Page 5 of The Fake Boyfriend Excursion

She's sitting where I left, her gaze unfocused until I speak. Tipping her head back, she meets my eyes. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Do you want to go to bed? Are you still tired?" It's not even quite nine o'clock, but I know it's been an emotionally wrought day for her, so I don't mind if we head to bed early.

She nods slowly. "I am tired. Thank you again for letting me stay with you."

When she starts to lay back down, I grab her hand. "No, not out here. That couch is horrible. There's no way you can survive sleeping on it the rest of the trip."

Her brows wrinkle. "But there's only one bedroom."

"I know," I say with what I hope comes off as a reassuring smile, "but the bed in there is huge, so I think the two of us can share it without any mishaps."

She stares at me for a long time, but I just wait her out. Just as I'm beginning to wonder if maybe I somehow broke her brain, she starts to shake her head slowly.

"You don't have to do that. I'm perfectly fine on the couch."

Scoffing, I give her hand a tug until she's standing right in front of me, her curvy frame coming up just beneath my chin. "You'll end up with a back that hates you by morning. Now, enough arguing."

I watch her throat bob, and then her pink tongue darts out as she wets her lips, and I have to bite back a groan. There's no way she doesn't know what she's doing to me, is there?

"Okay," she finally says, voice barely more than a whisper.

I nod and gesture toward the door that leads to the bedroom. "Go ahead and head in and get comfortable. I'm going to get cleaned up. You can sleep on the side farthest from the door."

She just nods, not questioning my request, and heads into the bedroom. I go in and take a quick shower, giving myself a perfunctory orgasm in the hopes I won’t end up poking at her come morning.

I turn off the lights in the rest of the suite and then step into the bedroom. She's left the lamp on my side of the bed on, curled on her side facing the other direction.

I turn it off and slip underneath the covers, letting out a quiet breath as my body settles on the mattress. Yesterday, I'd hatedthe idea of being stuck on this boat with so many strangers and in the room right next to my brother as he fucked the woman of my dreams, and now she’s in my bed and the rest of the trip is looking a lot more interesting.

Just as I start to doze off, she turns over. I suck in a breath as she plasters her warm body against my side, snuggling in close.

Yeah, the rest of this cruise is going to be damn good.

3

As soon asmy sister Annabeth’s face appears on Trick's computer screen, I start to feel a little better. The two of us have been close our whole lives, like two peas in a pod, even though she’s almost two years older than me.

Growing up, we'd formed a sort of team, us against our parents. Not because they were abusive. They just put certain expectations on us, ones that neither one of us felt were fair or always fell in line with what we actually wanted for ourselves, so we became each other's support system, each other's cheerleader.

When Beth gave birth to sweet, little Eleanor a couple of months ago, I had been right by her side, holding her hand, and this is the first time I've been away since Eleanor was born. Even before Beth had moved back to Stonewood Ridge a couple of weeks ago, I saw her and Eleanor almost every day. I usually drove over after work and would fuss over the baby for a few hours, feed her dinner, get her ready for bed, and give Beth a break.

"Hey, you," she says, grinning at me in that way I'd become familiar with ever since Eleanor's birth: cheerful but exhausted. My poor sister needs more help, but Eleanor's bio dad wasuseless and a big part of the reason why Beth had moved back home with our parents. Taking no for an answer turned out wasn't his strong suit. "I didn't think I'd be able to talk to you while you were gone."

I make a face and huff out of breath. "Me either, but Chad's brother, Trick, paid for some WiFi package and he said I could call or video chat with you if I wanted to, anytime I wanted."

"That was nice of him," Beth says, glancing off-screen at something and her whole face softens, so I know she's looking at Eleanor.

"Is she sleeping? Let me see her."

Beth laughs, but a second later, she settles back down in front of her computer with my chubby-cheeked niece in her arms. "Say hi to Auntie Ginny," Beth says, waving Eleanor's little hand at me.

She's so freaking cute, I can't handle it. My insides ache for a baby of my own, but after what happened with Chad, I feel further away than ever from getting my own family. I suppose I'll just have to keep loving on Eleanor instead.

"So what's going on?" Beth says, patting Eleanor’s tiny butt. "Why aren't you out enjoying the sun or doing some shopping? I was checking out the boat online and that place is sweet. Some of the restaurants sound amazing."

"Yeah," I say slowly, "There's been a little change in plan."

Beth's eyes widen. "What does that mean? Did something happen? Is the boat turning around?"

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