Page 51 of Diving In

Jesus.

Did this man ever not look completely fucking delectable? All the anger fizzled as I took him in, clad in a pair of tropical-printed swim trunks that were short enough to hide the goods but not long enough to keep you from guessing. Paired with a half-buttoned, light-blue PFG that was open enough for me to imagine my hands tracing every inch of his built chest. And to nobody’s surprise, he was wearing a white Sullivan’s Island Aquarium hat backwards.

I gave myself five seconds to observe him, the plan being to look away just before he noticed me, but just like he’d fucked with all my plans so far, he fucked with this one too. Because as he picked up the coffee order, the light ricocheted off the silver plate that decorated his bracelet readingBJW. My insides reignited and I felt fire raging through my veins, fueled by anger, deception, and humiliation. I’d never been the othergirl, and while I wasn’t exactly the poster child of honesty in our situation, I had at least tried to explain myself.

Cal, on the other hand, had let me believe that I was in the wrong, that what I was doing was inexcusable, even though what he’d been doing was fucking worse. I’d withheld information regarding a recent butpastrelationship. He wascurrentlyin a relationship.

My initial guess had been confirmed.BJW.The initials on the bracelet stood forBlair Warner. The sinking feeling of that realization could’ve brought me to my knees. I stood motionless as I heard the jingle of the front door. I tried to exhale a breath of relief, but I couldn’t. The weight on my chest made that almost impossible.

I peered up from behind my hair, the world around me pausing until the young barista cleared her throat, obviously annoyed that I was taking so long. Little did she know I was struggling to ground myself after the tornado that had just spun through this coffee shop.

“Ahem,” she urged under her breath.

I looked up, trying to find something to focus on. Luckily, I found the chalkboard behind her head with all the seasonal summer items. Still feeling dizzy and worried that I was on the verge of an anxiety attack, I pretended to be interested in the menu, as if I was going to order anything other than a black coffee.

“I’ll take a black coffee.”

“Is that it?” the barista asked, clearly confused.

“Yup, that’s it. Thank you,” I replied.

Reaching into my purse, the barista interfered. “No need. The guy that just picked up his coffee took care of it. He told me to wish you a happy birthday.”

Cal knew it was me.

I literally forgot it was my birthday. With everything that had been going on, my birthday was the last thing on my mind.

I was thirty.

Fuck.

My coffee was ready within seconds. I grabbed it and darted for the door, in desperate need of fresh air. Unbeknownst to me, The Grounded Bean had outside seating, because of course that was just my luck.

“Georgia? Two times in two days!” Blair belted out.

Was this a fucking joke? Ashton Kutcher had to be around the corner, because there was simply no way that this was actually happening other than with the intent to provide someone else with solid entertainment.

I looked up only to lock eyes with Cal, who was now noticeably uncomfortable. Reasonably so. He shifted his glance away, but I continued to stare, unable to force myself to look at Blair instead. I stood back, not wanting to get any closer to the two of them.

“They always said this was a small island,” I tried to say lightly.

“Well, this feels familiar,” she responded, laughing as she peered down at her coffee. “Maybe you should join us, you know, for old time’s sake.” The look on her face was almost sinister.

She was making it clear that she was the same bully that she was all those years ago, and now it appeared that she was dangling Cal in my face.

“Blair, enough.” Cal’s voice was stern.

“No worries, Cal. I can take care of myself now. I have a flight to catch, but even if I didn’t, I’d rather sit by myself for the rest of my life than sit here with you, Blair.”

As the words left my mouth, I caught Cal’s eyes. They were filled with something unfamiliar to me, and it made me wonder if I really knew him at all.

I wandered toward the street, turning around to leave them with some parting words.

“Love your bracelet, Cal. Nice touch, Blair.”

The way I said her name felt violent, but I wanted Cal to know that I knew. I wanted him to know that if I was in the wrong, then so was he.

Nevertheless, I’d barely had enough guts to spit those words out, so I definitely wasn’t waiting around for a response. I turned and started walking toward Jack’s until The Grounded Bean was nothing more than a blur in the background.

---