Ms. Bitch: Finding happiness is the best revenge.

by Tricia O'Malley

  “I’m sorry, Tess, I really have to go.” She could see the sheer exhaustion in his face.

  “I understand, it’s high season for you.”

  “Have you thought about coming back to visit?”

  “Um, not really. Like to come stay… and hang with you?” Tess asked, not sure at all what he was asking.

  “Yeah, for a dive trip… you could get an Airbnb near my place instead of staying at the hotel and then come in and dive with me every day,” Aiden said, his eyes ripe with exhaustion and something more.

  “That would be fun.” Tess’s heart sped up at the thought of spending time with Aiden. But she could tell the man was falling asleep, and didn’t want to hang her hopes on exhausted invitations. “We can talk more about it tomorrow.”

  “Night-night, pretty Tess.”

  “Sleep well, sweet Aiden.”

  Chapter Thirty

  Another day passed with no message from Aiden, and Tess shrugged it off. She had a book to focus on and a new life in Colorado that she was slowly building. She wasn’t thinking too deeply about actually going back to Cozumel anytime soon, until she picked up her phone Sunday morning and found a very late-night message from Aiden.

  I want to play with you.

  Tess’s eyebrows shot up. Well. Then. Somebody had been having some naughty thoughts about her late in the night. And, not at all to her surprise, Tess found she wanted to play with him too.

  As do I… and how do you plan to accomplish that?

  Come visit?

  He was online! Aiden must have the day off, Tess thought, and smiled into the phone, then gasped when it rang.

  “Hello?”

  “Hi, Tess. And how are you this beautiful morning?”

  “Lounging in bed. It is Sunday after all.” Tess grinned at hearing his lilting accent.

  “That it ’tis. Would you really come down and visit me?”

  “I mean, in theory, yes. I’d have to look at flights and figure out a dog sitter, but so long as I have wifi for work stuff, I would love to come down.” Tess smiled up at the ceiling.

  “That would be amazing,” Aiden said. “But I have to ask you a question first.”

  “Go ahead,” Tess said, taking a deep breath.

  “What are you looking for? From this?”

  Tess remembered their conversation from the other night and how he preferred the straightforward over playing games. “Honestly? I can’t say, Aiden. I mean, I’m recently divorced. I know I’m back out dating and stuff, but it’s not like I’m seeking out anything serious,” Tess admitted, knowing it was the truth. “I think I just need to have fun for now.”

  “Okay.” Aiden sighed, which sounded like in relief. Tess narrowed her eyes. “Because I’m leaving Cozumel soon and I just didn’t want to get too involved with someone before I go.”

  “Oh,” Tess said, surprised to find herself feeling a little crestfallen. “Where are you going?”

  “I’m leaving for the Philippines at the end of February. I’m burnt out on the job here and I had an opportunity to travel with someone who is heading the same way. It just made sense to go then.”

  “Right, totally, I get it,” Tess said automatically, reminding herself that Aiden had told her he liked to wander the world, not stay in one place too long. “That’s a long ways away.”

  “It is. I should be there about six months, then I plan to head over to Indonesia to pick up work there. I hear the diving is incredible.”

  “Yeah, so I’ve heard. Well, that will be awesome.” Tess took a deep breath. This was a good thing, she lectured herself. Aiden could be a fun fling for her with truly no expectations other than enjoying each other’s company before he moved across the world. Because if she had thought Mexico was too far for a long-distance relationship, the Philippines wasn’t going to be any better.

  “That being said, could you visit before I leave?” Aiden asked, his voice hopeful.

  “Let me look at dates, but it would likely need to be soon – so I don’t hit the expensive airfares over Christmas. Or right after Christmas.”

  “Okay, and I just need to have a wee chat with my travel buddy first, to make sure her expectations are the same as mine.” Alarm bells went off in Tess’s head.

  “Your travel buddy is a her?”

  “Yes, her.”

  “Oh, listen Aiden, I can’t do – I don’t want to tread on anyone’s toes and all that. That’s a tough situation for me,” Tess said, fumbling her way through, annoyed with herself for assuming that Aiden didn’t already have a woman waiting for him. She found herself oddly disappointed in him, that he would try to arrange something like this when he already had a woman.

  “No, no, no. It’s not like that. She was here on an internship for diving and we dated for a couple weeks, then she left about eight months ago. We’ve stayed in touch, but just as friends. She’s been dating someone else and I’ve also dated other people. But when she told me she was taking a job in the Philippines and looking for a travel buddy, it was easy to say yes to. We get along well and it would be easy to travel with her, that’s all. But I want to make sure she completely understands and is fine with the fact that we are not traveling as a couple before you came to visit. It’s the right thing to do.”

  “Okay, that’s fair, though the thought of another woman makes me stabby,” Tess warned.

  Aiden laughed. “Trust me, it’s not like that. But I’ll feel better having a chat with her, before anything else happens. It’s out of respect for her as well.” Tess had to give him credit for being honest.

  Plus, she reminded herself as she looked at flights later that day, this was only going to be a fling. A one-week fling on a beautiful island. Diving, dancing, and drinking with a very delicious Scotsman. It sounded like the perfect prescription to start a brand-new chapter in her dating life.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  “Yaaaas, bitch!” Daniel all but squealed in excitement when she’d told him about her plans to leave for Cozumel the upcoming weekend. “Go get you some hot scuba instructor ass.”

  “Oh my god, what am I doing?”

  “Getting your swagger back, that’s what. None of these nonsense twenty-five-year-young pups. Go on, get with a real man. And a Scottish one at that. Swoooon.” Daniel pretended to faint dramatically. “It’ll be amazing. You’ll go diving every day, which you love, and diving all night too, if you get what I’m saying.”

  “I get what you’re saying,” Tess groaned.

  “There are so many jokes I can make about getting wet right now.” Tess smacked him. “What? I’m talking about scuba diving, Ms. Bitch, don’t you know the lingo?”

  “Ms. Bitch, he says.” Tess rolled her eyes, but laughed despite herself. She’d been on edge all week, picking what dresses she wanted to wear, finding cute swimming suits, and getting her dive gear in order.

  “That’s right, Ms. Bitch. You gotta give credit where credit is due. And when my friend travels down to another country to get her swag on…well, she’s earned the title of Ms. Bitch, that’s all I’m saying,” Daniel said, handing her a glass of wine.

  “I just keep thinking, what, exactly, am I doing traveling to a whole different country to meet up with a man I’ve only met in person for two days?” Tess said. “Am I out of my mind?”

  Daniel sobered quickly. “Look, if it turns out to be horrible, you can just go diving and do your own thing at your apartment each night. Nothing says you have to spend the whole week with a sexy Scot. I mean, I’d like you to, because stories. But if it’s not right, just do your thing. You can call us every night and we’ll check in on you.”

  “That’s true, I’ll be just fine one way or the other,” Tess mused. She thought about the way Aiden had responded to Micah, and how he’d insisted that she stand up for herself and make her own choices. She did feel comfortable going on this trip, she realized.

  Before she knew it, Saturday arrived. She dropped the dogs next door, and headed to the airport. />
  It wasn’t until she was waiting at her layover in Atlanta and she saw her second flight delayed that Tess felt the nerves return. An engineer was shouting into the phone about how many times that particular plane had already flown with code errors. Turning over his shoulder, he’d looked at her and whispered, “I wouldn’t get on this plane if I were you.”

  Luckily, she hadn’t had to make that decision when they canceled the flight and found a new plane. Tess sat at the airport bar, nursing a mimosa and wondering if she was ignoring the signs right in front of her face. She’d often asked the universe for signs, and what could be a more obvious one than someone straight out telling her not to get on the plane? And yet, here she was, still waiting to board the next flight.

  What’s the worst that could happen? Tess sipped her drink while her very imaginative brain went quickly down a storyline where she was kidnapped, sold to drug cartels, her organs harvested on the black market. She supposed, if she had to go out that way, it would certainly not be a boring ending to her story. Cursing her writer’s brain, she drained her drink and then got in line to board the plane. Because who was she kidding? Sign or no sign, she was getting her ass on that plane and going to Cozumel for the week.

  The plane landed without incident in a surprisingly nice airport, and Tess found herself sharing a taxi with a sweet couple from Kansas.

  “Now, where are you going?” the woman asked, her face crinkling in concern. “It’s not a hotel. Is that safe? I hear you need to only stay at all-inclusives here.”

  “I think it will be fine.” Tess smiled at her. “Cozumel needs tourism to thrive. It’s probably not much more dangerous than the city I live in.”

  “Still, I don’t know how we feel about dropping you at some apartment,” her husband said, his eyes narrowing as the taxi rolled up to a row of stone duplexes that, from the outside, admittedly looked the worse for wear. A man leaned against the door of one with his arms crossed. He straightened when the taxi arrived and smiled.

  “It’ll be fine. Really, I promise. Plus, you guys are staying at the hotel where I’m diving through,” Tess said, getting out of the taxi while the driver unloaded her bag. “If I don’t see you at the dive shop tomorrow, you can worry.”

  “I’ll hold you to that,” the husband said. Tess waved the taxi away, then turned to greet the apartment manager who ushered her in, showed her where the lights and air conditioning were, and handed off the keys. In moments, Tess stood alone, sweating in the humidity, taking in the apartment. It was a two-story duplex, and the first floor had a sunny yellow kitchen with a small dining table, sitting area with stone benches in front of a small television, and a beautiful red hacienda-style tiled floor that ran through the house into the master bedroom and out into the shaded private courtyard. The courtyard pictures had been what had sold her online, and Tess was pleased to see it lived up to the photographs. With two-story-high walls, two swing chairs, a small grill, and a tiny wading pool, it hit all the right notes for a secluded, relaxing area in paradise. A few lush plants were tucked into pots around the pool and by the grill area, and Tess was delighted to see a hummingbird hover over a flower. Checking the time, Tess realized she would be cutting it close if she wanted to get to the market in time so she’d have food for lunches this week. She wanted to be back home to shower and beautify herself before Aiden arrived. Rushing, she dumped her suitcase in the bedroom, grabbed her purse, and quickly Google-mapped the nearest market.

  She ran to the market and raced back, carrying two overloaded bags of food and drinks, then immediately jumped in the shower.

  Why was it so damn humid here? Tess all but screamed, when she stood in front of the bathroom mirror, wrapped in nothing but a towel, looking at her already frizzing hair in dismay. Her phone was buzzing with a message from Aiden, she hadn’t even picked an outfit to greet him in yet, and she could not stop sweating.

  “Lovely, just lovely,” Tess bit out and glanced at the message.

  Hey, I think I’m outside. I still need to go home, but can you come out so I can see which door it is?

  It’s the blue one.

  There’s three blue ones.

  The middle blue one.

  Seriously? Can you just come outside? I’m with my work mates and they all want to get home.

  Grrrr, Tess grit out, and stomped out the front door, still wrapped in her towel, and waved to the truck full of grinning men outside. A wolf whistle greeted her and Tess slammed her way back inside.

  “See you soon!” she heard Aiden call cheerfully after her.

  This was not exactly the way she’d planned to greet him, Tess groused. She pulled a dress over her head, taking a quick photo, and then repeating it with two others. Sending the pictures to her friend, Mae, she waited for a response.

  Wear the floral one with the lace cutouts and the flowers.

  Tess shimmied into her sexy underwear, dashing baby powder on her thighs – anyone who’d spent time in true humidity knew that trick – and put on one of her prettiest bras. Dashing into the kitchen, she dropped an ice cube into a glass and poured some tequila over it, downing it and hoping to ease her nerves. Seriously, could she just stop sweating? Tess wondered, dabbing a dish cloth on her face. The knock came at her door, and Tess drew in a breath, her stomach turning over in knots.

  “He thinks you’re pretty,” Tess reminded herself, and pulling her shoulders back, head held high, she opened the door.

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  “Hey,” Tess said, smiling shyly at Aiden as he stood in the doorway.

  “Wow, you look incredible,” Aiden said immediately.

  Tess beamed at him, loving that his default was to compliment her. It was something so simple, but she had actively craved it in her relationship with Gabe. Missing out on compliments in the past allowed her to appreciate Aiden’s words that much more in the now.

  “Thank you,” Tess said, as he came inside. “You look quite handsome yourself.”

  “I brought you a gift.” Aiden held up a candy cane full of chocolate kisses and a bottle of tequila. “Christmas kisses, and since we’re in Mexico, a good bottle of tequila.”

  “That’s so nice of you.” Charmed, Tess took the bottle from him as he checked out the place.

  “This is a nice place,” Aiden said, not moving far from her.

  “Yeah, I think so, too. The courtyard is really lovely.” Tess stood at the counter, unsure of what to do. Should she kiss him? “Would you like me to make you a drink? I ran to the market quickly before you got in.”

  “We could have a drink…” Aiden moved closer, nudging Tess until her back was against the counter. “But I’ve been thirsty for something else all day.”

  “Oh?” Tess breathed, looking up into his smiling eyes, her pulse picking up at his nearness.

  “Just a taste, Tess.” Aiden dipped his lips to hers, brushing them softly.

  A tingle of excitement shot through Tess and she leaned into him, his arms coming around her and settling at her waist. “Yum,” Tess said, breaking away and laughing up at him when he chuckled.

  “I’m really happy you’re here.” Aiden dipped his head once more to steal a kiss.

  “I am too. I’ll admit, I was pretty nervous on the plane,” Tess said against his mouth, their kisses growing longer as he tasted more, deepening his exploration.

  “I was a bit nervous today too,” Aiden admitted, pulling back to run his hands up and down her arms. “But that went away as soon as I saw you.”

  “Really?” Tess drank in his blue eyes.

  “Really. It feels good to have you here.” She could feel the truth of his words. She knew she should probably play it cool, let him take her out to dinner, have a few drinks or something to loosen up, but strangely she wanted him now – just like this – without the buffer of alcohol to numb any of her nervousness. If anything, the nerves heightened her excitement, and everywhere his hands touched, a trail of heat seemed to follow. Offering him a smile and looki
ng up at him from beneath her lashes, she grabbed his hands in hers.

  Turning, Tess pulled him toward the bedroom. Aiden followed, neither of them speaking, both of them knowing exactly what it was they wanted. They’d spent the last two months flirting toward this, building anticipation, and now that they were actually together, Tess didn’t want to waste a second of it. Standing in front of the bed, she tugged her dress over her head.

  “You’re gorgeous,” Aiden breathed, his hands coming to her hips and slowly trailing up her sides. He gently nudged her back on the bed, crawling after her so that he kneeled over her.

  “Really?” Tess asked, and then mentally kicked herself for coming across as needy. She was supposed to be this confident romance-novel writer, not an insecure divorcee. Though there was truth to both, she supposed, being a true Gemini at heart.

  “So beautiful,” Aiden said, bending to capture her lips once more before trailing a kiss down the side of her neck to nibble at her throat, sending little thrills of lust through her. “Here… and here.” His lips followed a downward path until he found her breasts, and reaching around with one hand, he freed her easily from her bra. Tess arched an eyebrow at him.

  “Done that a few times?”

  “Practice makes perfect, darling.” Aiden returned his attention, and his mouth, to her breasts. Tess reveled in his touch, and his murmured words of approval, as he roundly complimented every inch of her his mouth could find. When he dipped lower, Tess clenched her hands into the sheets, everything falling away but for the ball of pleasure he was building in her, which threatened to overtake her at any moment. Arching into him, she cried out as he skillfully pushed her over the edge, tumbling her into a well of need. Desperate for him, Tess sat up and tugged at his arms, pulling him so he covered her body.

  “I need you,” Tess gasped against his mouth. Aiden nodded, his lips barely leaving hers as he discarded his jeans, taking a moment to protect them both, before hovering over her on his arms.