Page 4 of OneTime Lovers
This is what we love to do together; talk clothes, food, and cocktails. Probably in that order of priority too. Oh, and maybe somewhere further down the list comes men.
I can’t think of a more enjoyable way to spend a couple of hours in this idyllic location than strolling through the shallows and swimming in the tropical waters with my besties.
The midday heat chases us back toward the resort, feeling a little hungry from our walk and swim in the sea. The pool area encircled by shady palms is the perfect place for a leisurely lunch before we each recline back on a lounger to soak up the warmth from the early afternoon sun.
The noisy, dirty streets of the city feel a million miles away as I breathe in deeply the heady fragrance of the brilliant-colored flowers in the gardens which edge the pool area. The sweet soft scent of roses mixed with the summery smell of yellow elder bushes. It’s so peaceful and relaxing. I didn’t realize how much I needed this break, till now.
The distant beat of a helicopter approaching has me turning my head lazily in the direction of the sound. Cassie jumps up excitedly, nearly knocking over the tray of drinks on the table between our loungers.
“That must be Luke and the boys,” she shouts with the same excitement as a child on Christmas morning.
Laughing at her eagerness to see her man, I tease her, “Calm down, girl, it’s only been a few days since you saw him. You do know you’re going to have to restrain yourself from grabbing your man as soon as he walks in. Remember our deal to keep the loving in public to a minimum.”
Cassie laughs. “I don’t think I agreed to that deal. I can grab my man any time and any place I want. Our deal is null and void. It’s my wedding so look away if you can’t handle some serious loving.”
Shaking my head with an exaggerated eye roll I plead my case, “Spare a thought for us girls who don’t have a man mountain to climb. You and Luke are truly too loved up for my eyes.”
Lily sighs. “Well, you’d hope they were loved up as they’re getting married in two days.”
Cassie’s high-pitched squeal hurts my ears. “I’m so excited to see Luke and so excited to be getting married.”
I roll my eyes again, in anoh pleasekind of way even though I’m truly happy for her.
Cassie and Luke dated in their teens till he broke her heart when he was deployed with his military unit, the 75thRanger Regiment, to Afghanistan. Five years later, fate gave them a second chance. They’re back together like they always should have been.
We all raise our eyes to the skies as the incoming helicopter buzzes low over us, hovers for a few seconds, and scoots off over the building to land on the island helipad. The helicopter hovered over the pool for only a few moments, but it was enough time to cause havoc, blowing cushions and towels everywhere. Crazy stupid pilot!
Cassie laughingly says, “Scotty is obviously flying today. Luke mentioned he was probably going to fly them over to the island.”
Lily and I both know Luke well through Cassie, and we’ve met Blake, his best friend and business partner a few times too. However, the infamous Scotty, also known now as the crazy pilot, I’ve never met before, but have heard a bit about.
I know he’s Australian, hence his nickname, and that he’s a former pilot who Blake and Luke served with as part of the joint forces in Afghanistan. Blake and Luke were in the Rangers together at the time, and the stories they tell make Scotty sound wild and fun. I must admit I’ve been kind of looking forward to meeting him to see if he lives up to his reputation. Shame they forgot to mention he was a bit of a dumbass.
Running my fingers through my hair to try to smooth it down after the free blow dry provided by the helicopter, I reposition my Ray-Bans over my eyes and lie back on my lounger.
Within moments, I’m settling back into some serious chill time by the pool when suddenly Cassie squeals again. At what point did this become a thing with her? Opening my eyes, I see her skip up the steps and launch herself into Luke’s arms, wrapping her legs around his waist. Luckily, he catches her. Blake stands a safe distance behind him, looking on bemused.
I laugh at her over-the-top welcome for her fiancé. Yep, she’s totally forgotten the deal we made of no public loving. Sedately, I walk over to join them. As Luke has his arms full of Cassie, I drop a quick kiss on his cheek.
“Geez, Luke, I’m glad to see you. I mean seriously will you hurry up and marry your woman before Bridezilla has us all squealing.”
Luke can’t respond as he is back to kissing his bride-to-be.
Blake strolls closer, bending down from his six-foot-five height to kiss my cheek. “Hey, Jas, it’s good to see you again. But beware we have bought with us, Groomzilla and he’s just as excited to marry his woman. Although I haven’t heard him squeal yet.”
I like Blake, he’s a good guy and always happy to participate in a bit of my silly banter. Of course, like Luke he is also ridiculously handsome, but where Luke has dark hair, Blake is blond. He’s the quintessential corporate city guy – in other words, not my type. I like my men a little rough around the edges with a dash of bad boy.
Besides, Blake is already taken by our friend Bec who he recently started dating. Bec works for Blake and Luke’s company ‘Cybersec’ and for a little while their relationship was a not so closely kept secret. For some reason, Blake didn’t want Luke to know he had a thing for their executive assistant.
Bec, along with her best friend, Trudy, started joining our Friday girls’ night drinks gang a few months ago, so of course we all knew exactly what was going on.
Unfortunately, the girls won’t be arriving till tomorrow, as according to Bec, someone needed to stay behind to run the company while the boys were off doing wedding things. Although I’m not sure what wedding things they have been doing in Florida.
Blake greets Lily, bending even lower to reach her cheek. “And how are you lovely ladies doing? You seem to be settling into island life.” He gazes around the pool area, and I can’t help thinking he’s just taken an inventory of all the hazards and exit points.
Lily gestures toward our surroundings. “Look at this place. How can you not love island life? It’s fantastic.”
At that moment, another man strolls out onto the pool deck, demanding my attention, someone I’ve not met before. While he’s dressed casually in shorts and T-shirt, similar to Luke and Blake, there’s something different about him. I secretly rake my eyes over his body from behind my dark sunglasses.
