“Still got it.” She kissed his cheek.
About that time, Faith and Asher walked over.
“Hey, you’re here!” Faith smiled.
Jamie grinned at her. “Just beating the boys at a game.”
I nodded, and John chuckled.
“Up for another?” Asher wiped his brow.
“Sure.” John shrugged, and they looked at me.
I shook my head. “Nah. I got my ass handed to me enough. I’ll probably go swim or something.”
“Suit yourself.” Asher grabbed the ball from John. He and Faith raced over to their side of the net with Jamie and John on the other side.
I roamed closer to the ocean. The shore shimmered under the afternoon sun. The waves rolled in with a whooshing sound. Mags and Declan were walking up the shore my way, holding hands. I winced at the feeling in my bones.
“Hey, man.” Declan waved.
Mags looked out at the ocean, not addressing me at all.
I nodded at him before looking at her. “How’s your injury?”
She shrugged. “Fine.”
“Any pain?”
“Nothing I can’t handle.”
Her face was blank, and her tone indifferent. It caused a tightness in my chest. My hand rubbed the spot that ached, but it was no use. It didn’t fucking matter. She wasn’t mine. I’d already decided that for us, so why the hell did hurt so much?
“Let’s go play.” Declan used their interlocked hands to point toward the volleyball net where the rest of our group were.
She curved her lips into an amused smirk. “Just make sure you don’t hit me with the ball.”
“Scouts honor.” He winked at her.
It was as if I was invisible, and I hated feeling invisible to her. I blew out some air and stalked past them. They didn’t seem to care since they headed over to play volleyball.
I used my hands to block the sun as I squinted my eyes toward the game they’d started. Eve and Gerald had finally shown up. They sat in the sand a few yards away from the net. They seemed to be arguing about something, but that wasn’t anything new. A gut feeling told me I should keep an eye on them so that’s what I did.
Several minutes later I noticed Eve get up to walk away, and Gerald grabbed her wrist and jerked her back down, preventing her from moving. I had suppressed the rage I felt for the man for a long time but seeing him manhandle a girl I considered a little sister made it explode. The heat of the anger hissed through my veins as I got closer to them.
The wrath engulfed any logical thought as I stood in front of Gerald, who still had a tight grip around Eve’s wrist. “Let her go.”
His eyes widened as he dropped her wrist. The snake hadn’t thought anyone saw what he did. “I wasn’t—”
I cracked my neck to the side. “You weren’t jerking on Eve’s arm to stop her from moving?”
Eve’s bottom lip trembled as she moved her gaze between Gerald and me. “I—I’m fine. Thank you, Luca. Truly, but I’m fine.”
I narrowed my eyes at the redness that formed around her wrist. I reached out and moved her hand toward me to get a better look at the wrist. His fingerprints were indented in her skin. “You should go get ice.”
She moved her hand back and covered the mark with her other hand. “I will.”
“What the fuck, Evelyn?” Gerald’s voice was harsh, his true nature reared its head.
She lowered her head, her eyes not moving from the prints on her wrist. I could feel our friends standing behind me.
A hand rested on my shoulder. “What’s going on over here?” Faith asked.
I ground my molars together. “This piece of shit is manhandling Eve. Someone needs to do something about it.”
His eyes flashed as he stood up and got in my face. “Do something then, prick.”
I twisted my mouth into a sadistic smile. “I’d fucking love to.”
Eve hopped up and pushed against our chests to separate us. “It’s fine! I’m fine.”
Mags walked over to her and grabbed her hand, inspecting her wrist. “You’re not fine.” She twirled around and popped Gerald in the mouth with her closed fist. “Don’t fucking touch my friend!”
Eve’s eyes filled with tears as Gerald grumbled profanities under his breath. He glared at me before he took off in the opposite direction.
Faith wrapped her arms around Eve. “Let him go. He’s not worth it.”
She nodded and collapsed into Faith. Mags went over and joined the group hug. “If you don’t dump his ass…”
Eve hiccuped. “He’s never touched me before today. I’m not stupid. I’m not staying.”
“Do you want me to come with you to get your stuff and kick his ass out?” I asked.
She shook her head. “It’s something I need to do by myself.”
Faith rubbed her back. “Well, he needs to go. He’s no longer welcome.”
Asher nodded at her, and he smacked me on the back. “Come with me. We’ll go arrange for him to leave tonight.”
I nodded, but my eyes lingered on the three friends. We’d all been worried when Eve started dating Gerald. I was thankful the girls were getting their best friend back, and Eve was finally dumping the baggage.
Day Two
4 PM - 5 PM - Free Time
I paced the floor of the hotel room as Declan sat on the bed and watched me. I couldn’t believe Luca confronted Gerald. I’d wanted to do it so many times in the past, and I was so fucking thankful he saw him grab her. Eve was too sweet to be dragged down by scum.
Declan patted the bed beside him. “It’s going to be okay.”
I nibbled on my thumb as I paced. “I’m worried.”
Asher and Luca had notified security that Gerald had until six this evening to be out of here. They had arranged the ferry to take him back along with a plane back to Violet Ridge. Evelyn had left over an hour ago to break things off for good and tell him he had to leave. My nerves were frayed to the quick.
Declan got to his feet
