God damn.
Both men look to me.
“Forgive me,” Lake says, his voice gruff. “That was fuckin’ unprofessional. I’m sorry, Willa.”
“You should be reported,” Waylen mutters.
Lake glances at him, but doesn’t say another word, and in that moment, I respect the hell out of him.
“Waylen,” I grind out, “that’s enough. He at least has the balls to do the right thing, you’re still carrying on. You could be reported too, or have you forgotten that?”
Waylen’s face tightens. “Sorry.”
That’s it. That’s the best I’m getting.
“Well,” Fallon says, glaring at Waylen, “I know who won the competition by a swinging dick mile, and it ain’t you, guard boy.”
Waylen gives her a withering expression and she flips him the bird before turning to me. “Come on, let’s sit you down so your poor lungs can get some fresh air back into them.”
We sit down at the front of the sailboat and Lake goes back to sailing it around, not saying another word. He knows what he did was wrong, and he isn’t going to argue it. Waylen looks guilty as fuck as he sits at the back of the boat, brooding.
Their reactions told me everything I needed to know about them.
And one thing is for sure, Waylen isn’t the man for me.
Not even close.
I was wrong.
“YOU GOOD?”
The voice comes from Lake as I’m dressing at the restaurant later that afternoon before we make our way to the fire that Elias and Madden are currently building near the water. Once we finished up with our sail, we came back and had some food before showering and getting changed. The restaurant slash café has all kinds of amenities, and you can see they’ve put a lot of money into it.
There are showers, toilets, the big dining area, a deck, and underneath has all their watersports equipment. It’s like your very own lakeside vacation and you could easily spend your days here. It’s just a shame my first day truly enjoying it was ruined by what went down on the boat, but I’m not one to carry on, and I’m certainly not going to punish Lake over it.
No.
He showed a side to him that I respect today.
I face him and study his perfect face, with that damp hair falling around his shoulders and eyes that make all the hairs on my body prickle.
“Willa?”
Fuck it.
I step forward and reach up, taking his face in my hands and pulling him close until our lips meet. He’s shocked for a moment and then he melts into the kiss, returning it with the same passion as I’m giving it.
I kiss him long and deep, gently flickering my tongue against his as I press into him. His hands find my hips and he hauls me closer, mouths dancing until we’re forced apart by the sound of voices entering the restaurant. I hesitantly let him go, looking up at him with an expression I hope tells him exactly what I want to do to him when we’re alone.
“Why the sudden change of heart?” he asks me, eyes locking onto mine.
“Because you showed me who you truly were out there, and I respect the hell out of people who can admit their wrong doings and apologize.”
He strokes a thumb over my bottom lip. “This mean you’re done with him?”
“There wasn’t anything to be done with,” I answer honestly.
He grins, just slightly. “Good, because I don’t like sharing.”
“That’s not what you said earlier, you seemed happy with me exploring my options.”
He leans in, brushing his lips over mine once more. “I lied. Kind of.”
“Kind of?” I ask, raising my brows.
He winks and turns. “You’ll see.”
Then he’s gone, leaving me wondering.
“What was he doing in here?” Fallon asks, entering and throwing her stuff down.
“Making up for things.” I wink at her.
She laughs. “Well, he deserves the gold medal that’s for sure. Waylen is out there still looking like he’s sore. You should probably talk to him, put him out of his misery.”
I laugh as I walk past her, nudging her with my shoulder. “You’re horrible.”
“Seriously, though,” she calls as I close the door.
I join everyone else in the dining hall where we’re making some cocktails before going down to the fire. I am so excited for this I practically dive into the group and take a glass. Rhett has had the chefs bring out all kinds of mixes and the joy I get picking alcohol and additives is concerning, but my god I have waited too long to do this without it being against the rules.
“About earlier ...”
Waylen falls in step beside me, and I don’t glance at him as I squeeze a hint of lime into my vodka drink.
“You had a chance to apologize, big guy. You chose wrong.”
He exhales. “I was angry.”
“So was Lake.”
“I’m sorry, Willa. That’s the truth. I should have said it earlier.”
I pause and glance at him. “I appreciate that.”