Page 5 of Sand in My Boots

“Then why do you look like this?”

I face him, schooling my expression into something other than wonderment. Or at least I try to. Thoughts of Juli Langley spiral through my mind, tumbling around looking for a place to land.

“It would be wrong to grab a beer in the middle of the workday, right?”

Silas shrugs. “Wrong, but not unacceptable. As long as you’re actually not going out on the water this afternoon.”

I shake my head. “Overseeing the badminton tournament.” I groan at the thought of what a boring event it’s going to be. “Two beers should take the edge off, dull the pain of watching guests attempt to play a game that should never have been invented.”

Silas cackles, a few guests turning their heads toward us. “Tell me how you really feel.” He slaps my back, his hand resting there as he encourages me forward.

He’s referring to my feelings about badminton, but my thoughts are stuck on a certain blond. One I shouldn’t know on such an intimate level.

If only I could convince myself that another time would be wrong in so many ways.

Chapter 3

Juli

“Okay, so Cameron’s a hottie. You ever tap that?”

Thank goodness I had already swallowed the sip of mai tai before Erica asked the question. With my luck, I would have choked and regurgitated my lunch all over the pool deck.

When I told her and Jonah to eat without me, she readily agreed, but only because she wanted to give me time to settle in my room and would meet me at the pool afterward. I inquired if any of the other guests had arrived, to which she gave me some convoluted answer that in no way answered my question of whether anyone else was here. Since she didn’t seem concerned about spending time with just me, I dropped the subject.

After checking in—and being upgraded to my very own suite—I had to lie down, needing to shake off the flight and seeing Cameron so soon after arriving. Can’t a girl at least get checked in before being sandbagged to interact with such a force of nature that is Cameron Fairbanks?

The medium brown hair, slightly longer than when I saw him last.

The light scruff on his jaw.

His trim build, the striking green eyes, the tan skin, the abs under his shirt.

I assume he’s got abs. Fourteen years ago, he had filled out more than when I first met him, with a hint of definition in his abdomen. Now, the way he filled out the T-shirt he was wearing, I’m guessing he exercises. This close to the ocean, no doubt he takes advantage of water sports.

I didn’t mean to actually fall asleep, but I guess I was more drained than I thought. I woke to a pounding on the door, and I found Erica on the other side of it once I came to. She marched in, dug through my bag, and produced my bikini, shoving it in my arms and forcing me to the bathroom to change. When I protested about food, she declared, “They serve food at the pool.”

We’re currently sitting on lounge chairs at the pool closest to my suite. A handful of palm trees spaced out along the sundeck provide minimal shade, creating the perfect spot for relaxation and soaking up the sun. The poolside bar offers a variety of cocktails, wines, and other local liquors, served by the waitstaff to the loungers.

I started drinking before the food was delivered, but man, that first mai tai went down easy. As well as the second one. Sated with food, I’m taking the third one a little slower, sipping on the straw, finagling a way not to answer her question. Or at least give her an answer that makes it seem like I haven’t not “tapped that” without her seeing straight past my lie.

“Cameron didn’t see me as anything but Preston’s little sister. There were days I think he considered me to be his sister.”

Which may have been true the first few years. But not the last. Merely thinking about it warms me from the inside out. Or maybe that’s the alcohol. Or the sun beating down on us.

Yeah, not Cameron.

“But you wanted to?” Erica’s eyes bore into me, waiting for my answer. My only saving grace is she’s buying the lie.

“It may have crossed my mind a time or two.”

Or a couple hundred. Until it became a reality.

She waggles her brows. “Would Preston have defriended him if Cameron had put the moves on his little sister?”

“Most likely not. He wasn’t one of those protective brothers who’d put out a hit had someone looked at me the wrong way. As long as I’m happy and the guy isn’t a dick, he keeps his mouth shut.”

She’s quiet for a minute, her mind working through something. I predict what she’s going to say before she says it. But I wait for her to say something.