Gentleman Sinner(23)

I pull my tousled black waves into a knot, but immediately release it when Jess shakes her head. ‘Down?’

‘Yes, you’ve got that beach-tousled thing going on. It’s hot. Come on.’

We head down to the pool, and after collecting two towels, we venture into the crazy scene. I feel somewhat intimidated by the throngs of gorgeous women as we weave through the crowds, looking for somewhere to settle.

‘Bed, ladies?’ A man asks, indicating a double sunbed with a cosy mattress atop it. ‘Two-fifty with a free drink thrown in.’

‘Two hundred and fifty dollars?’ I blurt, ignoring the jab in my side from Jess. ‘To lay on a bed?’

‘Or you can take a cabana for two thousand.’ He points across the way to some huts.

‘How much is it to lay on the ground?’ I ask.

‘We’ll take the bed,’ Jess jumps in, throwing me an evil look. ‘Thanks.’ She gets her purse and counts out a pile of notes.

‘Are you mad?’ I whisper-hiss in her ear.

‘Cool it.’ She brushes off my concern. ‘We’re on holiday.’

‘Vacation,’ I mutter, spreading my towel on my side of the bed. ‘The drinks better be awesome.’

Jess falls apart laughing as she slips her shades on and joins me in removing our cover-ups. I don’t feel self-conscious. There are women with bits of material the size of pound coins covering their nipples. We settle and accept the drinks brought to us, and I slurp back my first dose of alcohol of the day, feeling surprisingly healthy considering the amount we indulged in last night. ‘God, this is the life.’ Jess drops to her back, her foot tapping in time to the beat of Michael Calfan’s ‘Treasured Soul,’ while I spend some time taking it all in. The sun is blazing, happiness and fun surround us, and I have the biggest smile on my face. Yes, this really is the life. At least, it is for the next five days.

I sigh and drop to my back, but bolt up again when something across the pool catches my eye. And before I can stop it, my cup slips from my grasp and every sound and movement around me stops. ‘No,’ I whisper.

Jess is up like a shot, sitting on the edge of the bed. ‘Izzy, what the fuck?’ She starts frantically brushing down her front, and when I look at her blankly, I find her soaking wet, her sunglasses askew and ice cubes scattered in her lap.

‘I’m sorry,’ I mumble, pushing myself up to my feet and frantically searching the other side of the pool. Where he was. I turn on the spot, my tongue becoming sticky in my mouth from dryness. Nothing.

‘What’s the matter with you?’ Jess asks, looking down at her front incredulously. ‘Damn it!’

‘I saw him,’ I say mindlessly, wondering if my mind is playing games with me. He’s been in my thoughts, I won’t deny it, but I’ve done a damn fine job of pushing him away whenever he’s creeped forward.

‘Saw who?’

‘Theo.’ I don’t hesitate to tell her, hoping she’ll join me in my search as I scan the pool area. I must have imagined it. Surely I imagined it. Please tell me I imagined it! I pull the waiter to a stop as he passes. ‘Another two, please. Extra strong.’ I need a drink. I know I haven’t had much sleep, but . . . seeing things?

Jess circles on the spot, too, her eyes narrowed as she scans the area around us. ‘That’s impossible.’

No, it isn’t. ‘Oh, my goodness,’ I whisper as Jess follows my line of sight and blurts an expletive, obviously seeing what I’m seeing. I reach out and grab her arm to steady myself as he appears from across the pool, his eyes trained on me.

‘Shit, he is here.’ She swings around and grabs me, pulling me down to the bed. I feel like I’m hyperventilating, my breaths becoming too short.

‘I’m dizzy,’ I say, letting my head drop into my hands. ‘Jess, what is he doing here?’

‘I don’t fucking know. He’s your stalker, not mine.’ She directs the straw in her drink to my mouth. ‘Have some.’

I slurp down the icy liquid hungrily, willing myself to wake up soon. In Vegas? I want to consider the fact that I’m mistaken, that tiredness has morphed another man into Theo, but all these feelings, the instability, the breathlessness, the intrigue, it’s all indicative of one man alone.

I don’t need Jess to tell me when he reaches us. All the hairs on the back of my neck rise, and a prickling feeling pitter-patters down my spine. I close my eyes and pointlessly pray for someone to help me, and when I open them, a pair of dress shoes are in my downcast vision. Dress shoes? By a pool? My stupid observation is forgotten when warmth spreads across my back from the sensation of his palm resting there. I don’t flinch. Nothing. I’m numb. Shock, I think.

‘Izzy, are you okay?’ Theo crouches in front of me, taking a wrist with his spare hand. If I weren’t suffering from disbelief, I’d laugh. Am I okay? He’s showed up on the other side of the world, and he’s asking if I’m okay? ‘Izzy, look at me.’

Jess doesn’t breathe a word, yet she’s holding the cup of alcohol at my lips like a loyal friend. I latch on to the straw and slurp, but it’s quickly removed.

‘I’m not sure alcohol is wise when she’s having a funny turn,’ Theo chastises.

‘Excuse me?’ Jess retorts indignantly, and I cheer her on in my head, hoping she’ll chase him away with her viper tongue. ‘She’s having a funny turn because you’re here.’