Page 18 of Match Made in the Maldives

“Look,” I say, my voice low. “Everything from last night aside, a sunset boat ride and everybody on board treating us like we’re dating…I doubt your boyfriend would appreciate this.”

“Would you stop mentioning him, please?”

“If he doesn’t like the two of us hanging out, then…” I can’t bring myself to speak the possibilities. He might prevent us from seeing each other, and I’d get less and less of Lou all the time. What would I do then? I couldn’t handle that. “Is he okay with this?” I go on. “You and me. Here?”

“Yes.”

“And last night?”

She shrugs.

“Lou, I admire the hell out of you, but if you care so little about cheating on your boyfriend, you’re not—”

“I didnotcheat,” she snaps.

“You were—” I lower my voice, not that the staff would hear us over the wind and waves. “You were on top of me. How far would we have gone?”

“Tanner and I broke up, okay?” she hisses, taking another hefty gulp of her sparkling wine.

“What?” My brain trips over what she said. “When?”

“End of January. Couple weeks after Aaron’s party.”

“Geez, I’m…Lou, I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” she says, running her thumb along the base of her glass. “We hadn’t been working out for a long time.”

Her hair breezes behind her as the boat sails toward the cotton candy clouds of pink and orange on the horizon. Her chest risesand falls, and she leans back onto her elbows with her legs straight out.

“You think that little of me?” she asks.

I lean on one elbow to level with her. “I think the world of you. That’s why I was confused.”

She fiddles with some of the beading on her beach cover-up. The flimsy, sheer fabric allows me to trace the outline of her bikini with my eyes. “I wouldn’t ever do something like that. He’s the one who cheated.”

“You’re kidding.” I blink, processing what she’s revealed. “He slept around on you?”

“Lots of times. It’s a miracle I tested clean after the fun he had.”

“Shit.” I drag my hand down my face. What a moron. How does he end up with the most magnificent woman and then treat her like trash?

“Things with me and him weren’t going great for a while. Not that it’s an excuse for what he did. But when I found the dating app on his phone and the messages, the first thing that came to mind wasI’m free.”

“Free?”

“I…I’d wanted me and him to work out so badly, especially at the beginning. I didn’t want to admit we weren’t such a perfect couple after all. If I did enough, I hoped maybe we could turn things around.”

“He’s a piece of shit.”

“Agreed.” She taps her champagne glass against mine. “Feels good to tell someone. To tell you.”

“No one knows?”

“It happened right after Dad was declared cancer-free. Whenever I called them or saw them, I just…I can’t explain it.” She picks at the cuticle of her thumb with her forefinger. “I didn’t want to have sad memories with my mom and dadanymore. I wanted some good stuff to tip the scales back. We spent so much time scared and uncertain of the future, and I wanted them to be happy, to be healthy, and to see that I’m living up to their expectations. Besides, Tanner’s a charmer. My parents like him.”

When Lou first brought Tanner to an Easter brunch her folks organized, no one else had any reason to hate the guy like me. He’d upset Lou when she approached me at the bar that one night, so I didn’t need to know anything more. Before we kissed, I’d told her to promise me she’d reflect on all the ways she’s amazing, to know some guys would give everything to spend a Friday evening with her, and to reconsider what a worthy partner meant to her. She’d agreed in the moment. Based on the timeline she described over deviled eggs at her parent’s place, though, she and Tanner started going out officially that weekend. I’d figured Lou didn’t remember a thing about our kiss. She only ever mentioned it again on the evening of Aaron’s birthday party after consuming way too much gin.

I’ve thought about both those nights a lot.

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