The noise from the pool, the scent of sun cream, the searing heat; everything faded as his fingertips cupped her face and every nerve and bone in her body responded to him.
‘Urgh, you two really need to, like, get a room.’
Agnetha could feel Aaron’s lips break into a smile even before he pulled back and held his hand up to the new arrival. Zac was wearing the same grey suit he’d had on last night, the top buttons of his black shirt open.
Aaron squinted against the sun. ‘Man, you look like crap.’
Zac appeared to find this amusing. ‘Cheers, bud. I may look like crap, but I’m a fucking hero at the office, so I’ll take it.’
Zac plonked down on the end of Agnetha’s sunlounger, completely unaware that he’d just taken a wrecking ball to an incredibly special moment. Agnetha tried really hard not to mind. For all his cocky bluster, Zac made her laugh and she could see that there was a really close bond between the two men. They’d met in college, and Zac had moved to LA from New York, sharing a flat with Aaron while trying to find a way into the entertainment industry. He’d eventually landed the CAA job and he was determined that nothing was getting in the way of him rising through the ranks.
Agnetha glanced over and saw that Celeste was still in the pool, oblivious to Zac’s arrival. ‘Tell us all about it. And make it quick before Celeste decks you for running out on her last night.’
Zac had the decency to squirm a little uncomfortably. ‘Listen, Aggs, I need to talk to you about Celeste.’
‘Here it comes,’ Aaron whistled knowingly, shaking his head. ‘He’s usually got a six week attention span. We’re now at twelve. It was only a matter of time.’
Agnetha felt a clenching sensation in her stomach. Bollocks. Zac’s lack of denial told her where he was going with this and Celeste would not take it well. She didn’t do rejection. It didn’t take a psychologist to understand that underneath all that riotous zest for life, her childhood had left its scars and for Celeste, it was a lightning reaction to any sense of abandonment. She hoped beyond words that Aaron was wrong…
Zac sighed. ‘I need to call it a day. It’s not her, it’s just that… well, this work thing.’
Aaron wasn’t wrong.
‘I need you guys to run interference. Look, she’s a nice girl and all that, and we had a good time, but the whole steady relationship isn’t my deal right now.’
‘Come on, Zac. We’re heading back to the UK in a few days. Can’t you let it ride for now?’ Even as she was saying it, Agnetha could hear how wrong it sounded.
The repetitive tapping of Zac’s foot on the tile floor was a definite tell that there wasn’t going to be an agreeable reply to the question. He ran his tanned fingers through his long blond hair, a gesture Agnetha had seen him make many times when he was on a work call and hustling or pressing for something.
‘That’s the problem. Last night Jilly Jones had a meltdown. Dived into the Bellagio Fountains naked in front of dozens of tourists and some paps.’
‘You’re joking!’ Agnetha gasped. Jilly Jones was her favourite romcom actress. America’s Southern sweetheart, she had a squeaky-clean reputation, perpetuated in the kind of movies that you watched after a break-up to restore your faith in love.
Zac glanced around to make sure no one could overhear, then lowered his voice to make extra sure the conversation was just between them. ‘She was off her head on coke. It’s been a problem for a while.’
Now Agnetha’s chin was next to Zac’s tapping foot on the floor.
‘My boss represents her and he called me last night. I had to go get her, salvage the situation, call a doctor in and get her on lockdown until a private jet could be arranged back to LA. We’re leaving in an hour.’
Aaron’s abs visibly rolled as he effortlessly pulled himself up to a sitting position on the sunlounger. ‘So, what… you’re going too?’
Zac shrugged, with no hint of an apology. ‘I need to, man. This is a big opportunity for me. Like, up close and personal with Jilly. If I handle this, it could be what I need to take the next step up.’
On one hand, Agnetha could understand. But on the other…
‘Where the fuck have you been?’ They’d all been too deep in discussion to notice that Celeste had climbed out of the pool, and was now standing, in a leopard bikini, hands on hips, looking like a bronzed Amazonian goddess who was about to go to war.
Zac went for the direct approach. ‘Look, I’m sorry about last night, but I need to split. It’s a work thing. I’m needed back in LA.’
‘And you think you can just snap your fingers and I’ll jump?’ Celeste folded her arms, clearly not getting a full read on the situation.
‘No, I, eh, I need to head back on my own. My boss hired a jet. I just came back to get my stuff.’
The pin was out of the grenade and it had just been tossed into the middle of the conversation. It was all Agnetha could do not to put her fingers in her ears and crouch low.
‘Fuck you. Fuck. You,’ Celeste spat, before spinning round. The splash she made as she dived back into the pool soaked Zac’s shoes.
It was a small price to pay, Agnetha decided. Her heart hurt for her friend. Celeste put on a tough shell, but Agnetha knew that underneath there was a good person that just needed to be loved. She was about to follow her, when Celeste climbed back up on to the shoulders of the UCLA hunk, and gave Zac the middle finger. Perhaps later would be a better time to check how she was feeling.
‘I guess that got the message across then,’ Zac deadpanned, shaking his damp feet as he stood up. ‘I’ll catch you guys back in LA. Just do me a favour…’
‘Shoot.’ The corners of Aaron’s mouth were turning up at the edges.
‘Make sure she doesn’t buy a baseball bat on the way back to LA.’
‘Can’t promise anything,’ Agnetha teased. He deserved it. He’d just dumped her best friend, so Girl Code demanded it.
‘Man, tough crowd.’ Zac was still shaking his head as he disappeared through the loungers to retrieve his things from his room.
Aaron lay back down and rolled over on his side to face her again. ‘Guess we’ve something else in common.’
‘What’s that?’
‘Seriously unpredictable friends.’
‘No arguments here,’ Agnetha smiled, kissing him again. God, she could not get enough of this guy. He was absolutely intoxicating. She loved a romance, adored the early stages of a relationship and had fallen fast before, but this felt different. This was…
‘I really hope we’ve got something else in common,’ he whispered, making her stomach flip.
‘What’s that?’ she answered, enjoying the game.
He was watching her face now, studying her reaction.
‘I’m falling in love with you. And I was just kinda wondering if you felt the same?’
8
Hope
Hi,
I’m not really sure how to start this email or what to say. I guess, first of all, I need to apologise if this comes as a shock to you. I’m unaware of the circumstances of my birth, so if you weren’t aware of my existence, I’m sorry to break the news this way.
My name is Hope McTeer, and according to the results of my DNA test, I’m your