Page 54 of Holiday Home 5

“As well for me,” Anna said.

“Just don’t touch the coral. They don’t like that.”

Liam and Anna shared a look.

“I wasnine,” Avril huffed. “And in case you’ve forgotten, I was a billionaire brat—no empathy yet. I’m better now.”

“She is,” Anna confirmed, though she glanced at him. “Most of the time.”

“Most of the time,” Liam agreed with a nod.

The first wave lapped at their feet, passing them by on its race up the beach, but still, they kept going. Soon, they no longer stood on sand at all. Walking across a fifty-foot-long patch of igneous rock, they headed towards its inevitable drop-off—of about a foot. The waters around them slowly shifted from turquoise to cerulean, and they soon hopped down from the shelf. Sinking his toes into the wet sand, warm waters lapping at his knees, he stared across the ocean.

“Let’s go out a bit more,” Avril suggested.

They kept walking until the water reached their hips—a little higher for Anna, who lacked a few inches in height compared to her best friend. Surrounded by peerless blue waters, Liam dragged his fingertips over the surface. Nearby, Avril noticed and did the same. With their fingertips inches apart, the ripples they made smashed into one another like colliding armies.

“It’s a pretty good view, isn’t it?” Avril asked.

“And with the best company,” Liam agreed, smiling.

Grinning, Avril swept her fingers over the back of his hand, then up his arm. Kicking forward a step, she swung about and lifted her hands. Both Liam and Anna came to a stop because of it.

“This is far enough.” She shadowed her eyes with a hand, staring back toward the distant beach. “Yeah, far enough.”

“If you say so,” Liam said.

The wind kept the unsubmerged parts of their bodies cool enough, and the three of them relaxed in the balmy waters. Some small chatter followed, headed mainly by Avril, who remained focused on how much he and Anna had so far enjoyed the trip.

“It’s been amazing,” he said. “Obviously. You’ve really outdone yourself this time, Avril.”

Avril beamed with the brightness of the sun.

“Her true calling is that of an event planner,” Anna said. “She’d be excellent at it.”

“I could see it,” Liam agreed. “You bustling about, handling every detail for your wealthy clients.”

“You don’t want that, though,” Avril said. “If I started planning events for others, I’d have less time to give to our sexy, little group.”

“Fair enough,” Liam chuckled. “I wouldn’t want that.”

“Same for you, Anna?” Avril asked.

Anna sighed and shook her head. “No, Avril, I wouldn’t want that either. Your events are always… unique. So, it’s probably for the best that they’re not shared with other people.”

“And how about the advice I give?”

“Your advice too,” the dark-haired woman reluctantly said.

Liam could hazard a guess as to what kind of advice Avril was alluding to. He’d received heaps and heaps of it himself. He wondered about the specifics of whatever advice Avril was referring to, though he didn’t have much time to consider such things.

Still grinning, Avril closed the distance between them and kissed him on the cheek. Pushing into him from his left, she used enough force to propel him into Anna. However, Anna didn’t get out of the way. His arms found themselves comfortably snug against two of the most beautiful women around, on land or sea.

“What did I do to deserve this?” Liam asked, setting a hand on each woman’s lower back. Both stayed enviously close to him.

“A lot of things,” Avril said. “Probably different for each of us, though. If I'm honest with you, I’m a little awed.”

“You? Awed?”

---