Page 96 of Vacation Friends

She kept her eyes open as she walked, trying to avoid anyone who might ask questions. To her surprise, she successfully reached the beach without interruption.

As her feet hit the sand, she noted that the sun was already beginning to sink in the sky. What a long day. A long, horrible day.

Yet, in some ways, it had been a wonderful day.

Her life would look different without Josh in it. But it would look different in a better way. She felt confident about that fact.

Maybe she would resign from the nonprofit. Though she was doing good work there, she preferred to be hands-on. Maybe she could get her old job with the government back. In fact, maybe she would call her old boss tomorrow. She didn’t want to be impulsive, but she suddenly felt invigorated.

She pulled her flip-flops off, linking her finger through the toe straps as she began to walk down the shore, watching the waves crash.

Memories of seeing Jared here filled her thoughts.

It had been a horrible start to a horrible week.

Maddie still wasn’t even sure what had happened to the man or if someone had truly murdered him.

Were all the incidents that had happened since the retreat started connected? Was someone trying to kill Josh so he wouldn’t become CEO? Would one of his colleagues take it that far?

Or did someone have other motives for wanting to silence either her or Josh? Maddie wasn’t sure what those motives might be, but certainly there had to be a reason all this was happening.

“I wasn’t expecting to see you out here,” a deep voice said beside her.

She paused, the wind whipping through her hair as she turned.

Brody strode toward her.

Handsome, alluring Brody with his Matthew McConaughey vibes.

Against her wishes, her pulse quickened. She needed to put a kibosh on her feelings. But as much as she willed her heart to calm down, it didn’t.

She swallowed the lump in her throat before saying, “I just needed some fresh air.”

“You and me both.” He fell into step beside her, his hands casually tucked into the pockets of his shorts. “Do you mind if I join you? Or did you want some time alone?”

She had wanted some time alone . . . until she ran into Brody.

“I’d love some company,” she murmured.

Unfortunately, she liked the idea of Brody walking with her more than she should. The realization brought another surge of guilt.

She had no right to feel that way.

She’d vowed to stay away from him. Yet here she was, ignoring her resolve—just like she’d ignored her resolve to initially break up with Josh. Look where that had gotten her—into mounds of trouble and heartache.

She couldn’t repeat those mistakes. So how was Maddie going to protect herself now?

“This has been quite the retreat, hasn’t it?” Brody asked.

The conversation seemed safe enough. She’d started to tell him about the threats against her earlier, but they’d been cut off. Maybe that was a good thing—though part of her would love his perspective and advice.

Instead of talking about that, she let out a wary breath. “You can say that again.”

“Any updates on Fowler?”

Brody was probably assuming Josh would have heard something and told her.

She shook her head. “Not yet. I’m sure Adrienne told you that Bree is still resting.”

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