From the Jump(24)

“Really?” I hesitate. As much as I don’t relish a night of walking on eggshells and attempting to sleep to the blare of Disney music, it’s probably best to get some space from Deiss. “Well, Phoebe and I searched everywhere online, but we couldn’t find any vacancies for tonight.”

“Seriously?” Simone shakes her head. “You finally make it out of the country, and nothing is going right.”

“At least I made it,” I say. “But I will need someplace to stay tonight.”

“Oh.” Simone’s sympathy quickly transitions into a look of surprise, then unease. “Well, I’m sure you’re all set up and comfortable in Deiss’s room now. And I doubt I could even find the other bed in my room under all of the clothes. Why scrunch them up into drawers when you can lay them out and let them breathe, right?”

“Right.” I grin in spite of the round-about rebuff.

We are who we are. Even Simone’s fear of me sharing a bed with Deiss can’t overcome her need to have a Simone-specific space. I have no doubt she’d be willing to pay for any one of us to get our own room, but sharing is just a little bit further than she’s capable of going. I can relate, if for different reasons.

“I guess we’re still roomies,” Deiss says.

“Just for one more night,” I clarify. Phoebe and I might not have been able to find an available room, but we were able to book a single-person tent for tomorrow’s safari.

“That’s probably best,” Deiss says. “Too much time alone together might tempt you.”

“Tempt you to what?” Simone’s nose tilts up, like a dog catching the scent of something.

I shoot Deiss a warning look, but he just smiles.

“Apparently,” he says casually, “my sexual allure is so staggering, our Ice Queen had to make a vow to Phoebe that she wouldn’t succumb to it.”

Simone gasps.

“Wrong,” I say. “First, it was not a vow. It was a pact. Second, it wasn’t about you or your sexual allure. It was about you and Mac.”

“So, you’re tempted to sleep with Mac, too?” He looks over at a very astonished Mac and nods in a congratulatory way. “Nice.”

“Wait,” Mac says before I can speak. “You’re into me?”

“No,” I say firmly.

He shakes his head, seeming not to have heard me. “I knew this face was going to get me into trouble. I can’t control it, you know. I was just born with it.”

“Please,” Phoebe says. “I’ve seen pictures of you with braces and enough dots of acne cream across your forehead that it looked like you were being treated for poison ivy.”

“Well, that didn’t stop Liv from wanting to sleep with me.”

“I do not want to sleep with you!” I inhale deeply and lower my voice. “Phoebe and I were simply agreeing that we’d never do anything to mess up the dynamic of the group, which happens to include—”

“Getting naked with us,” Mac interrupts.

“It’s smart of you,” Deiss says, his lip curling smugly, “to recognize your weakness in the face of such temptation.”

I can see his childish attempt to provoke me and will not rise to it.

Unfortunately, Phoebe either doesn’t see it or is unable to muster the same restraint.

“Please,” she says. “We were just kidding around. You couldn’t tempt us if you tried.”

“You think?” Deiss looks annoyingly amused.

Phoebe’s eyes spark with challenge. “Give it a shot.”

Deiss’s amusement is muted by a flicker of apprehension. “What?”

“You heard me. We’re smart, savvy, gorgeous women. It takes more than a sex-panther makeover”—Phoebe flicks to indicate his newly bare face before turning her attention toward Mac—“or a decent set of abs to attract women like us. If you really think you’re so irresistible, let’s see you prove it.”

“You want us to come on to you?” Mac looks delighted by the idea.

“Yes,” Simone says quickly, her eyes darting toward Deiss. “That sounds entertaining. I’m willing to participate. For science.”

I snort indelicately, and everyone’s head turns toward me.

“Is that our van?” I deflect the attention by gesturing to the dinged-up scrap of metal that’s rolled to a stop in front of the lobby door.

“Allow me to get the door for you ladies,” Mac says gallantly.

“Well,” Phoebe says, “that’s Mac’s super suave move, so he’s clearly in. How ’bout you, Lucas?”

Deiss slides an arm over her shoulders and hits her with the full force of his gorgeous mouth. “Sure, I’ll give it a shot.”

I groan loudly, but nobody seems to care.





CHAPTER 8


The boat is single-leveled and covered, with benches lining both sides. The middle is empty, presumably so passengers can race from one side to the other when wildlife appears. There’s been a lot of both racing and wildlife appearances. There’s also been a lot of indiscriminate flirting from the guys. I say indiscriminate because the focus of their attention seems to shift with the sway of the boat, although it has been strictly limited to me, Phoebe, and Simone. Never mind the group of four women who are also on the tour, appear to be single, and are far more likely to yield results. The attention would be annoying if it weren’t so comical.