Page 9

Not Tomorrow

T

hey eventually found their way to the beach towels, spreading them out and lying together. Staring up at the stars, holding each other close, admiring how far they’d come. With some certainty, Liam knew he wasn’t alone in focusing on the future. The days, weeks, months, and years ahead of them. There it was: hope. Not even just hope, though. Expectation. Confidence.

“If this is how my vacations are going to look from now on, I feel very fortunate,” Tess said, kissing the back of his hand. She had it in her hand, enjoying the simple shared touch.

“No reason to think otherwise,” Liam said. “The opposite, in fact.”

“For some smaller ones, I’ll want to try and just have it be us,” Tess said. “A weekend getaway, a spa trip, something like that.”

“I don’t think the others would begrudge you for that.”

“They’d better not, as I’m sure they’ll want the same. Not every trip needs to be five.” An intriguing glint appeared in her radiant blue eyes. “Some might be three, however.”

“Oh? Who comes to mind first?”

“I think you know.”

“The birthday girl?”

“Not yet,” Tess said, chuckling. “Have you figured out the date yet?”

“I’m hoping to, right now.”

Tess worked her mouth to one side. “Even if my ass feels the best kind of soreness it could hope for right now, I don’t know if I can hand out such personal information.”

Liam rolled his eyes and acted like he intended to pull his hand out of hers. She tightened her grip, keeping them linked.

“Okay, then what about this?” Liam said, realizing something in that moment. A way, maybe, to figure out the day without learning the day. “Tell me a day it’s not. There are four days left on this trip. Help me out a little, so I know you love me. I really want to know when her dumb birthday is.”

Snorting, Tess beckoned toward their surroundings. “Yeah, you really need extra evidence of that.”

“I’m only asking for a little more,” Liam pressed. “Is her birthday tomorrow, for example If it’s not, you can just say it isn’t.”

“And if it is?”

He shrugged coyly. “Then you’ll have to pick another day to say when it isn’t.”

Eyeing him mirthfully, the older professor relented. “Her birthday… is not tomorrow. Three more days it could be, though.”

“And two more women I can seduce for information,” Liam said, grinning. This was one plan he could share with Tess.

“Is that how you’re going to do it?” Tess asked, looking amused. “Who will you go after next?”

“Depends on what we do tomorrow. Avril has plans for a longer trip away from the resort, right? Off the Yasawas.”

Tess nodded. “A hiking trip, so it’ll be our middle day of the week when we go up a bunch of humps. She has us scheduled to visit the Mamanuca Islands, where the best trails are.” As if noticing something herself, the brunette chuckled. “Maybe I should have thought about that before I let you make me so sore.”

“Oops.”

“I might have to call for a few extra breaks in between uphill battles. That’ll give you time to work your plan into action.”

“You’re always looking out for me,” Liam said, grinning and kissing her.

“I do what I can,” Tess said, leaning into the kiss.

Eventually, two boats swung into view. By then, Liam and Tess were decent, waiting for their pickup. The smaller of the two boats handled that. The larger one was there for the food, leftovers, and tiki torches.

Back at the resort a short time later, Liam and Tess, who at least didn’t have a noticeable change to her walk, headed for the latter’s bure. Expectedly, they found Anna and Avril there; the two were out on the deck, enjoying the evening air.

“Yes, it was wonderful, yes, we had sex,” Tess said, stopping Avril before she could even open her mouth.

“Oh, I was only interested in the food. Was it good?”

Tess rolled her eyes, gave him a kiss, and headed inside, wanting to shower. He stuck around with the younger women for a bit, learning that Victoria had gone for a walk along the beach. She returned a little bit before Tess reappeared, and the five of them spent a relaxed evening on the deck.

When it came time for Liam and Victoria to make their way back to their bure, Avril warned them about staying up too late. Because of their plans tomorrow, they’d be leaving for the Mamanuca islands even earlier than they’d headed out today.

Nevertheless, neither Liam nor Victoria skipped over their evening ritual. He’d wondered if her libido would remain as high as it’d been the past couple of days, and it seemed to be holding at a level he was thrilled by. She was a woman who wanted to make up for lost time. In that regard, she and Tess were a lot alike.

The two of them enjoyed their alone time, just as he and her colleague had tonight. It was an evening of overwhelming successes. And now he had a solid plan to get the information he desperately desired. He would find out when Victoria’s birthday was. Preferably, he’d already have figured it out by this time tomorrow.