Page 14 of Fear of Intimacy

“Okay, maybe the guys are useful for something.” Lydia smirked. Bryton definitely came through with getting us drinks on the beach.

“Well, here—cheers to amazing friends.” Josie held up her glass with a wide grin.

“Cheers to that.” I mirrored her smile, leaning forward to tap my glass with hers and the girls.

“We should leave the guys and move here,” I commented, lying back down on my chair.

“You know, I can get behind that.” Mila hummed, sipping her drink. “They won’t survive without us, though.”

“Especially Wyatt, he’s like a little baby around Josie,” I teased.

“I would deny that, but it’s the truth.” We all laughed with Josie. Both Wyatt and Bryton acted tough, hell they played hockey, but around their girlfriends they were softies. You could literally see the way their eyes lit up when they saw Josie and Mila. It was cute and nauseating at the same time.

“How is it going with Wyatt?” I asked Josie. We were so busy with work that we didn’t get much time to properly catch up.

“Things have been great. He’s just so…” Josie trailed off, her face practically glowing as she thought of her boyfriend. “I've never met someone like him before.”

“Well, he has my approval.” I said.

“Oh, now he has the approval? We’ve been together for almost a year.”

“He had to prove himself.” I shrugged, grabbing my suntan lotion to rub on my legs. After her last ex, I expected the best for my best friend. Never again would I see her so insecure about herself or made to feel like she was worthless. I wouldn’t allow that if I could help it.

“I thought you immediately liked him.” Josie said.

I did but that didn’t mean I wasn’t going to thoroughly question the man. What Josie didn’t know was I met up with Wyatt after we first met and asked a few questions. Was I a bit excessive in my questioning? Hell yes, but it just proved Wyatt was a good guy. He took my grilling with ease and answered all the questions I threw at him, letting me know he was nothing like Josie’s previous boyfriend.

Wyatt had my approval ages ago.

“You’re my best friend, what do you expect?” I raised my eyebrow at her. Josie just shook her head at me, used to my antics by now.

“Want to talk about the other night?” she asked a moment later. I knew she was referring to me being off when she and the girls came over. Over her shoulder, Mila and Lydia talked, leaving the two of us alone in our conversation.

“My mom called the other day while I was at work.” The word mom was like acid on my tongue.

“Figured as much. What did she want this time?” Josie turned on her chair so she was laying on her side, looking at me.

“To remind me to come to the gala in a few weeks.” At my words, she rolled her eyes. “It was more of a…demand than a reminder. You know how she is.” I sighed and relaxed back into my lounge chair, wanting to erase any and all thoughts of my mother.

“What did she say?”

“That I should bring asuitabledate this time.” I clenched my jaw as a familiar wave of resentment washed over me whenever I talked about my parents. “Oh, and a jab at my job. You know, the usual.”

“Are you going to go?” Josie asked, but we both knew I couldn’t say no. Not when it came to Robert and Jennifer Davis. Even now they still had a hold over me.

“I’m not going to let myself think about it. We’re on this gorgeous island, and I’m not going to let them take that from me.”

“That’s the spirit. We’re gonna have so much fun you won’t even have time to think about your parents.” She reached out and squeezed my arm with a smile.

I fully planned on doing just that.

I was feeling pretty damngood, I wasn’t gonna lie. The seven alcoholic beverages we had were finally kicking in, making me feel like I was on cloud nine.

“God, this sand feels so good,” I moaned, wiggling my toes deeper into it. Grabbing handfuls, I started piling some on my legs. When I was little, I would try to cover every inch of my skin, until it cracked and fell apart. Didn’t matter that the sand would take ages to wash off. No doubt I’d be regretting this later.

“It’s like an exfoliant.” Josie said beside me, sprinkling the rough grains on her own legs.

“We should bottle this up and take it home with us.”

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