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I feign being offended, but when he lifts his sunglasses and looks at me, I’m ready to prove his point and drag him out of the water and onto one of the lounge chairs and have my way with him.

“But that’s a good thing,” he goes on. “Because that’s how you make me feel too. I feel like we need to make the most out of this time alone together. Soon everyone will be back, and it will be stolen moments and having to be quiet up in my room. And before we know it, I’ll be leaving.”

It’s the first time he’s put it out there like that, and I feel like it’s an opening for us to talk about what comes next.

I’m just not sure I’m ready to find out.

Right now, we’re happy and there’s no pressure from the outside world.

“So, a walk on the beach, huh?” I say, in a lame attempt to change the subject. Naturally, he’s on to me because he slowly floats over to me and even though his sunglasses are back in place, I can tell he’s looking at me with pity.

“Liv, it’s okay for us to talk about it. We both know the guys and I are going home next week. I know they talked about coming back on the weekends, but that was new information for me. I’m not sure what my work schedule is going to be like or what traveling I might have to do.”

I nod and stare as he takes my hand in his. “Do you ever go to Seattle for work?”

“No. We don’t have any clients there.” When he tucks a finger under my chin to gently force me to look at him, he asks, “Have you decided to stay there?”

“I’ve been a little distracted since we talked about it yesterday, so…for now? Yes.”

He looks like he’s about to say something, but both our phones ring, and I know our bubble has been broken. Reality is about to come crashing back.

Wordlessly and awkwardly, we move. We splash and jump off our floats in our haste to get out of the water. Ash takes his phone and moves to the other side of the deck as I look and see that it’s Vanessa calling.

“Hey! Are you guys on your way back?”

“Hey! And no. Not yet.”

I try not to sound too excited as I ask, “Oh? Is everything alright?”

“Yeah. Roxie has agreed to come back, but she wants to wait until tomorrow. She said she needs an extra day away from Loren.”

“Uh-oh. That doesn’t sound good.”

“I know, right? But I’m also afraid to leave. Like…if Zayne and I head back today, she might change her mind and not follow through. So we talked and I’m going to drive back with her tomorrow. Zayne said he doesn’t mind waiting another day and following us back to the beach.”

“Oh. Okay. That all sounds very logical.”

“How are things going there? Did Loren and Mike come back to the house?”

“Not yet. I’m pretty sure she’s going to wait to find out what Roxie’s plans are before she decides.”

She groans. “You know she’s going to create drama with this, right?”

“You mean more drama than she already has?” And yeah, I don’t even try to hide the sarcasm.

“Definitely. She’s going to play the victim, and we are going to have to proceed with caution or this whole vacation is going to implode.”

I kind of feel like it already has, but I keep that to myself.

“How are you and Ash doing? I hate that you’re stranded without a vehicle.”

“It’s not a big deal. We ordered takeout last night, and if we really wanted to go anywhere, we could call for a ride.”

“I guess it’s a good thing the two of you hooked up,” she says with a laugh, and I’m momentarily offended.

“Um…why, exactly?”

“Just think, if you didn’t like each other or you were just…you know…still strangers, how awkward would that have been?”

Okay, I see her point.

“It’s been nice to have the time alone to get to know each other better with no distractions. Of course, it would be nice if yesterday didn’t happen and we were all here having fun too.”

“That’s true, but hopefully tomorrow we’ll be back on track.”

“My fingers are crossed!”

“Do you think I should call Loren and feel things out, or should I just let the chips fall where they may?”

“That’s totally up to you. You know her better than I do anymore.”

“Liv, come on. That’s not true. We’ve all been friends for so long!”

“And I get that, but…she’s changed. Yesterday was very eye-opening and even though I completely predicted how it was all going to go afterwards, I just don’t get why she behaved that way. It was a little like dealing with a stranger. Or, at the very least, a casual acquaintance.”

“And that makes me sad too. I had so many hopes for this trip. Maybe I need to just call time of death and let it go.”

“No, no, no…we just need to revive it a bit. I say let Loren be and maybe Mike will convince her to come back to the house today. I’m not willing to poke the bear, though.”

“I guess that’s smart.” She sighs dramatically. “Okay, I won’t either, but I’ll text you tomorrow when we get on the road.”

“Thanks, and give Roxie a hug for me and tell her we can’t wait to see her.”

“Will do. Tell Ash I said hello.”

“I will.” We hang up and I glance over and see Ash pacing as he talks. He looks very somber, and I wonder what he and Zayne are talking about.

Unless it’s not Zayne. Although, how bizarre would that be if we got calls at the same exact time and they weren’t connected?

To give him privacy, I grab my towel and head into the house. There’s a ton of food for us to choose from for lunch, so I sort through it all and see what I’m in the mood for. No one says he has to eat the same thing, but if I take an inventory, I can help him decide when he’s off the phone.

After a few minutes, I glance outside and he’s still talking.

“O-kay…”

Instead of just standing around, I go upstairs and change into dry clothes and freshen up a bit. When I come out of my room, I’m hit by how bright it is in the house at this time of day and slip my sunglasses on. At the bottom of the stairs, I turn and find Ash finally coming inside.

“Sunglasses in the house?” he says with amusement. “Makes sense.”

“I didn’t realize just how bright it got in here at this time of day.” I breeze into the kitchen, and he follows, but I can already sense that something’s wrong.

“I spoke to Vanessa,” I say as I busy myself with pulling cold cuts and cheeses out of the fridge. “She said Roxie’s agreed to come back, but not until tomorrow. Was Zayne telling you the same thing?”

He takes a seat at the island, but he’s not looking at me. He’s studying his hands that are clasped and resting on the countertop.

“Ash?”

The disappointment is palpable.

“I talked to Zayne briefly, but then my boss beeped in and I had to take it.” He looks away for a minute before his attention is back on me. “I have to go to Dallas when I get back to Raleigh. I’m still going to stay as planned, but then…”

His voice trails off.

“Then you definitely have to go, and you won’t be back on the weekends.”

“Yeah. That.”

And there it is. Our expiration date.

Shit.

I want to say that I’m okay, that I knew this was coming, but the fact is, I’m not.

“Say something,” he quietly pleads.

But, in typical dork fashion. I don’t say what I’m thinking. Instead, I blurt out, “I’m going to make myself a turkey club. What are you in the mood for?”