Wilted (22 page)

“How about lunch tomorrow, say, around noon?” I have the perfect plan to get Nik back.

“Sounds like a date.” He leans in and kisses me on the side of the mouth. I watch Nik slam his door shut and grab his bag out of the back. Yep, he saw that. Good.

“You are
such
an ass, Nik! Really?”

“That guy had his hands all over you.”

“And? What the fuck do you care? You’ve flirted with everything with a vagina since we left the fucking airport!”

“What? Are you jealous that I didn’t flirt with your vagina?”

“Fuck off, Nik!”

“That’s what it is, isn’t it? Well, sweetheart, if you want to ride this cowboy, all you got to do is ask.”

“Lick it!” I scream as I flip him off.

“Mmm. Anytime, baby. You know where to find me. I’ll be right next door to you.”

I have to get the hell away from him before I blow a gasket. How dare he? Sebastian and Skylar are the last people I want to overhear this. How was I to know they were standing right around the corner? Great! I’m sure they’d heard all of this. As if I can’t be any more humiliated than I already am.

“Ugh! I swear to fuck, I’m gonna kill him, Sebastian!”

Skylar giggles at my frustration. Annoyed, I narrow my eyes at my best friend.

“What are you laughing at bitch? You know that I’m only here for you. I’d never be within bomb’s distance of this prick if I didn’t love you,” I say, throwing my arms around my best friend. Her bump has grown quite a bit now and it’s absolutely adorable.

“Oh, my God! Look at that belly!” It’s so precious. Smiling, I have to have a little smart ass moment or it just wouldn’t be me. Bending down, I place my hand on her stomach and speak. “With these two as your parents? Don’t worry, kid, I got your back.”

Skylar slaps me and we all have a good laugh. Thankfully, Sophie joins us and we’re able to surprise Skylar on why we’re all here in the first place. I don’t know how I’m going to get through the next couple of days with Nik here, but I’m a big girl. I’ll survive. I’d walk to the ends of the earth to make sure the wedding tomorrow goes off without a hitch. I can always fall apart afterwards when no one is looking. Come hell or high water, tomorrow will be an epic day for my friends.

The tequila is making me brave tonight, that’s for damn sure. The thing is, I have Nik’s full attention at the bar, and I need to take advantage of that. Spotting a hot guy across from us, I decide to make him my target for my game of “Hundred ways to piss off Nik Thorne.” I’m pretty sure I’ll pass one hundred with this one.

“You can’t seriously be considering that guy, Kylie. The only reason you’re doing this is to make Nik jealous. You want him just as bad as he wants you. Seriously, chick, you’re going to fuck everything up if you do this. Stop hurting each other and just go talk to him. Look at him! He’s miserable,” Skylar pleads with me.

She’s always been my voice of reason and tonight’s no different. But the more I see Nik being manhandled by that bitch at the bar, the less that voice of reason works. Not to mention, the less I feel sorry for him. After about my sixth shot of tequila, she is put on mute. Throwing caution to the wind, I slam down my glass and wave her off. I’m gonna make Nik believe that I’m over him, even though I’m obviously not.

“Hey, wanna get out of here?” I purr at the hot guy across the bar.

“You got it,” he replies, giving me a grin.

Within seconds, he’s high-fiving his friends and wrapping his arm around my waist.
Ugh! I hate it when men throw their testosterone around.
When we walk past where Nik and Sebastian are standing, Nik’s eyes follow us. Grabbing the girl beside him, he slams her up against the bar and kisses her. The bar cheers, but I see the look in Sebastian’s eyes as he glances at me. Swallowing the bile in my throat, I hurry out the door with this guy.

The minute we’re out the door, I’m slammed up against the side of the building. This drunk guy’s tongue is down my throat faster than I can blink. I push him back, but he grabs me and pulls me into him.

“Come on, baby. You know you want it.”

I know I led him on, but when a girl says no, that’s exactly what it means.

“Get off me,” I warn but he keeps on. Oh, hell no! When I say no, it means get the fuck off me now! Bringing my foot down on his sandaled toe, I watch him bend in pain. I use that moment to bring my knee up into his crotch.

“Ow! You bitch!” he snarls, falling to his knees.

“Damn right, I’m a bitch,” I reply, walking away and leaving him in pain.

The crashing waves draw me closer. I walk out into the water until I feel it at my waist. Looking around, everything is so quiet and peaceful. I don’t understand how I’ve let my life get so out of hand. I’m standing in paradise, yet I’m miserable and broken. Sitting down on the sand, I allow the water to rush beneath me. I can’t keep doing this. It’s not fair to myself or anyone else. I’m done with games. I’m done with Nikolas Thorne. It’s the only way to find the part of me that I’ve lost. I need that girl back, and fast!

I guess I’ve been staring at the waves for hours, but I know I’ve got to get back if I’m going to get up early tomorrow. As I make my short walk back to my bungalow, I give myself a pep talk and promise to be a better me for me. Shutting the door behind me, I step out of my wet dress and drop it to the floor. Turning up the music I’d left playing, the beat flows through my body, and within seconds, I feel better. I’m still young. I have my whole life ahead of me. It’s time the sassy, seductive Kylie returns to the world.

When Beyonce’s “Partition” begins playing, I smile. The living room chair becomes my prey as I move my hips to the seductive tempo. Spinning around the room, I give it my all.

Yep, I still got it!

NIKOLAS

Blame it on my high tolerance to alcohol, but it doesn’t take long for the booze from tonight to wear off. Laying here looking up at the bamboo ceiling, I focus on the spinning fan above me. I’ve timed the amount of spins it takes in a minute. I’ve noted how it tilts slightly to the right. Analyzing a fan. That’s what she’s pushed me to do. It’s the only thing that keeps me from going fucking insane at the moment. Throwing back the covers, I ease out of the bed to get some water out of the fridge.

As I turn up the bottle, my eyes are drawn outside. I look up in just enough time to see her figure walk past the window of her bungalow across from mine. She’s dancing, it looks like. Very sexily, I might add. Anger fills me and I squeeze the plastic bottle so damn hard that the rest of the water squirts out the top. The woman I love is less than a hundred feet from my front door and she’s dancing for that guy she’d brought home from the bar.

I don’t fucking think so!

Tossing the bottle to the kitchen floor, I slip my shoes on, stagger out to the front porch, and grab the railing for support. I may be sobering up, but the world is still spinning a bit too much for my liking. As I stop and listen to the music flowing through the night, I recognize the song as Beyonce’s “Partition.” Watching her figure move seductively from side to side is driving me crazy. I’m gonna kill the fucker. She’s mine, not his. There’s no way in hell I’m going to let her do this in front of my face.

After the first few steps in the sand, I trip over my feet. When I fall on my ass, I land right on her front steps. I must have made a lot of noise with my fall because the next thing I know, the door flies open and I’m staring at the most fucking gorgeous pair of legs God ever created. Her toes are painted a bright coral color. The same sexy color that I’d always picked out when she took me with her for a pedicure.

“Nik? What the fuck are you doing? That’s your place over there,” she says angrily as she points behind me.

Blinking out of my daze, I draw my eyes up, but the light pink, lace underwear and matching bra she’s wearing takes my breath away.

And those tits! Goddamn, I want to squeeze them.

Frustrated, she puts her hands on her hips. Like some delicious dream, her long hair cascades down around her shoulders.
Holy fucking shit!
This woman can
easily
put any swimsuit model to shame. Ever since I met her, she’s constantly complained about her curvy figure.
Christ!
She has no idea how stunning she is.

“I know where I am.” My words bite a sharp punch.

“Good, then find your way home,” she says as she turns to go back inside.

“Kylie?” I manage to say as I fight the evil pride that lives inside of me. I never grovel, but damn if I’m not about to.

“What Nik? It’s late.”

Grabbing the porch railing, I pull myself up. “Yeah? Well, I have something to say, and I don’t care who hears it. That includes lover boy in there.”

For a second, she looks at me with confusion but then leans to look back inside before closing the door behind her. I guess she doesn’t want the asshole to hear what I have to say.

“Nik, you’re making a fool of yourself. Leave! You’re drunk. If you keep up this madness, you’re gonna wake up Sophie!”

“I’m not drunk, and I’m not leaving! Not until you at least listen to what I have to say!” I scream as loud as I can.

I don’t care if I wake Sophie. Thank heavens our bungalows are the only three over here. Sebastian and Skylar’s place is more privately situated, facing the ocean. It’s a good bit over from us. I guess he did that so we can’t hear their sexcapades on their pre-honeymoon vacation.

“Well, say it then before you wake up the whole fucking island!”

“I love you! I fucking love you, Kylie Reynolds! Do you hear me? I’ve loved you since the night I laid eyes on you at that club. Not a moment has gone by since then that I haven’t loved you. The things I said to you, I can never take back. I was scared out of my fucking mind, but I shouldn’t have walked away. There was never another girl, baby. I haven’t been with anyone else. Please, Kylie! Please give me another chance! You’re my whole world. I need you.” Tears fall down my face, but this time I don’t hide them. Walking in front of her, I drop to my knees. I need her to look into my eyes and see me for the man I am. The one I’m not ashamed to be for her.

Maybe part of me waits to hear her laughing. I guess I half expect her to walk away and leave me there on the porch. God knows after what I’ve done to her, I deserve that. But, what she does is not something I could have predicted. Instead of speaking, she drops to her knees in front of me. Her soft, warm hands cup my face. Her delicate finger brushes away the tears on my cheek.