Page 20 of Love is Grand

Much later, after he brought me to orgasm with his mouth and had his way with me in the shower, he said he was going to golf with Adam.

“Chewy is here. Can you believe that guy? He’s looking at buying a vacation house here, near Adam. Dude is flat-out obsessed with my brother since Adam found him a few extra mil in his divorce.”

“And Ry planned his wedding,” I said.

“That too.”

Dressed now, I checked myself in the mirror. “Gotta go.” I had to work lunch at Camila’s before picking up Weezie from school.

“Come anytime later. Text me. I can have them cook whatever we want and send it to the room. A belated Valentine’s dinner,” Cal said with a wink.

I rolled my eyes. We didn’t do Hallmark holidays. Valentine’s Day was over ten days ago. I knew because I’d celebrated over pink-iced cupcakes with Weezie, and then gone to bed alone.

As I left the hotel the back way, I mentally slapped myself.

What am I doing?

Cal had the world at his beck and call, and I was heading out to wait tables for tips so I could send my daughter to college one day. These moments were nothing but slumming for him, but they were a dream come true for me.

• April •

Shell

My skin was burning hot, and it had absolutely nothing to do with the bright sun above Weezie and me at the Grand’s pool.

My temper flared, and my pulse raged, pounding in my ears as I tried not to clench my hands into fists. I told myself to breathe as I stared at the two of them from afar.

For some reason, I was shocked, when I had to have known somewhere deep inside this was going to happen. After all, this was Cal. The man did what he wanted, when he wanted, and how he wanted. He showed up when he felt like it, and went back home before he was ready in order to protect himself. He was allergic to commitment and afraid of his feelings.

I knew this. He knew this.

Yet, seeing him here on the island with the bitchy woman from so long ago cut deep. I had to wonder ... had he been seeing her all this time? He’d mentioned being single and not involved with anyone, but this was Cal.

“Mommy, can I get in the pool yet?” Weezie whined from the lounge chair next to me, interrupting my trip to a personal and private hell.

I never should have accepted Rylan’s invitation to spend the day at the pool at the Grand, but Weezie had been dying for a vacation. This was about as close as she would get, especially since I’d insisted on doing things my way, waitressing for tips rather than working for my dad.

Soon, though, I’d be unable to do either.

“Two more minutes,” I told Weezie, looking at my watch. She’d just polished off a basket of chicken fingers and fries Rylan had sent over with a Shirley Temple.

I licked my thumb and used it to rub a little ketchup off the corner of my daughter’s mouth. She only squirmed a little and then settled down until I was satisfied her face was clean.

“Can I go in the deep end?” she asked, and when I didn’t say anything, she added, “Please? I’ve been waiting, Mom.”

“When I say so, and then I need to go with you.”

Of course, I wasn’t showing yet, but my stomach had widened, and I still had a tiny pooch left over from Weezie, so I looked the same as always—like an overworked, tired, single mom. The last thing I wanted to do was stand up in my bathing suit in front of him and her. Sophia, the perfect New York lady. She probably sunbathed nude outside their villa, and had zero stretchmarks to hide or fucks to give.

I knew my body wasn’t completely disgusting. After all, I did my best to keep myself together, and obviously Cal liked what he saw enough to knock me up.

“Is it two minutes?” Leave it to my daughter to try to hurry me up.

“It is, sweetie. Let’s put on a little sunscreen, and we’ll go.”

She popped up, closed her eyes, and stood in front of me for me to apply the lotion to her skin. Thanks to Ricky, her skin was lighter than mine, but her perfect nose and headful of dark curls were all mine.

I couldn’t resist placing a quick kiss on her check and tapping her tush. “Let’s roll, baby girl.”

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