“Even young and perky gets boring after a while,” Natasha agreed.
“I don’t know. Have you seen the way he watches her? He’s like a puppy dog,” Brad said.
“He’s obviously just infatuated because she’s the first girl in the history of the world not falling all over him. He’s having to put in the work on this one. Maybe it’ll be good for him,” I said.
“Like I said, he’s a puppy dog chasing a bright, shiny new bone.” Brad jutted his head in the direction of the two of them. We watched as Emily positioned herself in front of the sun, pressing her lips to the side of the glass, and Andy snapped a few photos on her phone.
“Yeah, well, someone needs to put that puppy down,” Natasha said. “Lord, it’s pathetic.”
I stifled a grin of my own. “I just want him to be happy. Maybe she’s the one.”
“She’s a one,” Brad agreed, clearing his throat. “And this is the first time I’ve ever seen him date someone for longer than a week. He seems…I hate to say it, but he does seem happy.”
When they were done taking the photo, Emily traded the drink for her phone, looking through the pictures. When she appeared to have found one she approved of, she stuck the phone back into her dress and surprised me by looking directly at us.
At once, the three of us looked away, and I felt heat rush to my face. “Real smooth, guys,” Natasha joked.
When we looked back, she was still staring our way, a small smile on her painted red lips. She was perfect, in an intimidating way that I couldn’t deny. Sure, she was half my age, but it was more than that. There was something so confident about her, a confidence that most women never knew. At any age.
Interrupting my thoughts, Natasha nudged me. “She’s coming over here. She’s coming over here. Stop staring.”
I looked down, then back up, realizing she was right. They were headed back our way, nearly to us at that point. When they reached us, she bent down, sitting directly in front of me, her legs bent carefully behind her.
Andy took a seat next to her, his legs crossed, both drinks still in his hands and his palms bright red from the cold.
“Hey,” she purred.
“Want me to help you out?” Brad asked, taking one of the drinks and burying its base in the sand so it stayed in place. Andy did the same with the other one.
“I saw you guys watching.” She rolled her eyes with fake humility. “So embarrassing, I know. But the poses that look ridiculous in real life make for the best shots online.”
“Sorry, no. It wasn’t that at all. We weren’t trying to stare. I just find what you do so fascinating,” I told her.
“Oh, you probably think it’s super shallow,” she said, waving me off. There was no bitterness in her voice. “I know it’s silly, but it pays the bills, ya know. There are worse things…” She trailed off, flicking her long, dark hair behind her shoulder. “So, are you guys having fun?”
“It’s beautiful, Emily. We can’t thank you enough for inviting us,” Brad said, taking some of the pressure off me.
“My pleasure. Really. I never get to do these things with people I actually know, let alone like, so this is great for me.” She paused. “I hate that you had to leave your daughters at home, though. I know you must miss them.”
The thought of Britta and Elena sent a stab to my heart. “I do,” I admitted. “Very much. But I know they’re having fun with my parents.”
“And what about you, Natasha? You have children, right?”
“A son. He’s seventeen.” Her eyes brightened. “About your age, right?”
Andy gave her an irritated look of warning, but Emily didn’t seem to notice or care about the condescension in her tone. “Just about. Very cool.” She nodded rhythmically, like she was dancing to music no one else could hear.
“I’m so curious about what you do, Brad. You said you bring water to foreign countries? Andy had only told me about your accounting, but I think that’s so cool.” She leaned forward, zeroing in on Brad, who didn’t seem to mind giving her the extra attention. “Do you ever need donations? I love getting my followers involved in worthy causes.” She smiled sweetly, and a sick feeling washed over me.
“Yeah, absolutely. It’s a worthwhile cause, and the way these people live, it’s just…it’s amazing how resilient man is, you know?”
“Or woman,” she said, her tongue resting on her too-white teeth.
“Yeah,” he said, hanging on to the ending sound. “Woman, too.” His eyes darted to mine nervously, and I hoped he could feel the tension. I was not a jealous person, but it would take a woman more confident than I am to watch their husband watching someone so beautiful, so interested in him, without feeling at least a pang of spite.
“How did you get into social media?” I asked, drawing her attention back to me as Nick, Megan, and Jaren emerged from the water, making their way up the shore toward us.
“Oh, gosh, it just kind of happened, you know? I posted about what I did, my life, and it just…” She snapped her fingers. “Took off. You know how it goes.” Oh, right, of course.
“You must enjoy it,” Brad said. “All that freedom…I’m not sure what I’d do with it.”
My stomach tightened.
“It’s great,” she agreed. “It gets lonely sometimes…” She blinked slowly, then looked at Andy. “But it’s still great. Beats a desk job, right?”
Andy smiled. “Beats getting your knuckles torn to shreds at a shop.”
“You love your cars,” she said, puckering her lips and grasping his chin, shaking it back and forth playfully.
“Hey, I could learn to live without ’em if it meant doing stuff like this all the time,” he told her, the statement rolling over her expression slowly. Her smile faded.
“You know most of the time I have
