Aruba (Bad Boys on the Beach Book 3)

by Kimberly Fox

  She doesn’t even look at me as I stomp forward ready to kill her. She’s staring at the wedding party with a sad face. Her shoulders are drooped and her eyes are blank as she watches Cynthia kiss Chase as everyone clinks on their wine glasses.

  “You have some nerve!” I say, stopping an inch from her face.

  “They’re not upset,” she says in a monotone voice. Her eyes look vacant as she stares. She still hasn’t even looked at me once. “They’re not fighting or sad or yelling at each other. They’re smiling. They’re actually happy.”

  “Of course they are,” I hiss. I take a step back, watching her with confusion. “They’re in love. You obviously don’t know what that is.”

  “I don’t,” she says softly. She turns to me, and I’m taken aback by the swell of pain in her eyes. “No one has ever loved me,” she says, looking hollow and lifeless. “No guy, not any friend, not my cousins, or my brother. Not even my parents. They always just sent me to my room while they showered Lucas with the love they didn’t have for me.”

  My lips part, but I have nothing to say. I wasn’t expecting Stephanie to have feelings, and it throws me off balance.

  She turns back to the wedding party and exhales long and slow. “Look at them,” she says, looking dumbfounded. “They’re so happy. How can I have that?”

  I take a deep breath and shake my head. “Basically, you have to act in the exact opposite way of what you’ve been doing,” I tell her bluntly. “Be the exact opposite of the person you are. Whenever you’re about to do something, ask yourself, what would my opposite do, and then do that instead. That will be a good start.”

  What? She wanted to know.

  “All I wanted to do was make them miserable,” she says. “But it only made me miserable. They’re still happy. You guys will always be happy because you have each other. I’m so lonely, Tanya.”

  “It’s Julia.”

  “I’ve never had anyone in my corner. I’ve never had anyone care,” she continues. “I realize now that it was all my doing. It’s because I’m a shitty person. I don’t want to be a shitty person anymore. I want to have fun and laugh and have meaningful relationships like you guys have with each other. I don’t want to be me anymore.”

  She’s like the Grinch when he’s having his epiphany on Christmas morning. I wonder if her heart is getting bigger like his did, but then I realize that she probably has no heart.

  “I’m sorry I did this,” she says as her eyes get red. “I’m sorry I tried to ruin the wedding. All three of them. The truth is, I was jealous of your friendship. I’ve never had a real friend in my life. I seem to repel people.”

  “You certainly do that,” I answer without thinking. “Sorry,” I quickly add when I see her face. I don’t need to kick the girl when she’s down. “But you don’t have to be like this any longer. You can learn to be a good person.”

  She looks at me with hope in her eyes. “How?”

  “Well,” I say as I take a deep breath. “You can tell Lars how you really feel for starters. You’re marrying the poor guy, and you don’t even love him.”

  She shivers as she listens. “He smells like cinnamon all the time,” she says, cringing. “And he’s always talking about birds. It’s creepy.”

  I open my mouth to encourage her, but I’m interrupted by a car driving up. It’s Lars.

  “Here’s your first test,” I say to Stephanie, trying to give her some strength to do what’s right. “Break it to him. Gently.”

  “Stephanie,” he says as he steps out of the car. “You shouldn’t be here. Come home.”

  He reaches for her and she jerks her arm out of his reach. “Don’t touch me,” she snaps.

  Lars recoils in confusion.

  He does smell like cinnamon.

  “You and me,” Stephanie says, wrenching off her diamond ring. “Are done.”

  “What?” he asks, staring at her with devastation in his eyes.

  “I never loved you,” she says, getting the ring free. “In fact, I hate you.” She takes the ring and launches it over the trees, sending it flying into the thick dense rainforest where he’ll probably never find it.

  “Why are you doing this my morning dove?” he asks as he drops to his knees. He clasps his hands together as tears roll down his cheeks. “Please!”

  “You’re so pathetic,” Stephanie says, shaking her head as she stares down at him in disgust.

  He starts crying, painful ugly sobs. “Wait! My beautiful penguin. Wait!”

  Stephanie turns and smiles at me. “Thanks, Tanya,” she says, looking like a weight has been lifted off her shoulders. “I feel like a better person already.”

  She’s smiling as she walks back to her car. She opens the door and then pauses, turning to me with a happy smile. “I like this new and better Stephanie,” she says proudly. “Things are going to change.”

  She gives me one last smile before getting into the car and peeling away, sending a dirty cloud of dust into Lars’ sobbing face.

  Well, Rome wasn’t built in a day.

  I raise my shoulders and smile awkwardly at Lars, whose sobs have now turned into pathetic whimpers.

  I’m about to tell him that he’s luckier than he’ll ever know, but he tried to ruin my best friend’s wedding, so fuck him.

  I glance back down at the wedding party and gasp when I see that Cynthia is about to toss the bouquet.

  “Crap!” I curse as I lift my dress up and sprint down the road.

  I’m catching that shit!

  I definitely want to be the next one to get married, and I know to who.

  21

  Julia

  Day Six

  After hours and hours of drinking and dancing, Tanya, Ethan, Chase, Cynthia, Lucas, Megan, Tucker, and I are the only troupers left. We’re sitting on the rocks by the water, enjoying the beautiful night and the beautiful company.

  I have Tucker’s arms wrapped around me—exactly where they belong—as he sips champagne straight from the bottle. He hands the bottle to Chase, who is sitting with his new wife looking happier than ever.

  “That turned out pretty good,” Megan says. She’s leaning on Lucas who is lying on the rocks and snoring loudly.

  “That turned out amazing!” Cynthia says. She’s had a huge smile on her face all night. It’s even bigger now that it’s loaded with alcohol. “This was truly the best wedding ever.”

  “After mine,” Megan corrects.

  “Please,” Ethan butts in. “Ours was the best.” Tanya is in his arms, looking up at him with tired eyes. For a girl who’s very preggers, she’s hung in there late. She’s even outlasted the Navy SEALs who went to bed about an hour ago.

  “Wait until mine,” I say with a chuckle.

  “Ours,” Tucker corrects from behind me. I squeeze his big bicep and smile.

  Cynthia giggles as she looks at us. “I’d never thought I’d see that picture,” she says. “It’s a nice one.”

  Tucker kisses the top of my head, sending warm shivers rippling through me.

  It’s not a picture I ever thought I’d see either, but it’s one that I’m going to hold on to for a long time.

  The owners of the inn, Yanina and Irving, walk over looking tired but happy.

  “Did you all have fun?” Irving asks.

  “A blast!” Ethan says, holding up his beer bottle.

  “Thank you so much for taking us on last minute,” Chase says, looking so thankful that he didn’t have to get married in the parking lot of the airport.

  “You two really did an amazing job,” Cynthia says, clasping her hands together. “We’ll name our firstborn after you.”

  “We’re glad it was to your liking,” Yanina says, flashing a missing tooth as she smiles at the tipsy bride.

  “It was definitely to our liking,” Tucker adds.

  “Good,” Irving says with a nod. We all watch in stunned silence as the older couple starts undressing in front of us.

  “Uhhh,” I say, staring as Y
anina takes off her bra, showing us her saggy coconuts.

  “Welcome to the Sunnyside Resort,” Tucker says with a laugh.

  Cynthia giggles as Irving slides his underwear down, presenting us with the resort’s official mascot.

  The old naked couple walk hand in hand through our group and into the water for a late-night swim.

  Megan is staring at their wrinkled asses. “This is the first wedding I’ve been too where I’ve seen a penis.”

  “Even yours?” I ask her.

  Megan laughs as she elbows her snoring husband in the ribs. He doesn’t even move. “Especially mine,” she says with a roll of her eyes. “He was even drunker at our wedding. I had to use a vibrator to consummate the marriage.”

  We all start laughing. Tanya slaps Megan’s arm as she shakes her head.

  “Well,” Megan says, standing up. “I’m going in too.”

  “With a bathing suit, I hope?” Tanya asks.

  “Nope,” Megan says as she hides behind a tree and gets undressed. “No looking at my jujubes,” she says before running into the water with one hand over her chest and one between her legs.

  “What is on her ass?” I ask, narrowing my eyes on her white cheeks that are glowing in the moonlight. It looks like a birthmark in the shape of a lightning bolt.

  “That would be a Harry Potter lightning tattoo,” Tanya says with a laugh.

  “I wish I didn’t know that,” I say with a laugh as she dives into the water.

  “Don’t be jealous, Julia,” Megan says as she turns around. The water is up to her neck, and it’s so dark that no one can see anything but the grin on her face.

  “That water looks nice,” Ethan says, staring at the ocean.

  “I’m going in,” Tucker says, jumping up.

  “Me too!” Cynthia says, jumping up.

  “All right,” Tanya says, struggling to get to her feet. “Boys get naked on the right. Girls on the left. No peeking.”

  Tucker laughs as he joins the boys in the trees on the right. “My sister is over there,” he says with a laugh. “I definitely won’t be peeking.”

  We all run into the dark water and join Megan, Irving, and Yanina for a late-night skinny dip.

  It’s not long before I find Tucker and swim into his arms.

  “What a perfect night,” I say, looking up at the thousands of stars as his hand slides into mine.

  He smiles as he lifts my hand out of the water and kisses the back of it. “The first of many.”

  He’s got that right!

  22

  Julia

  Day Seven

  I grab a National Geographic from the magazine stand at the airport and flip through it. There’s a mummy on the cover with a seventeen-page article on several new Incan mummies just discovered in the mountains of Peru.

  “Sounds interesting,” I mumble as I flip through it, looking at the disgusting pictures.

  Ah, who am I kidding?

  I toss it back on the rack and grab the new Vogue, In Style, and Cosmopolitan. The only wrapped up bodies I care about are the ones wrapped up in designer clothes.

  I grab the new Vanity Fair as well. It’s going to be a long flight all by myself back to Bogota, Colombia, and I’ll need something to do while the movie is playing in Spanish. I have a seven-hour layover, and then I’m flying to Dallas, where I’ll switch planes, and then finally fly back to Buffalo. I’m kinda regretting not taking Tucker up on his offer to pay for my direct flight. Oh, well. It’s a little late now.

  Maybe one more. I reach for the latest Elle at the same time as someone else and we bump hands.

  It’s Stephanie.

  “Oh,” I say, looking up at her in shock.

  “Julia,” she says, smiling at me.

  “You got my name right. Finally.”

  She wrings her hands together, looking embarrassed. “I just want to apologize to you for yesterday. I really feel horrible for trying to sabotage the wedding. Thank you for helping me see the light. I really am committed to changing now.”

  “That’s good,” I say, still keeping my distance from her. This could be a trap. With Stephanie, you never know.

  “Let me buy these for you,” she says, taking the magazines from my hands. “As a show of goodwill.”

  “Uh, okay,” I say, furrowing my brow as she takes them. She adds the new edition of Elle onto the pile and walks with me to the cash.

  I still keep my distance as the cashier rings them up. “$33.42,” the young girl says.

  Stephanie hands her a credit card and forces out a smile.

  “Would you like to donate a dollar to help build an orphanage in Aruba?” the young girl asks with a bubbly voice.

  “Pfff,” Stephanie scoffs, looking at the girl like she’s crazy. “No. Those lazy kids can get jobs like everyone else if they want money.” She grabs her credit card back and rolls her eyes at me as she hands me the magazines.

  The young girl looks horrified as she stares at Stephanie in disbelief.

  I quickly reach into my pocket as Stephanie walks out.

  “For the kids,” I whisper, tossing a twenty onto the counter.

  I follow her out of the store and catch up to her in the hall. “So, does this mean you won’t try and ruin my wedding?”

  “Of course I won’t,” she says with a nod of her head. She perks up. “Will I be invited?”

  “Uh,” I say looking around in panic. “They just called out that they’re boarding my plane. Gotta go!”

  “I didn’t hear anything,” she says, looking around in confusion. “Aren’t you coming back to Buffalo? We only board in an hour.”

  “I’m stopping in Colombia first,” I say with a tired breath. “Don’t ask.”

  I say a quick goodbye to her and then head over to where my friends are waiting by the terminal. I have to head over to my gate, so it’s time for the goodbyes.

  I’ll see everyone back at home, except for the most important one.

  “I have to go,” I say, waving to the group who are all lounging on the chairs looking hungover and tired.

  “Enjoy Colombia,” Megan says with a wave. “Bring me back some of that uncut Colombian yeyo.”

  “Now it makes sense,” Ethan says with a laugh. “She’s a drug mule. Julia are you a drug mule?”

  “If I was a drug mule, I would be flying first class,” I answer, “instead of being next to some stranger who’s going to steal my armrest.”

  Cynthia gets up and gives me a warm hug. “Thanks for everything,” she says. “You really made my week. I know you couldn’t really afford it, but I appreciate it so much that you came anyway.”

  “I wouldn’t have missed it for anything,” I say, squeezing her back. “I would have sold a kidney if I had to. So, I guess I’ll see you at home?”

  “Not for two weeks,” she says with a wide grin.

  “What?”

  “Tucker gave us a wedding gift,” she says barely able to contain her excitement. “Two weeks in Australia. We’re leaving in two days!”

  “Get out!”

  “I’ll be surfing with kangaroos!” she says, squealing in excitement.

  “Call me when you get there,” I say, pointing my finger into her chest. “And go make some Aussie babies.”

  I say goodbye to Chase and Tanya and the rest of them, but there’s one person missing.

  “Where’s Tucker?” I whisper to Cynthia. I can’t leave without saying goodbye, but I really have to get to my gate.

  She shrugs. “I’ll just tell him you said goodbye. Kidding,” she says when she sees my face. “He’s waiting for you at your gate.”

  My horrified face turns into a smile. “Bring me back a boomerang,” I say to her before leaving.

  I hurry through the airport, excited to see Tucker’s face. It’s going to be a while before I see it again.

  He looks so sexy standing by the gate with his bag slung over his round shoulder. He’s wearing a tight black t-shirt that sends dirty thoughts rus
hing through my head. I’m going to miss that view.

  “You came to say ‘bye.”

  He smiles at me as he shakes his head. “Not yet.”

  “What do you mean?” I ask, eying him funny. “My plane is boarding.”

  He pulls a ticket out of his pocket and shows it to me. Tucker Connor. Bogota. Colombia.

  I burst out laughing. “You didn’t.”

  “I did,” he says with a grin. “You wouldn’t let me switch your ticket, but you have no control over mine.”

  “Lucky me,” I say, biting my bottom lip as I admire his tattooed biceps. Those are some arms I definitely wouldn’t mind sharing an armrest with.

  “Where are you sitting?” I ask, hoping we’re beside each other.

  “Beside you. In first class.”

  “What?”

  “I figured you wouldn’t be too mad if I upgraded us to first class.”

  I can’t help but smile. “I can live with that.”

  “And the best part is,” he continues. “I booked a five-star hotel outside of the airport for our seven hour layover. You’ll be wishing it was twelve.”

  “Perfect.” I can’t believe my luck with this guy. He’s the thing that’s perfect. “So, I’ll get laid on my layover?”

  “That’s what they were invented for,” he answers with a smirk.

  “That’s what you were invented for,” I say, stepping on my toes to give him a kiss.

  My heart swells as we kiss in front of the gate. Aruba was fun, but Colombia is going to be even better!

  Epilogue

  Julia

  Three months later.

  “I can’t believe that you bought us a house!” I say, staring at Tucker in disbelief. “I was not expecting this.”

  My skin is tingling as I look at the beautiful house with the two-car garage and huge windows overlooking the green yard.

  “The neighbors may cause some trouble,” he says with a laugh. “But we can always ignore them.”

  “The neighbors are the best part,” I say, smiling as I look down the street at Cynthia and Chase’s house. Megan and Lucas are on the right of them, and Tanya, Ethan, and their new baby Liam (they decided against Rocko and Milhouse—thank God!) live only one street over. We’re all within walking distance now.