Page 115 of HER SISTER

Soon we were all back at the villa, and I swear the hike back down was the absolute worst.

I mean, yes it was downhill, but the sun had risen, which left us all under the beating sun sweating and praying for air conditioning.

I swear by the time we made it off the trail, we were all running to the villa.

Luckily, we're all about to lounge by the pool—or swim in it at this point because it is so fucking hot.

Even as I stand here changing into my one-piece swimsuit after a freshly cold shower, I'm still hot.

But maybe that's just because of how hard it is to lace this one-piece up.

Meanwhile, I showed Desi to one of the many empty bedrooms so she could help herself to a shower and change as well.

On the hike back down, Desi managed to not only keep her arm around my waist, but she also helped me re-tie my hair back up and pour a little bit of water on me to keep me cool.

And while Mili seemed to eye her arm on my waist and narrow her eyes when she pulled my hair up—

Pouring water all over my arms and exposed chest seemed to irritate her to the point of her jaw clenching and her hands twitching by her sides, clearly wanting to do something.

But it was almost unspoken that if she did that I'd win, so she remained reluctantly quiet.

And had Xiomara waiting when we got back to join in our pool day.

So this should be interesting.

I let out a final sigh as I finished tying the last string, and even if it didn't look tied fully right, I seemingly didn't care.

Soon my beach towel was in my hand along with a bottle of sunscreen and my sunglasses as I headed downstairs.

And of course, the first people that I see are Mili and Xiomara—who are eating fruit together.

Mind you, Xiomara is sitting on the counter while Mili stands between her legs.

Honestly, I can't even complain after Desi was literally rubbing cold water onto my bare skin right in front of her.

I immediately glanced away when Mili's dark eyes managed to shift over to me.

Luckily, Mya and Arielle were in the kitchen helping prepare some snacks while Desi made mixed drinks for everyone.

It made it a little less awkward for me to walk in and join everyone.

Desi instantly passed me a drink, "Your favorite," she said, shooting me her signature smile.

I hummed happily, "Thank you," I said as I took the glass from her and set my things down on the counter.

And as I sipped the frozen mango drink, I had to physically force myself to not glance a few feet down where Mili and Xiomara were laughing and conversing.

I'm beginning to understand how I was testing her patience.

Because she's one hundred percent testing mine right now.

Especially with Xiomara's hand now resting on her shoulder.

I mean, as far as I know, Xiomara isn't in on anything like Desi is.

I let out a calm sigh, hoping to gather my nerves as I drank the alcoholic drink.

It's just a game, it's not real, Is what I managed to tell myself as I took a few more sips.

I hummed to myself, "So I was thinking we go jet skiing today," I said, and almost immediately Mya and Arielle's eyes lit up.

"Yes, I'm so down," Arielle said.

Mya nodded as she cut up more strawberries, "We could go around sunset?" she offered.

I nodded, but before I could say anything, Mili managed to say, "Yeah, we could all partner up."

And when she subtly nudged Xiomara, I practically felt my insides burn—mostly at the idea of Xiomara's arms around Mili and her body pressed to hers as they rode the jet ski.

Mili's lips twitched up into an amused smirk when her eyes suddenly met mine, clearly noticing the effect she had on me.

However, before I could say something to one-up her, I began to feel my top loosen—

Easily making Mili's dark eyes glance down to my chest which was seconds away from being exposed.

Before I could even blink, Mili was taking a few quick steps toward me—forcing Xiomara's hand to fall from her shoulder as I instinctively held my arm across my chest.

Mili's actions alone managed to catch everyone's attention in the kitchen, but luckily she was already wrapping my towel that was previously laid on the counter around my upper body.

And I couldn't help but be internally thankful for her actions—or that I didn't manage to flash anyone.

Mili drew in a tight breath as she stared down at me, and I could tell she was irritated by even the idea of me being exposed, specifically to Desi.

But before she could begin to say anything, I managed to say—

"Desi do you mind helping me with my swimsuit?"

And just like that, Mili was reaching out for my waist—

Until she managed to realize mid-way what she was doing, which easily caused her arm to fall back by her side.

I smiled happily when Desi suddenly said, "I can help with sunscreen too."

A content hum vibrated in my chest, "Sounds perfect," I said as Desi walked over to me.

And as I turned on my heel with the towel wrapped around me, I couldn't miss the overall contemplation coated on Mili's face.

I was so close to winning, I could feel it.

Soon Desi and I were back up in my room where she appropriately helped me lace up my one-piece.

At least this time it would actually be correct, so there wouldn't be any more incidents.

"Okay wait," Desi whispered mostly to herself, and I could tell she was trying to figure out how each string crossed down my back.

I swear I'm sticking to basic swimsuits after this.

Patiently, I remained facing away from Desi with my hands on the wall in front of me for balance.

"I might need it tighter than that," I told her, knowing that I didn't want to risk it coming unraveled again.

Desi pulled tighter at the strings, "I got you girl," she said, but she could only seem to tighten the back rather than the front with it as well.

Upon realizing the issue, Desi's free hand managed to slide around to the front of my stomach.

"Let me know if you feel uncomfortable at all," Desi said, clearly aware of our odd position.

Especially with me pressing my hands into the wall with the front of her body behind me—and her one hand at my lower stomach while the other was at my lower back.

"No-no you're all good," I assured her, knowing that I didn't feel uncomfortable whatsoever.

Desi pulled at the front strings, "Okay good, just let me know and I can grab Mya or someone," she said, easily earning a nod from me.

And as she tightened the strings more, I said, "Just a little bit more."

However, before Desi could pull them tighter, the cracked bedroom door managed to open slightly.

And honestly, knowing my luck and our compromising position—it just had to be Mili.

Whose dark eyes managed to glance between us before she said—

"I can handle it from here."

Desi didn't even hesitate to remove her hands from my body and take a step back.

"I'll uh see you out at the pool," Desi forced out before she turned on her heel to quickly walk past Mili and out of the room entirely.

And as I dropped my hands from the wall that they were pressed on, I instinctively held my arms to my chest which was covered by the loose fabric.

Meanwhile, Mili already had the bedroom door shut behind Desi.

And I couldn't help but remain silent as I watched her close each curtain in front of the glass walls that overlooked the back patio where everyone was.

"It's really not what it looked like," I finally said, hoping that her behavior wasn't regarding that assumption.

Mili only hummed as she pulled another curtain closed, "I know," she said, and her calm tone alone seemed to make me feel even more confused.

She's dangerous when she's calm.

Even I knew that.

When she's calm, she already has her mind made up.

"So... what is this about?" I said, but even I could hear the way my voice shifted into a whisper, watching as Mili continued to calmly close the curtains.

I couldn't exactly pinpoint what her next actions were, especially since she seemed to be completely calm and composed.

However, if I thought I was confused before, it managed to double when Mili said—

"You win."

I blinked a few times, clearly processing what she just stated.

Am I hallucinating right now or did she just forfeit her end?

"I win?" I repeated back to her, clearly trying to make sure I heard her correctly.

Mili shut the last curtain, which easily left us in a darkness that was only illuminated by the two lamps I previously had on.

"You win the game, Atiana," Mili clarified.

And even if I managed to hear her say it a second time, It still didn't feel like I won.

Not with how Mili was currently staring at me.

She's definitely made her mind up about something, and I'm not sure what it is yet.

I drew in a breath when Mili suddenly began walking toward me, and with each step, I managed to anticipate her next actions more and more.

However, as she stopped right in front of me, all my thoughts and anticipations fell short.

Especially with her dark eyes carefully looking down between my own.

I inaudibly gasped almost as soon as Mili slid her hand around the side of my neck—caressing her thumb softly against the skin of my cheek.

Just like that, every muscle in my body completely relaxed as I leaned into her warm touch that I had so desperately missed.

Mili watched me carefully as I leaned my cheek into her hand, and I couldn't help but slide my arms around her waist and pull myself into her warm body.

My actions alone completely closed the gap between us, easily forcing our warm bodies to press against one another.

And as time began to slow and our faces grew closer and closer together...

Mili tilted my head back slightly and said—

"It's time to come home baby."

A soft hum vibrated in my throat as soon as our lips managed to graze one another—and I swear I couldn't break my eyes away from her stare even if I tried.

"It's time to come home," I whispered back to her in confirmation.

And just like that, my eyes were fluttering shut and her warm lips were pressed to mine.