There’s barely a breeze out here, but the faint movement of air that’s gently wisping against my skin is a perfect counter to the heat already building as the sun rises in the sky.
“What do you think?” I ask Trigg. “Lobster for lunch?”
“Sounds good to me,” he says before turning to one of the stewards. “I’ll have a kale and starfruit smoothie, please.”
“We don’t have much planned for today,” Jude says. “Do we want to break out the jet skis again? Maybe get out the fishing gear?”
“How about some diving lessons?” I offer. “We can start with something simple. Maybe practice some breath holds.”
“That’d be good,” the chief says. “After breakfast has settled.”
It’s Daniel who emerges next, but he’s not alone. He’s reaching behind his back, Emma holding his hand as they make their way out of the glass doors.
That woman is a vision. She’s tamed her hair from the unruly mess we made of it last night, and she’s wearing nothing but a thin silk robe and a sleepy smile.
Emma lets go of Daniel’s hand as she pauses to talk to a steward, and Daniel continues on toward us, taking a place at one of the empty chairs around the table.
A moment later, she approaches the table and her smile grows by leaps and bounds. “Good morning, boys.”
“Good morning,” several of us say at the same time.
Her fingers curl around the back of the only empty seat, but I hold out my arms and motion to my lap. “Come over here.”
She strolls around the table, hair blowing gently in the breeze, and her eyes trail along my legs to where my feet are resting in Jax’s lap. “This does look like a good spot for me.”
Emma settles into my lap, propping her legs up on mine, her feet not able to quite reach to Jax’s stomach. He relinquishes my calves in favor of her much smaller legs and begins to rub his hands along her ankle, working his thumbs in circles.
Emma lets out a satisfied sigh, her head falling back on my shoulder. I grin at Jax, giving him a wink as I wrap my arms around her and pull her tight.
This right here, this is the good life.
7
THAT SMILE ON HER FACE is priceless.
Completely satiated, exhausted in the best way, and entirely on cloud nine. I would be too if I had those hot as sin men all to myself.
Never mind the cabana boys.
Emma’s managed to hit the jackpot — five times over. They haven’t stopped lavishing her with attention since the night of the gala. Now they’re going to see that her every need is met for the rest of her life. And my stubborn ex-roommate is finally letting them do it.
I guess, if I’m really honest with myself, that’s part of the reason I’m so eager to take this job. The ex-roommate part, that is.
Sure, we haven’t lived together for a while now, and I’ve officially moved in with Callie and Cora, whom I adore. But it’s all felt temporary, until now. I’ve been living with Emma since college. We’ve been through thick and thin, the two of us.
If I stuck around, I’m pretty sure I’d feel her absence even more than I have been, now that everything is official with the guys and they’re settling fully into their new lives.
I already miss her not being there when I come in the door, standing in the kitchen with dishes piled high in the sink from her most recent bake-a-thon. And when I get up in the middle of the night now, the apartment is quiet. Callie and Cora are sound asleep, and there’s no Emma sitting in the living room, pulling one of her crazy all-nighters to work on a coding project.
It’s just not going to be the same without her. It’s been a good reminder that it’s high time I find my own adventures and stop living vicariously through Emma. I need to follow my own bliss, whatever that may be. That’s the first thing I need to figure out.
Emma’s voice pulls me out of my revelry. “Okay, so which of you knew about the yacht?”
A silence falls inside the canopy set up on the beach for our girls-only lunch. I poke at my elegant cup of fruit, a crooked smile pulling at my lips.
Callie lifts her hands in surrender. “I swear, those guys were mum the entire time. They didn’t tell me a thing.”
“Not a word,” Cora agrees. “When you all pulled up to the dock in that thing this morning, my jaw about hit the floor.”
Emma narrows in on me, her lips pursed, and she blinks expectantly. “Zoey?”
My crooked smile pulls free into a guilty smile. “What? The guys needed a few inside details. You’ve been talking about your dream yacht for years.”
“I knew it!” Emma tosses a piece of kiwi at me, and I barely have enough time to get my hands up to swat it away before it hits me square in the boob.
“Hey!” I protest. “Tell the truth — that thing is perfect down to the tiniest detail.”
Emma lets out a dreamy sigh. “It really is.”
Callie straightens, an excited smile on her face. “So, do we get a tour before you set sail for the far reaches of the world? Or are you guys staying local?”
“Of course, you can have a tour!” Emma nods. “As far as travel, we have a very loose itinerary plan. We’ll island hop around the Caribbean a little then start heading south. At some point we’re going to wind up off the coast of South America at this spot that’s supposed to have some of the best scuba diving in the entire world.”
“But you don’t know how to scuba dive,” I say.
Emma looks puzzled for a moment, probably because my statement seems so abrupt. But I’ve been doing my research on scuba diving since it’s one of the things I’ll need to become certified in for my new job.
Not that she knows that. Not yet, anyway, but she’s going to find out soon enough.
“No, I don’t,” she admits with a shrug. “But Gunner is a Master Diver. He qualified for it back in the Marines as part of his Explosive Ordnance Disposal training. He’s kept up on his certification, and he’s going to teach us all so we can be green for go by the time we get there.”
“Gunner in a dive suit...” Callie stares off into space, her mouth going slack for a moment. “Do they even make them in his size?”
Cora smacks Callie on the arm. “Stop trying to picture it, you’re drooling on yourself and Emma is sitting right there.”
“I’m not picturing it like that,” she says with a snort.
“Mm-hmm, sure,” Cora says with a dubious expression.
Callie turns to Emma. “I wasn’t, I promise.”
“Well, I am,” Emma tells her, laughing as she reaches for her champagne flute. “I can’t wait to see all five of them in wetsuits.”
Cora pushes away an empty plate and cradles her mimosa. “I’m kinda surprised all of you are taking so much time off from Pentabyte, especially now with all the growth you’re experiencing.”
“Oh, we aren’t, not really. That yacht is outfitted with office space and has been equipped with everything we’ll need to work remotely. We have a daily conference call scheduled with headquarters.”
Callie scrunches her nose. “That sounds a lot like... work.”
Emma shrugs one shoulder. “But I love it, what can I say? I love programming, I love being a part of Pentabyte, and I love those men. So, for a geek at heart, it’s kinda awesome, you know? Even if it is during our honeymoon. And, I mean, if I have to work, doing it from a yacht in the middle of paradise is pretty great.”
“True. I guess that’s not so bad,” Callie agrees. “And it is a long honeymoon, so it’s not like you won’t have time to enjoy yourselves, too.”
“Speaking of,” Emma says. “We’ll be gathering a few things and saying our goodbyes today, because we’re setting off early in the morning. But, here’s the thing — there’s about a bajillion guest rooms on that boat. Anyone want to come out on our maiden voyage? You all have another week of vacation left, so?”
Callie’s eyes light up. “Seriously? That would be so fun!”
Emma nods enthusiastically. “Yes,
definitely! You should come with us!”
Callie opens her mouth to respond but before the first syllable comes out, Cora delivers a sharp elbow to her arm, silencing her.
The sisters glare at each other for a moment before Cora says, “That’s a wonderful offer, but you don’t need us hanging around. I think you’ll want that yacht all to yourselves — you know, christening it and all.”
My thoughts are in line with Cora’s, but her younger sister protests. “Hey, she invited us.”
Cora raises her eyebrows. “That boat is going to be a rockin’ for the next week, at least. You really want to invade their honeymoon like that?”
“You won’t be invading, I assure you,” Emma says quickly. “I’d love to have you all come sailing with us, seriously.”
“See?” Callie says, squinting back at her sister victoriously. “I think Emma knows if it’s safe for us to be on board or not, plus, have you seen the size of that thing? Nothing’s going to rock it, not even if there were two dozen Gunner-sized men doing gymnastics.”
Her older sister lets out an exasperated huff of air. “Well, if you must, then by all means, go. But it’ll just be you. I have some cabana boys who need attending to right here, thank you. I’m not about to step onto a boat for a week where all the men are taken, not when I have a buffet of fine-looking guys right here.”
“Yeah, that’s a good plan for you, but I’m not here for the guys,” Callie reminds her.
“You won’t be here for Don, either, if you get on that yacht and sail away. Or did you forget about him?”
That halts Callie in her tracks. “Oh my God! I did — I was so excited about Emma’s offer that I almost forgot he’s flying to the islands!”
Emma laughs. “He’s going to love it here.”
Callie gives her sister a haughty smile. “You can keep your cabana boys. My man’s going to keep me plenty busy.”
A nose nudges my hand, and I reach down to pet Mabel’s head. She’s stuck by my side most of the time we’ve been here.
God, I’m going to miss her, too.
But I know leaving is the right thing to do. I can feel it in my bones. Something is calling me. I don’t know what it is yet, but it’s stirring up a restless spirit inside me, making it hard to just relax and enjoy my time here.
I’m sitting under a canopy on a gorgeous tropical beach, the weather is absolutely perfect, and the staff of this resort has been pampering the hell out of me. I’m surrounded by amazing friends and happy wedding guests — and yet, I feel alone.
I’m so happy for Emma, but this isn’t my story. I’m grateful for her friendship and my heart is full because so many of the people I love are sitting at this table, but there’s still... something missing. Whatever it is, I know I’m not going to find it here at this resort, or back home in the city.
It’s waiting for me, out there somewhere.
“What about you?” Emma startles me out of my pensive thoughts. “You wanna hit the high seas with me for a few days? Work on that tan you have going on?”
I take a deep breath. I’ve been putting it off, but now is as good a time as ever. “Actually, I’ve got some news to share.”
Emma’s smile doesn’t falter, but after all these years, I can identify the concern and curiosity that fill her eyes. “I kinda figured. I’ve felt like there’s something you’ve wanted to tell me. What’s up?”
I nod and clear my throat. “There is. You remember how I took the plunge and applied for the Pegasus Program?”
She lights up. “Remember? How could I forget?”
I tug at my ear, stalling as I take a deep breath. I don’t know why I’m so nervous to just tell her. Maybe because it’ll make it real. Nothing’s official until you tell your best friend, right? “Well, I’ve been accepted.”
“What? Oh my God!” Emma practically tosses her mimosa as she jumps from her seat and wraps me up in a bear hug. “That’s fantastic news!”
“Thank you,” I say, squeezing my arms around her.
After a moment, we pull apart and she holds me at arm’s length, shaking her head at me, amazement shining in her eyes. “I’m so happy for you! You’ve been talking about this for years.”
Emma’s enthusiasm brings a smile to my face. “I know. I’m pretty excited. But, that means I have to get going a little sooner than anticipated.”
Emma sits back down, awareness coming over her. “That’s right. They have a really intense training program.”
I grimace, but my eyes are still sparkling with excitement. “Yeah. I’ve heard it’s pretty insane. But I’m ready for the challenge. Or, at least, I hope I am!”
My best friend’s face wrinkles in confusion. “But wait... I thought you said they were already fully booked with staff for the year.”
I nod and tuck a wayward strand of hair behind my ear. “The regular program, yes. But when I was visiting my brother, we were talking about it, and I swear that man has connections everywhere. Turns out this guy he went to college with works for the organization, and my brother got to talking to him about it. Pegasus is starting a new program this season, an adventure tour fleet.”
“What? That’s awesome!”
“It’s kind of an experiment. They want to see if they can use the adventure tours to help fund the charity program.”
Callie leans forward in rapt attention, but Cora is the one who pipes up. “Hey, you didn’t say it was an adventure tour. You just said it was a cruise.”
“Wait, you knew?” Emma narrows her eyes at them playfully.
“Well, I had to tell someone,” I admit with a laugh. “I couldn’t hold it all in. But I didn’t want to take away from all your excitement this week. So that’s why I didn’t say anything sooner.”
“Get back to this adventure tour thing,” Callie says, waving a hand through the air. “What does that mean? It sounds... dangerous.”
Cora rolls her eyes. “Ignore her — she thinks trying a new restaurant is dangerous.”
“Well, don’t worry,” I tell them, “because the adventures aren’t for the staff. They’re for the rich clients. They get to do all these once-in-a-lifetime events and visit amazing places off the beaten path. Meanwhile, I’ll be on the boat.”
“Well, either way, I’m thrilled for you.” Emma lifts her mimosa. “This calls for a celebration. A proper send-off, for all of us. We need to have a party tonight, and a feast fit for kings!”
8
THE LARGE TENT HAS been erected on the beach once more.
It’s our last gala. Our big sendoff dinner before we set sail.
Brilliant strings of lights hang from the top of the sheer fabric, creating a scene to rival the bright stars in the tropical nighttime sky outside. A lovely, cooling breeze comes through the ends of the structure, bringing with it the scents of palm trees and saltwater.
There are still several dozen guests here with us, the ones who took us up on our offer to use the resort island for the next week as a vacation getaway for themselves and their families. My parents have stayed, as did all the guys’ parents, too — at least the ones who are still alive to celebrate with us.
It’s been beyond fabulous, having our big, extended family here, all of us together in this beautiful paradise.
And the guys’ parents have been absolutely amazing. I couldn’t have asked for a more accepting group of in-laws, even with the awkwardness on my father’s face when he was introduced to all of them for the first time.
The six of us, however, will be leaving on The Foxy Lady first thing in the morning for our extended honeymoon. Although I will miss my friends and family, I can’t wait to spend the next month sailing the high seas with my guys.
Gunner and I joked about changing the company name from Pentabyte to Sexbyte — a play on words since there are six of us now. We thought it was clever, but Jude said it made us sound like we’re running a porn site, then Daniel pointed out that we’d be changing languages—penta being Greek, and the prefix sex be
ing Latin.
Fine. Pentabyte it shall remain.
Speaking of Gunner...
I wrap my arms around his thick core, nestling in from behind and laying my cheek on the back of his shoulder. “What have you been up to? You’ve been hanging out here at the edge of the tent since dinner was cleared away. Taking in the sunset?”
Gunner’s big hand smooths across my forearm as he keeps his gaze locked on the beach outside. His smile is enormous. “Just doing some spying.”
My curiosity piqued, I step to his side so I can see where he’s pointing. “Agent Roth and his girlfriend?”
“If her reaction to him taking a knee is any sign, I’d say she’s now his fiancée.”
The two are drawing nearer to the tent, and indeed, they appear lovestruck. She hangs on his arm much the way I’m doing with Gunner right now. Something about the situation brings a knot to my throat.
Granted, I’ve been pretty emotional all week, but to think that our union could inspire another happy pairing... I blink away the tears.
“Do we get to make an announcement?” I ask.
“Damn right we do,” Gunner says. “Trigg is upgrading their cabin to the bridal suite right now. We won’t be needing it anymore. We can spend the night on the yacht.”
My skin flushes hot with the memory of what these men did to me last night. A whole month of us together on the yacht. I don’t know if my body can handle it, but I’m damn sure going to find out.
I pull on Gunner’s hand. “Come on, let’s get back to our table before they get here.”
As we near our table at the head of the tent, Gunner gives Jude an excited thumbs-up signal.
Jude stands, clanging a spoon on his glass. The hum of conversation dies down, and all heads turn to him.
“Thank you all so much for coming. Being surrounded by so many friends and family has been an honor,” he tells our assembly of guests, tipping his glass toward his own parents. “We’re so grateful that all of you have joined us here in this beautiful place to celebrate this momentous occasion with us. But, now we must leave you.”
Tempting Offer: A Reverse Harem Romance (The Code Book 6) Page 8