A/N: As always, written with the beautiful, lovely amazing @mox-made-me-do-it​ . Sorry it took so long guys!

Chapter 16: Adam

           I stayed on the swim deck all night with a bottle of Jack Daniels. I listened to Dan and Shay on an endless loop—hoping to make myself sick of it. Every note made me think of Allie, of the way she felt in my arms, of the scent of her hair and her skin. I tried to stop the thoughts, the memories. Tried to force myself to hate the music pouring through my speakers. My chest ached. I wanted to chuck the whole goddamn stereo in the water.

           Allie’s face swam in my mind. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t imagine what Allie was going through. She had just had her entire life turned on its head. Thrust upside down in a split second. Here I was trying to lay on my best moves. The woman had come all the way to Bora Bora to forget the pain of what happened to her, to reawaken her happiness. Not to find some new hook up. She’d come here with Leigh, to be with Leigh.

           It was time for me to take a step back. To give her the space she so obviously wanted.

           The empty bottle hit the deck with a clink. The swim deck swayed, churning my stomach. I tried to focus on the stars and the moon burning bright in the sky, but the bobbing made it hard to focus on anything. It took a minute or two to pull myself up to standing. I stumbled up the steps to the main deck, trying my best not to fall over. I’d no more than stepped inside than Kenny appeared from the other side of the bungalow.

           “Man, I’m sorry,” I slurred, banging into the back of the sofa as I went. “About tonight. You don’t know how much I didn’t want to knock on that door.”

           I made it to the minibar, slinging the empty bottle on the counter. I leaned heavily against the wall, hoping to regain my balance. “How’d it go?”

           “Come on, Hanger,” Kenny said with a faint smile. He stood by the door, one shoulder against the wall. “A guy’s got to have his secrets.”

           I smirked, words forming on the tip of my tongue. Words that I knew were too hurtful to say.

           Kenny looked me over. “Did you drink that whole bottle tonight?” He was clearly trying to change the subject. “What happened over here?

A/N: Sorry for the long wait for this chapter. Just get the tissues. You’re gonna need them. As always, written with the lovely, amazing, beautiful bestie-life partner-Tumblr wife @mox-made-me-do-it​

Chapter 15: Kenny

           I couldn’t fathom reality—not when my fingers were brushing along the soft skin along Leigh’s spine as I tugged gently on her zipper. Her ruby red hair cascaded over her shoulder, trapped in the hold of her fingers, the strands dancing like fire in the flickering light. My breath caught in my throat when there was no further to go with the zipper, when there was barely a sigh that kept her dress on her shoulders. I leaned forward, my forehead pressed against the space between her shoulder blades, and gave myself a moment to take in everything about this moment.

           “Kenny?” she asked, her voice low and warm.

           My arms slipped around her. I splayed my hands over her hips. My fingers twitched, bunching the fabric of her dress, digging into the flesh. I felt the gentle shudder that went through her each time my fingers flexed and relaxed. Her body seemed somehow to fit against my own in a way I didn’t dare expect or hope for. She was soft, pliable, and perfect as she sank back against my chest. I was suddenly overwhelmed by the sweet-tart scent that surrounded her. It was softened by the faint aroma of the wind off the ocean. As if I’d never taken a breath before, I sucked in great gasps of the air around her.

           The tip of my nose brushed along the line of her shoulder blade. I let my lips follow behind. I gave myself permission to take my time, to somehow burn this moment into my memory. My chest ached somewhere deep behind my ribs. It still wasn’t real, this moment, not even with the evidence right there in my arms. But Leigh was patient, her entire being still, seeming to enjoy the way my hands felt against her.

           I wanted to race toward the end, and yet I couldn’t bring myself to rush even an instant of what was about to happen. What I hoped would happen. I built up my courage and reached up to grasp the sleeves of her dress. For an instant, she froze. I could feel the tension that coiled within her and let my hands fall away from her.

           Leigh let out a whimper that made my heart drop into my toes. She turned and there was something sad in her moss green eyes. “Don’t,” she whispered, pressing her palms against my chest. Her fingers shook. “Don’t pull away.”

A/N: Written as always with the amazing, wonderful, most awesome bestie-lifepartner @mox-made-me-do-it​.

Chapter 14: Allie

“Well Mango,” Adam whispered as we watched our best friends walk into the bungalow next door. “I think you’re stuck with me for the evening.” His hand slid gently down my back, settling on the base of my spine, as he led the way into the boys’ bungalow.

I shrugged playfully and smiled. “Eh, could be worse, I guess. You aren’t a complete asshole… yet.”

A chuckle escaped his lips as he walked towards the bar. It was amazing how comfortable I was with him, especially given that he was a wrestler. God knows I’d been burned by them before. God what am I thinking?

Adam was different. His vibe was the total opposite of Jon’s. 

           “Well damn, I’m not sure how to take that, Allie. My feelings are kinda hurt. I thought we were doing ok.” He gave me a dramatically sad expression as he turned his back to me. “Can I get you something from the bar milady?” He plugged his phone into the sound system in the bungalow before digging into the minibar fridge. 

           “Honestly, water would be awesome…too much alcohol the last couple days,” I requested. As the speakers came to life, the unmistakable sound of Chris Stapleton’s Tennessee Whiskey crooned softly through them. It was one of those songs that you couldn’t help but to feel in your bones. I suppose that’s why it was one of my favorites.

           I walked alone out to the deck, swaying back and forth, singing along. A moment later I felt one of Adam’s hands slip into mine. He stepped into my space and slowly spun me in time with the music. His other hand wrapped gently around me; his palm pressed against my waist. I moved closer. My free arm wrapped around his neck. I let my fingers gently snake through his wispy golden hair. For a while, we swayed gently to the music and sang along.

           The moment was perfect. It was slow and lingering, and I was glad the music slipped into ballads. One after the other, we sang and danced until the familiar piano bars of Speechless by Dan+Shay filtering through the air.

           I had a sudden flash of memory—Jon’s face wavering in front of me. This was supposed to be our first dance.

           My heart thundered against my ribs. I couldn’t breathe. Bile clawed its way up the back of my throat. Everything tipped sideways.

Spot the difference 😏😁😍

Chapter 13: Leigh

           The sky was beautiful with the lights streaming over the velvet black of space. There was faint music in the distance, muffled by the sound of the surf slipping up on the edge of the sandbar. All of that was drowned out by the thundering of my heart in my ears. Kenny walked close to me with his hands stuck in his pockets. The scent of him reminded me of tree blossoms and something sweet beneath.

           I knew what he’d seen, and I knew from Adam that he’d immediately thought the worst. Even though I didn’t owe him an explanation, I felt that I needed to tell him the truth of how I felt. I took a deep breath of the ocean air, screwed up my courage, and tucked my arm through his. He stiffened for a moment, the muscles in his arm tense and hard, then relaxed.

           “Kenny, I know you saw…”

           He reached across his chest and settled his hand on mine. “You don’t have to explain yourself. It’s none of my business.”

           I leaned against his shoulder. “I’ve known Allie since college. We fell into this thing we have, and it shaped who I am. She’s my best friend, Kenny, and I don’t know what I’d do without her. I mean, we had this dream of the production studio in college, but we both played it safe. I started out teaching. She got an MBA. She met Jon on a business trip. But she was always there for me. Allie Mason is the first person I ever loved. I still love her, in just about every way that you can love a person.”

           As soon as I started talking, the words poured out without stopping. “There was a brief time right after college—before I met Izzy—that Jon tried to set me up with one of his friends. That whole heartedly didn’t work out from the start. He was… well, the best way to say it is a fuck boy. You’ve probably seen his dick on Twitter.”

           Kenny’s eyes went wide. “Wait… Allie was engaged to…. that Jon? Holy shit.”

           “You’ve heard of him?”

           He rolled his eyes. “Yeah. He’s spent the last year trying to be me. And spoiler alert, he’s failing spectacularly.”

A/N: As always, written with the wonderful, beautiful life-partner bestie @mox-made-me-do-it​. 

Chapter 12 Part 2: Everyone (The Boys)

 Kenny

           I watched Leigh walk away with Allie and something snapped inside me. The brief glimpse of her in that shower was burned into my memory. And I felt my soul shrink just a little.

           “I knew it,” I said quietly, turning to see Adam standing a few feet away. “You owe me fifty bucks, Hangman.”

           He crossed the deck just as I sank down on the edge of the daybed. I thought about those quiet moments with Leigh—the kisses on the beach, the way she curled against me that night under the stars—and wondered how much of it had been real. If any of it had been.

           “I’ll pay you when we get back Stateside,” my friend said as he sat down beside me. “But I bet you that same fifty that you’re leaving here with that woman.”

           I glanced back up at the door and thought I saw her moving on the other side of the glass. My heart skipped a beat even as my stomach twisted in knots. “You… you saw that, too. I’m clearly not her type.”

           Adam smiled just a little and clapped his hand on my shoulder. He squeezed hard, his thumb digging into my collarbone, and gave me a shake. “Look, Ken, I really don’t think you need to worry about this. At all.”

           I dropped my head into my hands and sighed. “Am I insane?”

           He shook me again. “Dude, we’ve only known them two days. We have zero right to be possessive of them like that. We can’t begin to understand what they have.” I wanted to argue, to tell him how there was a horrible pain in my chest now. “Maybe you remember a certain guy who has the same effect on you?”

           Ibushi, I thought desperately. The loss of him was the reason I’d left Japan. God knew it had scarred me for a long time.

           “The last few days have been good for you, Ken. And I’ve seen how she looks at you,” Adam said confidently. “Take it for what it is. And enjoy it. Besides… if she comes out that door to go on some romantic boat ride with us, I think that says a lot, don’t you?”

A/N: Okay, so this chapter is SO LONG that we’re posting it in two parts. This part is about the girls, and it explores a little of their history and relationship. There’s some girl action in this part of the chapter, so fair warning. As always, written with the amazingly wonderful bestie-lifepartner @mox-made-me-do-it.

Chapter 12 Part 1: Everyone (The Girls)

Leigh

           I followed Allie into the bungalow, bursting with questions. Kenny might not have noticed the rumpled bed and the furtive glances, but I had. I knew that look in my best friend’s eyes. And it didn’t take a rocket scientist to see the open lust in Adam’s eyes when he looked at her.

           “So,” Allie said, trailing through the bungalow lazily. “What are we going to do while we wait for dinner?”

           My brows rose as I watched her. I hopped up onto the bed and sat in the center, patting the mattress next to me. She climbed up and stretched out with her head in my lap. Her blonde hair was slightly tangled as I ran my fingers through it. I watched her hazel eyes slip shut and heard the little hum deep in her throat.

           “You’re going to tell me everything that happened,” I said teasingly, scratching my fingernails over her scalp. “And you’re not going to leave out a single thing.”

           Allie cracked open one eye. Her cheeks turned red. “A girl’s got to have some secrets,” she said dismissively. She grinned faintly and snuggled deeper into my lap. I had a sudden flash of memory of our days in college together. Mischief crossed my mind.

           “Come on, Als, tell me,” I whined. I removed her head from my lap and stretched out on the bed beside her. When she remained thoroughly tight lipped, I sighed. If I couldn’t get her to spill the beans with straight questions, I’d do it other means.

           I leaned forward and pressed my lips to hers gently. I let them linger there for a brief moment before I drew away. “Did Adam do that?”

Oh.