Page 102 of Pretend Girlfriend

The four of us boarded a boat and zoomed out onto the water. Marisa was having trouble with her life preserver, so the activity coordinator pointed at me and Austin.

“You two are going first.”

We glanced at each other. “We’re going together?” I asked.

“Two people per flight,” he replied. “Follow me…”

Austin let out a sigh, which annoyed me. Why was he upset that he had to share with me?

They strapped us to the parasail rigging: Austin went first, and then I was hooked onto the line directly in front of him. Fortunately, there was a sizable gap between us.

The boat zoomed forward, and the sail caught the wind and lifted us into the air. My stomach lurched in a thrilling way as we soared higher and higher.

There was just one minor annoyance: once we were in the air, hanging underneath the sail, the gap between us disappeared. Austin was directly behind me now, our bodies constantly rubbing together.

Thank goodness the life preserver provides a buffer, I thought. But I was enjoying myself too much to worry.

“This is fun!” I shouted over the wind.

“I might’ve eaten too much at lunch,” Austin groaned.

“If you throw up on me,” I said over my shoulder, “I’m going to cut your line and let you fall to your death.”

“Probably wouldn’t die from this height,” he replied smoothly. “You’d better wait until we’re another hundred feet higher.”

It was peaceful once we reached the maximum height; we drifted along, high above the ocean, with a sprawling view of the Jamaican coastline and the inland jungle that rose up in rolling hills into the distance. Austin’s body was pressed up against mine firmly.

“You know, you’re the only person who hasn’t asked about my ankle,” I said.

We were so close together that I could feel him shrug. “Figured everyone else is harassing you about it. Didn’t want to be one more annoyance. Besides, you seem like you’re walking just fine.”

“How are your blisters?”

“They itch like all hell,” he replied with a laugh. “But they’re fine.”

“Good.”

“Listen,” Austin said slowly. “I’m real sorry for making you quit your job and come on this trip. Seems like the family is driving you crazy, and you weren’t prepared to pretend to be Landon’s girlfriend for this long.”

“Want to know something funny? I’m actually having a great time,” I replied. “I really needed a vacation, and I did want to quit my stupid job. I wasn’t planning on admitting this, but I ought to thank you.”

“Okay, go ahead.”

“Go ahead and what?” I asked.

“Thank me,” he replied simply. “You said you ought to thank me. Well, I’m here, and we have some privacy. Nobody else has to hear it. Hit me with your best.”

“Thanks for manipulating me into coming on this trip in order to torture me.”

“Hey now, that’s not fair,” Austin protested. “I manipulated you into coming on this trip for my own amusement.”

“Oh, that’s totally different.”

“In any case, you’re welcome.”

Laughing, I twisted to look at him behind me. “Hey, being real for a second? I’m sorry about signing you up for the jungle hike. It seemed like a funny prank at the time, and I was pissed about what you did the night of the wedding. But I’ve felt kind of bad about it since then.”

“You feel bad about it because I saved your rear yesterday when you rolled your ankle.”

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