1
Bree
I should’ve stoppedafter the first tequila shot.
But I didn’t, because a girl doesn’t escape with her friends for an island vacation so she can make smart decisions. Getting away, going overboard, nursing a bitch of a hangover in the morning and doing it all again, that’s the whole point of our trip to this small island off the coast of Costa Rica.
We arrived at dawn, and already I feel more relaxed than I have in forever. Nobody ever said college would be easy, especially when working five days a week on top of it, but it’s worth it. I can say that now that my last class is over and I have no more papers or exams on the horizon.
“Come on. You earned it after all the shit you’ve been through.” My best friend, Darla, knows all about how hard it’s been. Kim, too, my other roommate. They’ve been supportive as hell this whole time, making sure there’s food for me in the fridge since I forget to eat when I’m in the middle of a project. Coffee, too—I purchased one of those coffeemakers you can schedule in advance but never remembered to program it.
Now, the three of us are hundreds of miles from home and ready for a week of nothing but swimming, tanning, and drinking too much.
And men. As many men as we can get our hands on. Granted, that’s maybe the last item on my list—the girls are way more excited to get laid this week than I am. Not that I don’t want to, but I’m happier about a week with no responsibilities than anything else.
Though, yeah… I would like to meet somebody. Maybe more than one somebody. I deserve it after years of having barely enough time to take a shower and get a few hours of sleep. Let’s just say sex has been pretty far from the front of my mind.
A little tequila has me thinking otherwise. “No more shots for me. I’ll have a margarita, though.” The bartender by the pool starts my drink while my friends try to persuade me to do another shot with them.
“I’m not trying to puke all over the place. Remember when we rented a carpet shampooer because I threw up all over the living room?”
Darla waves a hand before stumbling against me. “Whatever. You don’t live here. Somebody else will clean up after you.”
She downs another shot before dancing away, and soon I can’t see her anymore for the surrounding people. It’s hot out here, sticky, but nobody seems to mind. I draw my long, blonde hair into a ponytail to get it off the nape of my neck before taking my drink out to the patio, where everybody’s dancing while multicolored lights flash over the crowd.
It’s good to move, and I remind myself that it doesn’t matter if I get a little crazy. I’ll never see these people again, and it’s not like any jobs I apply for now that I’ve graduated will know I loosened up on vacation.
“Hey!” a cute guy shouts in my ear, since the music is so loud.
I nod to him and don’t bother moving away when he gets closer. It’s been forever since I got laid, and he’s wearing a killer smile. His body’s not bad either, at least what I can see from his tight t-shirt. It’s the sort of chest a girl wants to rest her head against, and shoulders I wouldn’t mind clawing to pieces while he’s on top of me. Damn, I need to get laid worse than I thought.
“What’s your name?” he asks as he presses against me from behind.
“Bree.”
“I’m Jake.”
I nod and smile and know I won’t remember the name by tomorrow morning, but it doesn’t matter. The girls are right. I should remove the stick from my ass—the ass Jake’s brushing against with his groin. A little firmer than he would if it were accidental. I lean into him, encouraging him to do more. His hands find my hips and we sway to the upbeat rhythm while he pulls me up against what’s definitely a hardening dick.
It’s fantastic until somebody walks past and Jake ends up bumping into me hard enough that I spill my drink all over my feet. “Shit, I’m sorry,” Jake calls out, looking like a sad puppy. “I’ll buy you a fresh one.”
“That’s okay.” But he won’t let it go, so we head over to the bar and he orders me a margarita. I’m seriously buzzed, but not so buzzed I’m going to forget everything I’ve ever been told about accepting drinks from random guys.
Kim slams into me and almost falls over, she’s giggling so hard. “Sorry, babe.” She eyes Jake and winks at me. Nice, she mouths. “I was sure you’d end up with that guy on the other side of the pool, though.”
I crane my neck to look around her, scanning for whoever she’s talking about. It doesn’t take me long to find him, since he doesn’t even pretend like he’s not staring at me. Total psycho behavior, right there. He’s alone, and not drinking, just standing there with his hands in his pockets.
“He’s been watching you all night.” Kim nudges me with her elbow, waggling her eyebrows. “And he’s hot.”
Yeah, he’s gorgeous, with the whole ‘tall, dark and handsome’ thing going on. He’s also scary looking. He’s got this intensity I can feel all the way across the wide patio even though I’m half-drunk. I almost choose to go over and tell him to find somebody else to stare at, but I don’t want to get that close to him.
A random guy pulls Kim away, ending our conversation. She grinds on him and I’m glad because I won’t get pushed into hooking up with some random guy just because he’s hot. Kim’s not so great at taking no for an answer, and knowing her, she’d go over to the guy and tell him I’m interested. Whoever distracted her, I should buy him a drink.
“Here you go.” Jake nudges my drink closer, and I thank him before taking a gulp to cool myself off. “Hopefully you get to drink this one.”
He really is cute—curly brown hair, and blue eyes I can’t stop looking at every time I glance his way. They’re like magnets pulling me in. “Thanks.”
“So, you staying at the resort?” He jerks his chin toward the long, white building beyond the pool.