Page 24 of Fear of Intimacy

“The animals.”

“Yes. Right now, there could be dolphins in the spot we’re going, but by the time we get there, they could be long gone.”

“Oh, don’t want to miss the dolphins.” He mocked.

“Don’t tease me.” I elbowed him in his ribs.

“I would never.” But I could hear the amusement in his voice. Trevor lived to tease me.

“I’m being serious here.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure we get to the tour on time so we don’t miss any of the ocean life.” I looked over at him with my head tilted up slightly.

“Promise?”

“Promise.” The look in his eyes as he stared down at me made my stomach clench. Swallowing, I forced my eyes away. My stupid heart fluttered a little in my chest.

“Is everyone ready to go?”the tour guide asked as we all sat around the stern of the boat. A moment ago, he introduced himself as Johnno.

I grinned as both Mila and Josie cheered. A nudge on my knee had me glancing over at Trevor. The moment we got on the boat, he claimed the spot next to me and refused to move.

“Told you I’d make sure we got here in time.” And he did.I had barely gotten my bathing suit on when Trevor started banging on our door, saying we needed to get going. He then proceeded to knock on everyone else’s repeatedly until Wyatt yelled at him to quit it.

And once everyone was ready, he all but ushered us out of the hotel to the golf carts waiting curbside to take us to the dock. Knowing he was doing it all for my benefit made my stomach summersault with anticipation.

Instead of replying, I stuck my tongue out at him and looked away. We—my friends and I—were the only ones on the boat for the tour, which I was grateful for. Sometimes, it was the worst having random people with you. Not to mention how awkward it got when you were squished together. At least this way, we had the whole boat to ourselves and could have our fun without anyone interrupting.

I shared an excited smile with Josie as the boat’s engine hummed to life. As soon as the boat jerked forward, my whole body pressed into Trevor’s side.

I didn’t say a word as I slid back over to my spot but felt Trevor’s eyes on me again. It was like everything was intentionally pushing us together.

Trevor didn’t say anything, but he kept his legs spread wide so his thigh pressed against mine. Glancing down, I found myself marveling at how big and muscular his thigh was. Hockey players were always in great shape but damn those thighs were thick. I guessed they had to be in order to skate around the ice for so long.

The longer I stared at our bare thighs touching, the dirtier my thoughts became. What the hell was wrong with me? Getting all hot and bothered by a man’sthigh?!It had been too damn long, apparently, if I was fantasizing about a leg.

Thankfully the tour guide started talking again, making me shove all those kinds of thoughts to the back of my mind. Now was so not the time. I forced myself to pay attention as Johnno told us about where we were going and how snorkeling worked. But no matter how hard I tried, my thoughts kept veering back to the person sitting next to me.

“Oh, I love that one!”Mila gushed as all of us girls leaned over, looking at Josie’s phone. Since the boat ride was going to take a little bit, Josie decided she wanted to take some photos of all of us, her inner photographer coming out. “Definitely send that one to me.” It was a picture of Mila and Bryton together, looking gorgeous as always.

“Can I get a picture with my beautiful girlfriend?” Wyatt came up and wrapped his arms around Josie.

Taking Josie’s phone, I carefully moved around the boat to get a good angle. Looking at the two, a smile appeared on my face. The way they looked at each other, it was clear as day they were in love. Wyatt looked at Josie like she was the air he breathed. Like nothing else mattered but her.

As I took picture after picture, my chest ached with happiness for my best friend. She had absolutely no clue what was going to happen in a few days. No clue that I had been going behind her back for the past couple of weeks. Knowing how happy she was going to be soon eased the guilt that came over keeping it a secret.

Leaving the two of them in their own little bubble I gazed around the boat, turning, I found Lydia and Landon standing beside each other, leaning their arms against the railing,looking out at the ocean. Landon was standing close enough that his arm brushed against hers.

Shaking my head, I brought Josie’s phone up, taking a picture of the two. I was about to put the phone down when the two of them glanced over at each other at the same time. My thumb moved before I could think, snapping the picture seconds before they turned away. My lips tugged upward as I looked at the picture I just took.

Damn, maybeIshould be a photographer, not Josie, cause it was perfect. The green island and water in the background as Lydia and Landon stared at one another was literal perfection. They were definitely going to thank me later for that one.

“I’m ready for my photoshoot.” I didn’t even look up as I felt Trevor come up behind me.

“Sorry, closed for business.”

“But my face is primed and ready.” I pressed my lips together to stop myself from smiling at his antics. “I’m a great model.”

That I already knew. I had seen countless pictures of him in magazines and commercials. A photoshoot of Trevor in his boxers flashed in my head. A photo I may have spent quite a long time staring at.

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