Page 102 of False God

Lili tosses a towel on the teak deck and lies down on it. I swallow, watching a drop of water roll into the hollow of her throat. As mesmerized by the sight of her now as I was when she was out on the diving board. As when I woke up in her bed.

“You see this, Charles?” Theo leans forward from his spot beside Chloe to show me his phone screen.

I squint at the headline.Highland Promotes Piers Colborn to International COO, it reads.

“You were at Eton together, right?”

I don’t bother asking how he knows that. Theo didn’t go to Eton, but I’m sure he’s friendly with lots of our peers who did.

“Right,” I reply.

And I haven’t seen him since.

Trauma either binds people tighter together or separates them, in my experience. Piers and I were teammates more than anything. After the accident that robbed me of my ability to playrugby, it was easier for both of us to lose touch and try to forget what’d happened.

I’m glad to hear he’s doing well though. Bloody impressive, COO at twenty-six.

I rub the faded scar on my knee involuntarily, then stand and shrug my shirt off. “Going to check on the local shark population for you, Hugo.”

He doesn’t reply. When I glance over, he’s smirking at Lili.

I’m confused, until Jasper whistles. “Shit, man. Did you lose a fight with a grizzly bear?”

Flashes of last night fill my head.

“I won the fight,” I tell him. “But it was one hell of a match.”

One of the girls snickers. I’m not sure who because I’m focused on Lili’s pink cheeks.

I didn’t realize she’d left scratches on my back, but I’m not mad about it. Her suit hides most of the marks I left on her body last night, but there’s a purplish hickey visible on her collarbone now that gravity has fanned her hair across the towel.

I take the stairs to the upper deck two at a time. Dive off the board into calm turquoise water and emerge with the taste of salt in my mouth.

The water is chilly, but not cold. Refreshing after sitting out in the sun for the past couple of hours.

Jasper jumps in next, followed by Cal. The rest of Lili’s friends jump in soon after. Even Bridget, who announced earlier she was staying dry today.

It’s hot out, and it’s getting late in the afternoon. We’ll head back to shore soon.

Lili is the only one who stays on board.

I tread water for a few minutes, listening to banter about the perils of sharks and stingrays and shipwrecks, then swim to the ladder.

Lili hasn’t moved, so I grab a dry towel and sit down beside her. Deliberately flicking some water on her in the process.

She scowls, shading her eyes. “Do you mind?”

“Sorry.” I grin.

Today has been fun. Even the thought of meeting with the real estate agent later today hasn’t dampened my mood much.

The trip to Saint-Tropez has been an even better escape from the cycle of stress and worry and anger than Theo’s wedding was. The rest of Lili’s friends seem to care about my title as much as she does—not at all. Getting to know Theo better has been nice too.

It’s a chance to experience what my life was like before my father died. Minimal obligations and responsibilities.

My life is still privileged in so many ways. But I started to view that privilege as a prison at some point, and that’s a very isolating way to go through life.

“You come here a lot?” I ask Lili.

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