Page 19 of Blue Hawaiian
“I wouldn’t know, since you blocked me from your life. Which was a dick move, by the way. That’s not how friends treat each other.”
He gave an exasperated sigh. “Because you didn’t want to be friends then. You wanted a relationship. And that wasn’t going to happen. I did it for your own good.”
Nothing worse than a man telling you he’d done something for your own good. “You did it because you couldn’t be bothered with me. You got what you wanted and decided to bail.”
“Jess, you were eighteen. And you were leaving for college in three weeks. It wouldn’t have worked out.”
“You could have told me that up front. If I’d known all you wanted was sex, I never would have jumped into bed with you.”
“Liar. You wanted it every bit as much as I did.”
She stared at him in rage, itching to smack the knowing smile right off his face. Not because his words stung. Because they were true.
Gabi appeared beside her. “Everything okay here? Jess, you should get out of the sun for a while. You look flushed.”
“It has nothing to do with the sun,” Jess said. But she was glad for a reason to end the conversation. She turned and waded back to the shore with Gabi.
“I thought you guys were getting along,” Gabi said. “You seemed fine at first.”
“Until I remembered what a jerk he was.” Now she regretted the way she’d confided in him over brandy.
“Just forget about him, okay? You and Lance will have a great time tonight.”
She intended to. More than anything, she wanted to make Connor jealous. She wanted him to realize what he’d given up and make him regret it.
Chapter 7
As Connor headed back to his room, he cursed himself for fighting with Jess.
Last night, he’d taken the first step in reaching out to her after five years apart.
But now he’d fucked things up again.
The beach outing had offered him the perfect opportunity to apologize to her. Instead, he’d argued with her about Luisa. Which was ridiculous. Even if he found Luisa attractive, he didn’t plan to take things any further. Not when he was trying to clean up his reputation.
Besides, if he wanted anyone, it was Jess.
Damn it.
He could blame his attraction on the sight of her in that minuscule bikini. But it wasn’t only the physical contact he craved. He missed the connection they’d shared. Not just their love of movies, but the way they’d commiserated with each other as kids, both living in the shadows of their perfect siblings. They were the troublemakers, the screwups, the ones least likely to succeed.
And for years, he’d been the only one who knew about her writing.
When he first found out about it, he was sixteen. After a night of partying on Big Bear Lake, he returned to Blackwood Lodge at 2:00 a.m., only to discover he was locked out. He wandered over to the cabin where the Chavez girls were staying. Seeing Jess’s light on, he threw rocks at her window until she came down and let him in. She confessed she’d been up late, writing a fantasy novel in secret, because she didn’t want her family to know about it.
He’d never told anyone. But every year, when their families were at Big Bear, he asked her for updates. In turn, she filled him in on the latest plot developments, excited to be sharing her story with someone.
You have to try harder to fix things with her. And apologize properly, for fuck’s sake.
But not tonight. BecauseLancewould be in the picture.
* * *
After showeringoff the sand and saltwater, Connor spent a few hours on a shaded chaise at one of the resort’s pools, engrossed in a gripping mystery novel. He’d considered driving into Lahaina, but he was still wiped from yesterday’s travel. After a late-afternoon nap, he arose in time to dress for the sunset cruise.
If it were up to him, he would have skipped the outing completely. He’d just as soon take his car and drive to a secluded beach to watch the sunset. But after promising Marc he’d participate in some of the planned activities, he didn’t want to let his cousin down.
As he left his hotel room, Jess emerged at the same time. At first, he was too stunned to speak. During their summers at Big Bear, she’d always worn shorts and t-shirts and barely any makeup. This Jess was someone he didn’t recognize. Her dark curls were artfully tamed, and her body was poured into a tight, jade-green dress that bared her shoulders and scarcely covered her butt. High-heeled sandals accentuated her shapely legs.
