Page 65 of Holiday Home 5

Avril’s complaints were loud but harmless, as were the threats she hurled at them when they walked away from her. Buried up to the neck in sand beside their towels, she struggled to no avail as the rest of them walked into the ocean, where they were mostly incapable of hearing the vivid details of her promised acts of retribution.

After snapping a few pictures for posterity, they’d leave her like that for a good twenty minutes, though Tess and Anna had been kind enough to move one of their umbrellas over to protect her from the sun’s glaring rays. By now, it was beginning to get hot enough to stick a few pinpricks of sweat on their bodies, and Avril’s fair skin was likely to burn if she laid out in the way that Tess and Victoria had. So, while the rest of them went to cool off a little in the ocean, Avril would have to survive thanks to the umbrella shade.

When they returned and unburied her, it was a sight worth every possible bit of revenge Avril might seek. Coated from neck to heel in sand, the redheaded woman finally found a look that didn’t flatter her stunning figure. Even then, shaking off sand like a wet dog, doing her best to cover them while she did so, her curves remained unmistakable.

“No, Avril, stop it!” Anna cried, running from her best friend, who followed in her wake like a recently uncovered mummy, bits of sand flying intentionally in Anna’s direction.

They only began discussing going back once the sun had started dipping beyond the trees at their backs. After a full day of sun and fun, never once seeing anyone but themselves on their chosen beach line, the decision was made to head back to the resort. It was partly due to the elongating shadows of the trees, which had forced Tess and Victoria, both looking to keep tanning, to move their towels closer to the ocean. They couldn’t go much farther, or they’d start getting their toes tickled by the encroaching tide. It was partly due to the hunger beginning to gnaw at a few bellies. And, at least for Liam, it was partly due to his excitement to take a shower.

Mostly, actually. For him, it wasmostlydue to his excitement to get back to his bure, then finally see the shower hidden away on one side of its deck. That was why hedidn’t mind when the suggestion of heading back came up. He was more than ready to head back to the resort.

So, after a complete day on the beach, more complete than any beachgoing day Liam could ever remember, they packed up their things, threw their clothes back on, and trekked back into the narrow strip of forest between them and the resort. Carrying one of their umbrellas and some towels, Liam walked beside Avril. The forest was dimmer, letting hardly any light pass through its bulwark of branches and leaves, so they walked at a slower pace, careful of anything that might sprain an ankle and put a damper on an otherwise phenomenal day.

And this is just the second day,Liam thought, taking in that understanding with almost breathless excitement. Tomorrow sounded like it’d be pretty busy, snorkeling and sightseeing. And maybe that tennis tournament. And, most importantly of all, his romantic dinner with Tess.

But first,he thought, eyes drifting toward tonight’s dinner partner. She’d long ago cleansed herself in the ocean, so there wasn’t any sand left on her body. But hehadupdated his profile picture of her to the best of the many pictures he’d taken while she was buried in the sand. He smiled. She noticed.

“Thinking about our date?” she correctly surmised.

“And looking forward to it quite a lot,” he said.

Avril smirked and bumped her shoulder against him. “Closer with every step. The ‘dessert,’ too.”

His nostrils flared with excitement. His libido had fully restored itself over the past many hours since Anna’s blowjob, so he expected he’d be good to go for the evening activities. Starting with Victoria, finishing with Avril. Just confirming that within his own mind began to rev him up.

“We’re dressing up for this, right?” he asked.

“Nope. All casual tonight, baby.”

Liam’s eyebrows knit together. “You changed your mind?”

“Yep,” Avril said, eyeing him knowingly. “I’ve decided to delayourromantic dinner date—and the romantic, sultry experience that follows—until the very final night of our vacation. If I’m not allowed to be first, then I get to belast.‘Tis only fair.”

Liam glanced over his shoulder, finding Tess and Victoria chatting softly. The former must have mentioned their plans for tomorrow night, and Avril, of course, already knew they’d fucked yesterday. So, she would let Tess be the lead, but she’d be the finale.

“Does that mean I should prepare for another situation like at Carver’s?”

“Fuck no,” Avril snorted. “I’m getting laid tonight, no two ways about it. You just won’t have to strip off an expensive dress beforehand.”

Liam chuckled. “Well, who’d argue with that?”

“A crazy person,” Avril said, bumping him again. “That doesn’t mean I don’t expect to be thoroughly wined and dined, however. I still get you,alone,at the restaurant. Everyone else has already got their share.”

Nodding, not minding that he was being discussed like a pie being divvied up between hungry stomachs, Liam made more small talk with Avril. It wasn’t long before they shoved out of the forest, returning to the familiar sight of isolated bures and the pathways between them.

“Shower up,” Avril said, slapping him on his back. “I’ll see you at the restaurant in thirty.”

He wondered if shealsoknew about Victoria’s promise to him, though he didn’t think she did. If she had, he would have expected more than just a slap on the back—and maybe for him to give him a little more time than just thirty minutes.

Their group parted, and Liam and Victoria, the latter doing so without saying a word, headed for their bure. For a small tree with a shower head sticking out of it.

Chapter Twenty-Five

A Shared Shower

Thrumming with impatience, Liam almost couldn’t be bothered to return their umbrella to its usual spot. The only reason he did it was because Victoria suggested that he should. He could see it in her eyes, a hint of unwarranted cruelty. She was making him wait, building the tension like a workout band slowly stretched to its absolute limit. It was clear as day; she enjoyed seeing him in a rush—which caused him to fumble things, delaying him even further—to refit the umbrella pole into the slot in the table.

Or perhaps she simply enjoyed knowing how strong a hold the promise of a shared shower had over him.

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