Page 82 of Going Overboard

‘Jessa, we know she did it,’ he says softly. ‘Everyone knows she did it. She took your dress, she pushed you into the pool – you could probably accuse her of anything right now, whether she did it or not, and everyone would believe you because she showed the world who she really was tonight.’

I sigh, letting my shoulders sink, letting go of some of my tension.

‘She just went full villain,’ he continues. ‘You don’t have anything to prove to anyone, everyone loves you, everyone is mad at her. But if she comes here and finds us going through her things it’s only going to make her worse and give her ammunition to say you’re giving as good as you’re getting. Don’t give her oxygen, suffocate her.’

I open my mouth to speak, a cheeky smile taking control of my face.

‘Not literally,’ he says with a laugh. ‘Come on, let’s go get changed, let’s go back to the pa?—’

We hear the door beep from where we are, letting us know that Todd and Nikki are back, and you just know they’re going to come in here. It sounds like they’re arguing.

‘Shit,’ I whisper. ‘They’re going to find us in here. She’s going to go mad.’

Brody’s eyes scan the room.

‘Quick, the balcony,’ he says, nodding towards the door. ‘It connects to the living room one.’

We rush to the glass door and slip outside, closing the doorbehind us. There’s a privacy screen between the two balconies, which you can open from this side, so we head through it, closing it behind us. I swear we do it just in time.

‘I think we might actually have got away with that one,’ Brody says, puffing air from his cheeks.

‘Thanks to you,’ I tell him.

The cool night air clings to our wet clothes. I’m chilly, even with a towel wrapped around me.

Brody peeks in through the glass door into the living room.

‘No one’s in the living area,’ he says. ‘We’re good. Let’s go.’

He tries the door handle but nothing happens.

‘Very funny,’ I tell him – he’s such a wind-up merchant, even when the timing isn’t ideal.

He jiggles it again, then turns to me, sheepish.

‘It is actually locked,’ he says. ‘From the inside.’

I stare at him.

‘And the privacy gates only open from the other side, don’t they?’ I say, already knowing the answer. ‘So we can’t get back to their room, or to ours.’

‘I could try and climb over?’ he suggests, eyeing it up.

‘Oh my God, Brody Ryan, don’t you dare,’ I say firmly. ‘I’m not jazzed about being trapped out here, but it’s definitely preferable to you falling overboard.’

‘I’m an athlete, I’d be fine,’ he says. ‘Climbing, I mean.’

‘I suppose, on the plus side, if you did fall to your death I could probably tell people that Nikki pushed you,’ I joke. ‘You did say they would believe me.’

‘Well, just for you, I won’t attempt the climb, even though I’m absolutely certain I can do it,’ he says, potentially a little tongue in cheek. ‘But if I meet a watery demise any other way, you have my blessing to pin it on Nikki.’

‘Thanks,’ I say, reaching out, squeezing his shoulder. ‘Wow, how are you still warm?’

‘I took my wet clothes off faster,’ he says. ‘While you were rifling through Todd’s underpants drawer.’

‘Fond memories of that,’ I say sarcastically. ‘Can you help me take my wet dress off, please?’

‘Of course,’ he replies.

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