Page 58 of Another Lucky Number

‘But not altogether unrealistic, given your track record.’

James and his friends share a collective smirk, which I take as a point for me.

‘Tell her,’ Cat commands.

‘OK.’ Amber sighs as if we’ve pressured her into spending the rest of the holiday teetotal. ‘We’re not being relocated tomorrow. I made it up.’

‘You made it up?’ I’m flabbergasted at this admission. ‘Why would you fabricate a story like that?’

‘It was part of your interview prep.’

‘How is telling me a big fat lie, and making my already crappy afternoon worse, part of helping me prepare for my interview?’

‘It was for you personal development slot. I set up a few scenarios so I could observe you in action and then give you feedback.’

‘You wereassessingme?’ I glance at James, who I can tell is trying his best to look appalled, but is clearly finding this all very amusing. ‘Amber, I was gutted at the thought of us havingto move resorts. Especially after the crappy afternoon I’ve had already. You didn’t think that maybe I’d been tested enough?’

‘Ahem…’ Cat clears her throat in a blatant signal to Amber, who this time seems to accept defeat.

‘I set it all up,’ she says. ‘The whole afternoon.’

My mouth drops open in shock, while James, Rob and Tyler look like they’ve been told a new national holiday has been announced to celebrate beer and football.

‘You mean the soakings from those kids? The woman who stole my lounger? Fiona?Wow… Fiona was one hell of an actress.’ I become momentarily distracted.

‘Who’s Fiona?’ Amber appears confused.

‘The woman who thought her husband was cheating.’

‘Ah, her. No, that was what I’d call a bonus roll. When I clocked you chatting with her, I sneaked across and eavesdropped on your conversation.’

She looks so proud of herself that I feel the urge to wipe the smug look off her face.

‘So, basically you ruined my day for your own entertainment?’

Her expression becomes defiant. ‘No,that’s not it. As I already said, it was a live experiment to assess you in action. It was very carefully put together, and I got a lot of insight from it – insight that’ll help you prepare for your interview.’

I’m about to hurl back another biting retort, when I remember my delighted audience. No matter how misguided Amber’s actions were, I don’t want to come across to James and his friends as ungrateful and unable to take a joke. Instead, I take a deep breath, and aim for the moral high ground.

‘Fine. If you think it’ll help then I look forward to your feedback – which I’ll receive when?’

‘Attagirl.’ Amber smiles sweetly at me, making me want to throw her tiny arse in the pool. ‘We’ll do itover dinner.’

‘How about we go for a swim?’ suggests Cat, in a blatant attempt to move us into calmer waters (almost literally).

‘Good idea.’ James jumps up and pulls off his T-shirt.

My eyes land on his muscular chest and toned arms, and it’s exactly what I need to bring me out of my funk. There’s nothing I want more right now than to be cavorting in the pool with him like all the other couples I was watching earlier. Amber has crossed a line all right – but I’ll deal with her later.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Half an hour later, all is (temporarily) forgotten, and I’m in pure bliss as the cool, topaz blue pool water laps gently around my shoulders. James and I have broken away from our group for coconut mojitos and a little private time by the swim-up bar, leaving Cat, Amber, Tyler and Rob to get to know each other better at the other end of the pool.

The flirty banter is flowing, but we haven’t yet made physical contact, and to say I’m craving it is a massive understatement. James looks so sexy, his hair wet and sort of slicked back, water droplets glistening on his muscular shoulders. My brain is practically screaming at him to take my hand, put his arms around me, kiss me –anything.

‘So, what’s the story with you and Lottie?’ He casually sips at his cocktail while leaning against the edge of the pool. ‘I didn’t realise you weren’t related until something she said the other day made me twig.’

‘Did your mum and dad not say?’ I cock my head in surprise. ‘She was my next-door neighbour when I was a kid. I used to sneak into her garden and read in her shed to get peace from my parents.’

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