Total pages in book: 36
Estimated words: 35876 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 179(@200wpm)___ 144(@250wpm)___ 120(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 35876 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 179(@200wpm)___ 144(@250wpm)___ 120(@300wpm)
"Your usual suite is ready," Nik's wife says. "You can have a shower, freshen up, and then we'll have dinner around seven?"
Familiar faces from the staff on board say hi to me as I head to said suite, which comes with its own lovely small terrace overlooking Biscayne Bay.
Everything looks even lovelier than I remembered. Beige-colored walls offer an elegantly subtle backdrop for the big white bed at the center and the pastel-colored flower arrangement atop a floating bedside table.
A quick glance at the minibar shows that the staff has the suite stocked with my favorite drinks, and I also spy a lovely collection of bath bombs, lotions, and other toiletries inside the en-suite. Everything here is meant to make me relax and enjoy myself, but instead it does the opposite, and I find myself gripping my chest as it starts to tighten.
Life has been good lately.
Really, really good, and that's why I have this stupid fear the sky will fall on me at any second.
Hardship is all I've known my entire life. My parents died when I was young because of a botched robbery attempt, and the years that followed weren't any better. My sister struggled to make ends meet all the time, and I remembered hating myself for not being old or resourceful enough to help.
There were more downs than ups, but nothing was worse than when Io was diagnosed of cancer. That was the turning point in my life, and fourteen-year-old me had swallowed her pride just to pester a certain Greek billionaire to lend us a helping hand.
So many things have changed since then. All for the better, too, and that's what terrifies me.
Fear is like this invisible blood-sucking parasite inside of me, and it's cursed me with frequent nightmares of Io's cancer coming back to kill her. I dread going to sleep because of it, but I also find it impossible to think of anything else when I'm awake.
I know I'm being silly. I know this is just me being so used to hardship, that all this sudden influx of positivity is making me feel antsy.
Logic tells me I should draw inspiration from Karen's own experiences, and if she's able to move on, then so can I. Logic insists that a week to get my shit together is doable, and all I need is something to spark my interest.
All I need is just one huge distraction to keep me from pointlessly stressing myself.
Just one thing...but can that something truly be sex?
Three
Io calls me up just as I join Nik and Daria for dinner, and I soon find out that my sister's been made to think we've got an infestation problem in our apartment.
"Promise me you'll behave while you're there?" Io pleads.
"I don't get why you think you have to say that. I'm always a good girl."
Io rolls her eyes, and so do Nik and Daria, since my sister's FaceTime call is on loudspeaker.
The rest of the evening goes by smoothly, but not for a second do I let my guard down. Nik is never the one to be underestimated, and if I just make one mistake...
Nik will eventually realize what's wrong, he'll insist on getting involved, and I'll end up being another person's burden...just like I've always been.
My friends shamelessly insist on dropping by as soon as they learn I'm staying over at Nik's. The two are huge fans of Nik's wife, and just like they always do, Andie and Madeleine act like a couple of starstruck fangirls as soon as they see Daria.
It was about eighteen months ago when Daria made a Tiktok series called 28 Frogs, which basically shares her love story with Nik. It had tens of millions of hits under twenty-four hours, and it's still raking in views to this day. Both of my friends are huge fans of it, and Madeleine says it's what gave her the courage to tell her grandpa she wants to marry for love. Andie, on the other hand...well, she's already outrageous to start with, so I'm guessing Daria's Tiktok videos simply gave her a reason to stay the way she is.
Nik's wife convinces all of us to take a dip in the Jacuzzi after dinner, and I feel like a little girl again as my friends and I go through Daria's huge, huge closet in search for the perfect swimwear. Madeleine goes for a bikini top with a matching frilly skirt, Andie opts for a daring two-piece, while I end up with the standard one-piece that you often see competitors wear in swim meets.
The Jacuzzi is already running when we return, and deliciously hot water laps against our skins as we take a seat on a corner each.
When Nik sees his wife breaking out the champagne, he seizes his chance to excuse himself so we can have some "girl time" alone. Translation: he'd rather spend his time working than listening to my friends talk about boys.