Page 10 of Don't Puck Up

The resort’s restaurant was small—it literally only seated twenty people—but Kamirah and I wanted to check it out. It was totally worth making the five-minute golf-cart trip.

Tall coconut palms shaded lush gardens filled with frangipani, hibiscus, and gardenias. A vine dotted with white-and-purple flowers climbed the trees surrounding the restaurant and the open-air pool deck it was situated on. Large umbrellas, some open and others closed, were set up beside the tables. Beyond them, more umbrellas shaded the partially submerged sun loungers that were built into the shallow platform of the infinity edged pool.

We didn’t know if there would be any other guests at the restaurant, considering how small and exclusive the resort was. But given the weight of our conversation the night before and the explosive finale, we decided to start our new day with how we wanted to move ahead—back out in the open. We didn’t have anything to prove. We were simply ready to be seen in public again. Neither of us wanted to hide anymore. We were sick of letting the media dictate our story. It was time for us to take it back.

We weren’t making a grand public statement, but going out together was enough. I hated that spending time together in public, even going out on dates, had become unfamiliar because of our months inhiding. My head was on a swivel as we sipped our coffees and looked over the breakfast menu. Nerves were inexplicably assaulting me.

It was a pleasant surprise when we saw someone other than a staff member push through the door.

It was an even bigger surprise when I recognized him.

He couldn’t be real.

Someone was punking me. They’d hired a body double to trick me into thinking it was him. The thought sounded ridiculous even to me. Who would actually do that?

But holy hell, if the man was a body double, he was Locke Ledger’s doppelganger.

I blinked.

Did Ledger have a twin? He looked exactly like the Hollywood superstar.

I blinked again.

Itwashim. In the flesh. Locke Ledger was here, standing only fifteen feet from where we were seated.

Heat rushed to my cheeks. I choked on the air I was trying to breathe as excitement pulsed through me. He was the actor I’d been obsessed with for as long as I could remember.

“Are you okay?” Kamirah asked, but I barely heard her over the ringing in my ears.

I was lightheaded. My heart rate spiked, my pulse zinging through my veins at the speed of light.

He was the most beautiful man I’d ever seen.

I opened my mouth to respond to her, but nothing came out. I gaped like a goldfish.

Kam spun in her seat to check what I was looking at—or, rather, whom—but I choked out a cough and held my hand out, stoppingher. She paused mid-turn, her brows furrowed and lips drawn down in a concerned frown.

“What’s going on?” she asked in a whisper.

“It’s him,” I squeaked, my voice two octaves higher than it normally was. I was trembling with excitement. Pressing down on my belly, I tried to settle the butterflies doing aerial acrobatics inside me. I was fanboying hard.

Holy shit, I might even get to talk to him.

I sucked in a breath and held it, trying not to act completely uncool.

I couldn’t help but stare at him. Brown hair, hazel eyes, and close-cropped stubble might have been average on anyone else, but on him it was outstanding. He had a straight nose, pouty lips, a square jaw, and hair that looked soft as silk. He was the classic Hollywood heartthrob and was dressed like one too—dark blue tailored shorts with a brown belt, an unbuttoned white linen shirt, and leather slides.

Tall and leanly muscled, every inch of him was sculpted to perfection, with utterly lickable abs peeking through the gap in his shirt. He was fucking gorgeous.

I watched with rapt attention as Locke Ledger, action superhero, scanned the handful of tables. One was a larger six-seater. The rest scattered around the deck were made for couples. They were far enough apart for privacy, but it meant that only a few had prime position near the pool. Kamirah and I had picked the table closest to it, which also happened to be the only one currently in the shade thanks to the open umbrella suspended above us.

He flicked his gaze over to us, and it locked with mine. I shivered.

I wasn’t his only fan, but he was by far my biggest crush.

Jesus Christ, it really was Locke Ledger.

I waslookingat Locke Ledger.