Page 14 of A Mutually Beneficial Proposal

Ella

After unpacking my stuff,I decide to go for a swim and let the sun take away my stresses. I put on my favorite pink bikini with my sheer black cover-up. Enough of my curvy ass is concealed that I feel comfortable walking through the hotel to the pool.

At the last minute, I decide some caffeine will be helpful since I was up before the sun to catch my flight. My unexpected nap on the plane only made me drowsier. Except, when I’m within twenty feet of the coffee bar, I want to die.

How can life be so cruel? What did I do to deserve its wrath?

I need to turn around and run as far from this place as possible, but it’s too late. Blake saw me first. If I flee, I’ll only look like a fool, and that’s the last thing I can handle right now.

With one forced step after another, I close the distance between myself, my ex-fiancé, and his new whatever.

She’s tall and thin and perfect, and there isn’t a piece of her that’s left a mystery to the guests of the resort. A surge of jealousy races through me, and I’m reminded how much I loved Blake and how badly he hurt me when I learned he was cheating.

Looking at him now, six years later, he’s even more handsome than I remember and is grinning at me as if we’re long-lost friends. I don’t know how I’m going to act, but I have no time to prepare for whatever is about to happen.

“Ella Danes? What a surprise,” Blake says.

“Who’s this, baby?’ the woman coos, lifting her arm and drumming her fingers over his muscled chest. The action brings attention to the shining rock on her left hand. A vice closes around my chest, and I can’t speak.

“This is…an old friend. Ella, this is my wife Cammie. We’re on our honeymoon.” The way he ends the sentence tells me he expects me to reply with my reason for being in Saint Lucia, but I have nothing good to say.

Instead, I blink like a dumbass. I’m frozen. My eyes can’t leave the ring on Cammie’s hand. I can’t even breathe. The only thing that could have made this worse was if he was here with the woman that he cheated on me with.

“Are you okay, Ella?” Blake says, leaning forward and waving his hand in front of my face.

“There you are, beautiful,” a man says from behind me right before he wraps his hands around my waist, squeezing tight.

I flinch at the contact, but the shock I’m experiencing from seeing Blake and hearing he’s married prevents me from punching the stranger in his balls. He moves to stand beside me, leaving an arm wrapped around my waist and fingers gripping my hip possessively. With his free hand, he reaches for Blake.

“I’m Owen Porter. Ella’s lucky lover.”

I choke on air and try to push him away. I finally recognize him as the man from the plane. What in the actual fuck is happening right now?

“Oh, sweetheart. Don’t be ashamed. At least I didn’t say f—” Owen says, but I cut him off with a glare before he can finish the sentence. I have no idea what he was going to say, but lover was bad enough.

“Fiancé? Are the two of you here celebrating your engagement?” Cammie asks excitedly, dropping her hand from Blake, whose jaw is now tense.

Owen’s grin spreads and he nods. “We are. Might even consider getting married on the beach while we’re here. I just can’t get enough of this one. I want to make sure she’s mine before anyone else can think to steal her from me.”

I’m fully aware that every word spewing from Owen’s mouth is false, but I can’t lie. He is turning this incredibly uncomfortable situation into something I can walk away from with my head held high.

Blake’s eyes meet mine, dark and accusing, as if I’d been the one to ruin our past relationship. “No long engagement?”

I don’t let his change in demeanor get to me, and I smirk at him, hoping my gaze conveys all the hate I feel for the cheating bastard. “Didn’t quite work out so well for me last time. Or maybe it saved me from ruining the rest of my life. Either way, Owen has made me a new woman. He really knows what he’s doing when it comes to all aspects of a relationship.”

Blake makes a rough sound from his throat and takes a step back. Owen is glancing between the two of us, hopefully not reading too much between the lines, and Cammie just seems clueless of the awkward situation.

She giggles. “Girl, you’re making me jealous. I can feel the heat coming off the two of you in waves.”

Blake pulls his wife closer. “Well, then. I’m happy for you, Ella. We should all do dinner. We’re here for the week.”

I want to laugh in his face. There isn’t a scenario in this world that would ever make me agree to dinner with that cheating bastard.

“Oh yes. I hardly ever meet Blake’s friends. I’d love to get to know you, Ella,” Cammie says, and I instantly feel bad for her. If Blake’s keeping her a secret from his friends, that doesn’t bode well for him being faithful.

Owen slides his arm around me again, and this time I burrow closer to him. “We’ll see if we can clear our schedule and be in touch,” he says.

“No hard feelings if we can’t get anything to line up.” Blake’s fake smile and stiff nod make my grip on Owen tighten more than is appropriate, given I don’t know him.

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