Page 61 of Raine Out (Grand Slam 2)

Raine

It’s only eight in the morning. I didn’t get back to my room until two, but I’m wide awake. I can’t stop thinking about Alex. Last night feels like a magical dream. It was so perfect that I’m beginning to question whether or not it happened.

I’m tired of tossing and turning, so I decide to head down and grab an early breakfast. When I come out of my room, I see Serena walking down the hall.

“Hey. It’s Serena, right? I’m Raine.”

She laughs as she walks over to me. “Oh, I remember you. You almost took Savannah’s head off last night.”

“I—”

“Don’t apologize. I’m not mad about it. Savannah needs a good slap down now and then.”

I smile as I pull my door shut. “It definitely seems that way.”

“You got back to your room last night about the same time we did.”

I look down at my phone quickly. “Oh yeah, I didn’t notice you.”

“I’m sure you didn’t. Alex was sucking pretty hard on your face.”

I grimace as I look up at her again. “Oh, wow. Uh—”

“You don’t have to explain. Believe me, if I were single, I’d be going after that hard. He’s so fucking sexy.” She lets out a little whistle. “Have fun. Just don’t catch any feelings or you’ll be his next victim.”

“His nextvictim? Is that you talking or Allie?”

She shakes her head. “I’m not friends with Allie. I barely know her. But, woman to woman, Alex gets around—a lot.”

“Okay,” I say, nodding. “I appreciate the head’s up.”

She turns around and starts walking toward the beach. “No judgment. Just know he’s a player—in every sense of the word.”

My head starts spinning as I watch her walk around the corner. What did she say? Don’t catch any feelings. Unfortunately, I think it’s a little too late for that. He’s all I’ve thought about since I saw him at the airport yesterday. I want to go back into my room and bury myself in my bed, but last night’s vigorous activity has left me famished. I need breakfast. When I get into the lobby, I see Butch pacing—his face drawn tight underneath his cap.

“What are you still doing here? I thought you were leaving at eight.”

“Yes,” he says, his teeth clenched, “I thought that, too. Apparently, Roman’s on that island time you warned me about.”

“It’s only eight-thirty.” I pull him over to the drink station and pour him a glass of water. “Deep breaths, buddy.”

“There’s fruit floating in that water,” he says, pointing at the oranges and lemons in the pitcher. “I like my water to taste like water.”

“Island Butch is a complicated man, isn’t he?” I squint at him as I take a long drink. “Why don’t you grab some breakfast with me while you wait?”

“I had breakfast two hours ago,” he growls, looking over at Roman who’s talking to a few people by the check-in desk.

“You can come over to Seb and Sophie’s with me if you don’t want to wait for them.”

“Definitely not. Fishing over everything.” He looks down at me—his eyes finally softening. “And I wouldn’t want to get in the way of you and your boy toy. You don’t look like you got any sleep.”

“Oh, you know, I always have a problem sleeping in a new bed,” I say, looking away.

“Which bed were you trying to sleep in—yours or Alex’s?”

“What?” I look up at him blankly.

“Nice try. Your poker face sucks. Don’t think I didn’t see him leading you out of the party.”

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