Chapter 9

"Thea? I can't believe it! What are you two doing here? I turn to Elliot, but he looks just as clueless. "I asked Paul to come at my expense, but I have no idea why your friend is here." "I brought her with me. You know I hate traveling alone." Paul responded. "You have lots of friends. Why didn't you ask any of them to join you?" Elliot asks. "To a honeymoon resort? That would be all kinds of screwed up, don't you think? I thought Thea would be good company and make Evie happy to see her." Paul explained. "Happy? I'm freaking Thrilled!" I cheered. "See? I'm such a nice guy." Elliot rolls his eyes at his friend, and Paul chuckles. "How did the two of you even meet?" I questioned Thea. "I remembered Paul's name from your wedding contract, so I found him on Facebook. We haven't really talked though, we've just been liking each other's pictures. I was quite surprised when he messaged me." She replied. "So, are you going to keep standing in the doorway, or are you going to let us in any time today?" 'Since when do I have to invite you? You came and go as you wish." Elliot responded. " True. Now move" Paul strides in as if he owns the place, and I can't help but laugh. "That's a nice tray of food over there. I see you two are enjoying yourself so far." Paul comments. "We are, but we didn't order any of that." "I'm not following" "Someone sent this up to our room, but we have no idea who," I interrupted. "Well, I have a solid idea about who it was. The fruit bowl was bugged." We look at him in shock. "What?!" I yelled. "Remember the "fruit pit" I threw out the window?" "It wasn't a fruit pit, was it?" "Nope." My eyes grow wide, and I start to panic. "Relax, Evie. We didn't say anything suspicious, and I threw the mic away as soon as I noticed it." Elliot tries to comfort me. "Dang. That is messed up" As Pual and Thea smile at each other, I try to get them back on the subject. "What are we going to do about Mina and Fabian?" I asked. "Let's confront them!" Thea suggested. "No. We have to be careful and not do anything rash." We stand in silence as paul strokes his chin. "I don't think Fabian is really her boyfriend," Paul comments. "Duh." "Then what is he doing here with her?" I ask. "I think he's here to do her dirty work so that she can appear innocent," Elliot answered. "Dang, you might be on to something," Paul replies to his answer. Elliot sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. "Let's get you guys checked in, and then we can discuss this further. Thea, you can stay here and keep my girl company." As soon as Elliot and Paul are out of the room, Thea turns to me and wiggles her eyebrows. "His girl, huh?" " He's just getting into character, that's all." Trying to decline her ideas. "Right." "What about you and Paul then" I teased. "What about it?" "Is there something going on between you?" I asked. "Not that I know of. We're just friends, I'd say. Or acquaintances. But he has fine looks" Thea winks and I laugh. " You're going to share an expensive honeymoon suit together. I think you won't be just a friend after that." I teased again. Thea's cheeks turn pink. "There's something she's not telling me," I tell myself. "I can't wait to explore all the things the hotel has to offer. I read the brochure before we came here. They have a sauna, a spa..." "I know, this place is insane!" I interrupted her sentence. "Then what are we waiting for?" A few hours later... 'Alright, we've had our lashes done and had a brutal waxing that made me think Satan is real. Is there any reason we're getting so dolled up?" I asked. "Of course, there's a reason. I read online that the resort has a great nightclub, and we HAVE to try it out tonight!" "That sounds fun. We haven't had a girl's night in forever." I replied. "I thought we could invite the guys too. Hence the pampering." "I knew it You totally want to look good for Paul." I figured. "Maybe...but it's a secret." "Don't worry, I'll keep my mouth shut." I tell her. "So, what do you think about going out tonight?" Thea asks me. "I'm not really in the mood... But I'll go for a while." I respond. "Yay! I promise it's going to be fun! All you need is an outfit to match your beautiful hair. I've brought some amazing dresses, try on anything you want!" "What do you think about this outfit?" I asked her. "You look cute." "But will Elliot go for "Cute"?" I questioned her. "You're totally falling for him, aren't you?" she guessed. "I don't know, maybe? I mean, he's handsome, charming, smart... and he treats me really well." "Yeah, you'd be good together." She tells me. 'But I don't know if that's what I want." I tell her. "Well, there's only one way to find out, isn't there? Let's go meet up with the guys." We enter the bar, and my jaw drops. "Wow, this bar is really crowded tonight." I gasped. "What did I tell you? The most popular place in the resort. What do you want to drink? My treat" She asks me " I" ll have a beer, thanks!" "Coming right up." Thea goes to get us our drinks, and when she comes back a few minutes later, we sip them while looking over the crowd. Thea makes eye contact with a cute guy across from us and gives him a wink. "There's a lot of cuties here tonight" Just as she says that Elliot and paul decide to join us. Elliot wraps an arm possessively around my waist, and I lean against him. "Wow, I didn't think you could look even more beautiful than you already did." He kisses me behind my ear, and I get goosebumps all over my skin. 'You don't look too bad yourself." I glance at Paul, who only has eyes for Thea. "Thea, you look gorgeous. Did you dress up for me?" Paul teased Thea. "Wouldn't you like to know?" Thea looks him over and bites her lip. "Want to dance?" Paul asked. "Yes, please." She finishes her drink in one big gulp, and then she takes paul's hand. Together, they walk to the dance floor. "They look cute together." I commented. "Sure." "So, are you going to ask me to dance?" I questioned Elliot. "Do you want me to?" He asks. "It could be fun, don't you think?" "Not tonight." "Oh..." Disappointment swirls in my stomach, but I don't show it. Someone taps me on the shoulder, and I turn around. A waiter stands before me, holding a tray with a drink that looks like it almost sparkles under the disco light. Silently, he leaves, and I check the note he left me with the drink, signed "gentleman at the bar." I scan the bar, and immediately notice a cute blonde guy in a suit, holding up his drink and smiling at me. I raise the drink and smile back at him. He takes that as an invitation and begins moving towards me." hi, I'm Fred. what's your name?" He asks me. "Nice to meet you. I"m Evie" I introduced myself. "Such a beautiful name. I couldn't help but notice you from across the bar. You've got to be the most beautiful woman I've ever seen." I laugh and give him a shy smile. "Do you want to dance?" He asks me. "No, she doesn't. And she's taken, so you can buzz off." Elliot answers. "Oh, I didn't realize you were with someone." He sputtered. "Next time, don't go around assuming things." Elliot was exasperated. "Uh...right." Fred starts to back away, bumping into chairs as he tries to escape from us. "What's the matter with you?" I huffed. "Me? I'm not the one accepting drinks from random guys at the bar." he responded. "I was being polite! And you can't be mad that there are actually people who want to dance with me." "You want to dance so bad, let's do it!" he demanded. "Forget it, you lost your chance!" I grab my drink and start to walk away from him. "Gosh, he can be such a moody bastard sometimes..." I am about to look for Thea, but I stop dead in my tracks when I see mina and Fabian having a hushed conversation on the other side of the club. "I want to know what they're talking about. And if I get a bit closer, I bet I could find out. It's probably nothing important." Suddenly, I feel an arm wrap around my shoulder. I look up and see Elliot. "Can we go outside and talk.?" I hesitate for a second. "Okay, sure. I could use some air, anyway." As soon as we're out, Elliot lets out a sigh. " I want to apologize. I was acting like a prick." he apologize. "Yes, you were" I agreed. "I'm just not used to this." "What do you mean?" I ask him. "Well... To be honest, I'm not really a commitment type of guy. I've never had a proper relationship before, only short meaningless ones. I don't think I even know how to fake a proper one." He explains. "I'm aware of that, Elliot, and I don;t expect you to know everything. But dancing with your date is common sense, don't you think?" He gives me a sheepish smile, and before he even says anything, I've already forgiven him. "You're right. I have to try harder." "Mhm" "Let's go inside and have a good time, alright?" "Okay" We start to move toward the entrance, but accidentally walk into a drunk couple making out. "Oh, I'm so sorry" I gasp when I recognize them. "Thea?" "Paul?"