Page 70 of Holiday Home 5

“Okay,” Liam said, though he expected more.

“Therefore, I intend to… add something to your experience—a small way of paying Avril back.” Tess gestured with a thumb over her shoulder. “When you two come back and get busy, you should convince her to shut her eyes for a little while. When that happens, you should check beneath her pillow—the one farthest on the right. I trust you’ll figure out what to do from there.”

Liam pursed his lips in curiosity. “Give me a hint about what I should expect to find?”

“No,” Tess said, smiling. “Just know that Avril knows about it, having brought it on the trip herself. But she won’t know that I’ve placed it under her pillow. Thus, you should ensure she shuts her eyes before you uncover it.”

“Alright,” Liam said. As this was Tess, he didn’t worry about being misled. He trusted her implicitly. Whatever she was scheming, he knew she believed it would enhance things for him and Avril. “Under the pillow on the right.”

Tess nodded. “Make the most of this opportunity, Liam. I’m certain you will.”

She waved him off, though he at least climbed up the stairs and kissed her, same as he had Victoria, before departing. With her watching him, her words echoing in his mind, he hastened down the beach. He halfway expected to run into Anna,completing the trifecta of women looking to distract him from making it to Avril on time, though it was not to be. He made it to the resort, saw the attached restaurant, and soon saw his companion for tonight’s dinner. And for the sex afterward.

Even though Tess had confirmed that she was only a couple of minutes ahead of him, she still acted like he’d left her waiting for fifteen to twenty minutes. She’d claimed a corner table, one of many that sat under the restaurant’s enormous wood and thatch awning. When she saw him, she made a show of scowling and pointing violently at the seat across from her, the only one at their small, square table.

He rolled his eyes, smiled, and walked over to join her.

“Hi,” he said as he pulled his chair out.

Still playing the part of an annoyed girlfriend, Avril narrowed her eyes. “Your punctuality needs work.”

“In fact, I was lectured about that by a very responsible professor only a few minutes ago.”

“So, you’re saying you were latebecauseyou were being lectured about being late?”

“Ironic, isn’t it?” Liam said, grinning.

“You’re an idiot,” Avril said, waving a dismissive hand at him. She collected her drink—she’d already gotten them both something to sip on—and tasted it.

“Youridiot?” Liam asked.

“Obviously,” Avril said. “At this point, I’m attached; I couldn’t give you away to another owner.”

“Thanks, Big Sis,” Liam said, picking up the menu sitting on his half of the table.

Avril snorted again.

It wasn’t more than a minute before their server, seeing that he’d arrived, maneuvered over to them. A plump woman with a warm smile, she took their requests for appetizers, then bustled away to get the chefs to begin making them.

Obviously, they weren’t alone in the restaurant. At this time of night, dinner beckoned. So, other vacationing groups were in sight, including a larger group currently walking up. The restaurant wasn’t large; he and Avril were all of four steps from the bar and just over twice that from the nearest lounging chair by the resort’s unique pool. A half-wall separated the dining area from the poolside lounge, which their table—most of them, in fact—sat right beside. This setup offered the restaurant’s patrons a beautiful view of the pool, beach, and ocean.

Thanks to this open-air style, it made for a relaxed, balmy atmosphere. Both literally and figuratively, as the temperature cooled as the sun drooped in the sky. Shadows stretched toward them, especially from the palm trees planted around the pool. The ends of those had already nearly reached the half-wall, and they’d likely creep up it while he and Avril dined.

“Pretty beautiful sight,” Liam commented, eying a splash of orange and gold shimmering upon the pool.

“Understatement of the year,” Avril said.

He shrugged and smiled. “I’ve seen better.”

“I bet you have,” Avril snorted. “Ten minutes ago?”

“Then, yeah,” he admitted. “But you’re more beautiful than a Fijian sunset, too, and I’m looking at you right now.”

Avril’s lips curled. Not in her usual maverick way, not even in a cocky way, where he would have expected a witty agreement. She did agree, of course. The last thing Avril lacked was confidence. She also had no taste for false acts of modesty.

“That beautiful, huh?” she asked.

“That beautiful,” he confirmed. “Makes me wonder if I’ll swoon when I see you on our final night here.”

---