’t continuing around us. My heart races to the point I start to feel a little faint. I always hoped there was a chance of seeing him again, but as the years have gone and I’ve gotten on with my life, I’ve mostly forgotten him.
Or at least that’s what I try to tell myself.
His lips part like he’s going to say something when a piercing scream fills the air around us. There’s some commotion at the other side of the pool that makes Wes look over. When he glances back at me, I can see the internal battle going on behind his eyes.
“You need to go.” It’s the first and last thing I say to the boy—or man now, I guess—who changed my life when I was only eighteen years old.
Once his back is turned, I feel like I can breathe again. But that doesn’t mean my heart’s not still racing and my hands aren’t trembling with the adrenaline that’s racing through me.
“Lace, what’s wrong?” Cherry asks the second I get back to the loungers with two cocktails in my hands.
“I’m…uh…not feeling great. Too much sun, I think. I’m just going to go back to the room and lie down for a bit.”
“Do you want company?”
“No, no. You stay and enjoy yourself. I’ll probably just fall asleep.” It’s a total lie and I think Cherry knows it from the narrowing of her eyes, but I don’t hang around long enough for her to question me.
“We’ll be here if you need us,” Bryony shouts as I turn to walk away.
I’m grateful for their support, but I really just need to be alone right now. I need to come up with a plan.
Wes
I try to focus on the child who’s just slipped over by the pool, but the only thing filling my head is Lacey. I haven’t seen her since the morning I dropped her off at her house after prom. We’d been best friends for almost two years and dating for about six months. We’d both agreed to wait to take things between us to the next level until prom night. We wanted it to be special.
And it was. It was phenomenal. Somehow, we’d both managed to convince our parents we were going to after-parties and then crashing at friends’ houses. In reality, we avoided all the parties, and once prom was over we got a taxi straight to the hotel I’d booked us for the night.
A smile twitches on my lips as memories of that night fill my mind. We were both clueless virgins. We’d experimented a little beforehand, but we’d always stopped before things got too far. There was a lot of fumbling and awkwardness. I wouldn’t change it for the world, though. I popped my cherry with my best friend, my first love. What I didn’t expect was what happened the next day, or that those memories of the previous night were all I was going to have left.
After telling the little boy’s parents to keep a close eye on him in case of a concussion, I set about finding Lacey.
I’ve tried to picture what she might look like now. We were just kids the last time I saw her. I imagined how her curves might have filled out, how her hair might have darkened, and how her eyes might look even wiser.
It turns out I was right on two of those things because her new curves were spectacular and her eyes held so much within them. The second I looked into them I felt like I was eighteen once again, staring into the eyes of my soulmate. What was exactly the same, though, was her blonde hair. It’s still the stunning color it always was, just a little shorter than I remember.
I spotted her heading towards two other women after she got drinks, but as I look around the pool now I see no sign of her. But I do see her two friends still on their loungers. One of them I recognize as a woman who was trying to chat me up earlier.
Using that to my advantage, I make my way over to her.
“Bryony, was it?” I ask, sitting down by her feet.
Her eyes light up and a salacious smile spreads across her lips. “You remembered.”
“What’s the plan for the rest of the day, ladies?”
Bryony excitedly tells me about their plans for the night while I fight my need to ask about Lacey. It’s obvious she hasn’t said anything about me, and I don’t feel like it’s my place to tell her friends that we know each other. I guess I should just be thankful they’re not old school friends because I can’t imagine they’d be talking to me quite so happily now if they knew what happened.
I’ve fought with my guilt for years over not going back for her. To start with, staying away was for her own safety, but as the years passed and the danger disappeared, I guess I was just too scared. I knew she had to hate me for leaving her the way I did.
How could she not? I hated myself.
I didn’t have a choice but to leave that day, but there have been many, many days since where I should have been brave enough to find her. I have no one else to blame for that—that’s all on me.
I don’t expect her to forgive me, but I’d at the very least like a chance to explain all the things I kept hidden back then. I need to tell her what happened that day.
I spend the rest of the afternoon keeping an eye out for her, but she doesn’t rejoin her friends. I hate that even after all these years I have the power to ruin her holiday—or do I? If she’s not able to come back and face me, maybe it means I’m still inside her head…just like she is mine.
Lacey
It took a lot of convincing, but once I’m inside the club with a drink in my hand I must admit that I do feel better being away from the hotel.
“I feel old,” Cherry complains, looking around at all the college kids enjoying their spring break.
“Age is only a number,” Bryony says for what must be the tenth time already tonight. “Drink that and then let’s dance.”
We do as we’re told. In minutes, we’re following Bryony through the masses of sweaty, gyrating bodies and stepping onto the dance floor.
Justin Bieber’s voice booms through t
he speakers as everyone’s hips grind to the sexy beat. My body can’t resist and joins in. Shutting my mind off, I allow the music to flow through me. Bryony grabs my hand and the three of us dance together for the longest time.
My skin’s covered in a sheen of sweat, but I have the widest smile on my face as I let go and enjoy this rare time just being myself. Then, a shiver runs down my spine.
Looking around, I try to figure out why it feels like I’m being watched. When I find no one looking my way, I turn my attention back to the girls. That is, until the previous shiver turns into full-on tingles and Bryony smiles at someone over my shoulder.
My stomach drops. I don’t need to turn around to know who it is. She spent the whole time we were getting ready talking about Wes, the hot-as-fuck lifeguard she’s got her sights set on. I barely managed to hold my stomach in check as she talked about what she’d like to do to him.
I should have just admitted that I knew him, but I’m aware of just how many questions would have followed. I know I’m going to have to deal with this, I just don’t want to. Not yet, anyway.
“You came,” Bryony squeals, practically wrapping her body around his. My fingers twitch as a strong wave of jealousy flows through me. I have to fight to stop myself from reaching out and pulling her from him.
He’s not yours anymore, I remind myself as Wes ignores her and stares directly at me.
After a second or two, he gently removes himself from Bryony’s grip.
“What? Aren’t you allowed to fraternize with the tourists?”
“Not when they’re your ex’s friend.” Stepping up to me, he reaches for my hand while Bryony’s mouth drops open.
“Wait, you two know each other?”
“This is Wes,” I admit, just loud enough so she can hear me over the pounding music.
Spring Break Secret Baby (A Spring Breakers Short Story) Page 1