Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
Courtney
All the girls head to the glam room to get ready, and as instructed, none of us spare a moment or effort.
Kenzie finds this gorgeous metallic-gold dress that clings to her like a second skin.
Luna goes for a slinky black dress and sparkly eyeshadow that makes her eyes pop, while Cora picks this gorgeous red chiffon dress with matching heels, and then there’s me.
Don’t get me wrong, my hair and makeup is done, mostly by Luna, but when it comes to what to wear… well, apparently, I don’t have good taste.
“I just truly don’t understand how you can live on this earth for over two decades and not know how to dress yourself,” Luna says, shaking her head as she rifles through the closet.
“Two decades makes us sound so old. I’m not a fan,” Cora says, wrinkling her nose as she lies down on her bed and fidgets with her stuffed bunny.
Luna shrugs and grabs a red two-piece set before handing it to me. It’s a little showy compared to what I would choose, but according to Luna, I don’t know how to dress myself, so maybe going outside my comfort zone is what I should do.
I take it from her and slide into it as Cora gets a text. She practically leaps off the bed as she reads it.
“Cora, it’s time for your date with Andrew. Please head down to the dock,” she says before she does a little bounce and runs out the door.
Luna laughs, shaking her head before turning to me. “She is so into him.”
I nod as I look in the mirror at the outfit. Fuck, I hate to admit it, but I look really good. Luna might know what she’s talking about.
“I hope her and Andrew lock in. They look adorable together,” I add.
Luna throws me a knowing look in the mirror. “And if she locks in with Andrew, then that’s less competition for Noah, right?”
My eyes widen in shock, and my mouth parts like I can’t believe she would even say that. I’ve known this woman a few days and she can read me better than most people who’ve known me for years. I think it’s some freaky superpower or something, and I hate it.
My facade crumbles, and I groan.
“Luna, nearly every woman in this goddamn house picked him for a date.”
“Not me,” she intervenes.
I roll my eyes but nod. “Yeah, thank you for not forcing me to kick your ass.”
She laughs. “You could try, string bean.”
My face twists up as I look at her in the mirror. We’re literally the exact same body type. Except she might have a little more tits where I have a little more ass. Other than that, the same.
“What if he has a good time with them? What if… he doesn’t pick me when it comes down to it?” I ask.
Surprisingly, Luna gives me a sympathetic frown as she rests her chin on my shoulder, still looking into the mirror as she speaks to me.
“Courtney, that dude has been all tied up about you since day one. You guys fucked in the shower! He’s all over you all the time and was having a little jealous moment with Shane, who you chose as your second date, by the way.”
I shake my head. “I’m not into Shane like that. I just had to choose a second guy.”
“Exactly. How do you know that several of the girls that chose Noah don’t feel that way?” she challenges.
She has a point. I know for a fact Cora is more caught up with Andrew than she is with Noah. Maybe the same is true for the other girls. Insecurity still rises inside me. That good old one-two combo of mommy and daddy issues is shining bright right now, and it’s making me fucking itchy.
Luna and I both get a text message, and we each look at our phones.
“Time for my date with Calvin,” she says.
I nod. “And my date with Noah.”
“See, perfect timing. You can go spend some time with your man, get a little offscreen O. Everything is going to be fine.”
I can’t help but smile. “You’re right.”
“Of course I am,” she says, then plants a quick kiss on my cheek. “Come on, our men are waiting on us.”
Laughing at that, I slip on some sandals and follow her out the door.
The text told us to meet our guys by the pool.
When we get outside and turn the corner, we find Calvin dressed in a black short-sleeve button-up shirt with khaki pants.
He looks good, but my God it’s like one hundred degrees out today.
Okay, that might be a bit of an exaggeration, but it’s hot and muggy.
Give this man some style points or something, damn.
My eyes quickly move from Calvin to Noah, who’s wearing something similar but with shorts. He smiles wide when he sees me, holding out his arms, and a little flutter begins inside me as I practically run to him, jumping into his arms as he drags my mouth to his for a kiss.
We’re both nearly breathless when we pull away, giggling like teenagers as he slowly sets me back down.
“You ready?” he asks.
“Where are we going?”
“Come on.” He gestures with his head as he slips his hand in mine and walks me towards the beach.
I watch as Luna and Calvin also hold hands, walking up the hill away from the beach and more towards the thick tree line behind the house.
“So, how were your speed dates today?” I ask as casually as I can.
Which, in case you were wondering, I epically failed at. Cringing to myself, I hope he doesn’t notice.
He so does, though.
“They were fine. One definitely stood out, if I’m honest,” he says with a smirk.
“Yeah?” I ask, trying to hide the hope in my tone.
Again, I fail miserably. God, it’s like I totally lost the bad bitch in me when I came to this island. I used to be cool, aloof, confident. Now, here I am like a jealous fumbling idiot.
When Noah and I turn the corner, I see a little beach picnic set up with a bottle of champagne, some light snacks and rose petals everywhere.
We both stop when we see it and share a look before smiling and walking towards it.
Noah takes a seat first, gesturing for me to come sit beside him, which I gladly take him up on, nestling into his side.
He presses a kiss to the top of my head, and I can’t help but let out a little sigh of relief.
Everything feels so easy with him, so natural.
I mean, come on, I’m getting this hung up on a guy I’ve known for just a few days.
That isn’t like me or even normal. I think I’m gonna call it “the island effect” because seriously, what else could it be?
“What about you?” Noah asks as he reaches for the bottle of champagne and begins undoing the foil around the cork.
“Hm?”
“Was your speed date with Shane so good that you wanted more?” he asks with a quirked brow.
“Oh, um… If I’m being honest, I didn’t know who to choose besides you for the mini dates… so, yeah.” I laugh awkwardly, ducking my head because my God, did I really just admit that out loud?
Noah chuckles, popping the champagne and pouring it into the two waiting glasses before handing me one.
“I wish I could say I was sorry, but I really like hearing that,” he admits.
I smirk. “Yeah?”
He gives me a look that says he doesn’t buy my brush-off for a moment before smiling. His glass clinks against mine as we both take a sip.
Holy hell. That has to be the best champagne I’ve ever tasted. Glancing at the bottle, I notice that it actually doesn’t have a label. It’s just a black bottle. Weird but delicious.
“I feel like we haven’t gotten to talk much since getting here,” I say.
He nods. “I agree. Tell me something, anything?”
I think for a moment. “In the fifth grade, I burped the ABCs forward and backward for the school talent show, and I won.”
Noah lets out a surprised laugh that seems to consume his entire body. “What? That was the last thing I was expecting.”
I shrug. “Hey, you said tell you anything. I did.”
He tries to smother his laughter but doesn’t do a great job by any means.
“You’re right. Next time, I’ll be more specific like, do you have any animals, what are your parents’ names and so on.”
I laugh too, but it doesn’t carry the same carefree tone.
“What about you?” I ask him. “Do you have any animals?”
“Not right now. I work a lot, but one day I want a couple of dogs. I grew up having several, and I loved it. It’s good for a kid, I think.”
I nod in agreement. “I’ve never had a pet, but I have heard people say that. I mean, unless you count the time I stole the class gerbil because I wanted a friend.”
“What?” Noah snickers, shaking his head in disbelief.
I shrug and smile. “Apparently, since theft was involved and I didn’t get to keep the gerbil, it doesn’t count.”
“Okay, klepto,” Noah teases.
“Hey, I just saw the opportunity to give it a better life. I was doing a service for the little guy.”
He nods like he doesn’t agree before smirking. “Sure,” he says as he leans forward to kiss me.
His tongue twirls around mine as his hands delve into my hair. Slowly, he lays me down in the sand, his body covering mine as we deepen the kiss. His hand cups the side of my face tenderly before his mouth moves down my neck, peppering kisses against my skin.
I’m overwhelmed in the best way, breathless even, and as much as I like fooling around with him, I do want to get to know him.
“So, uh, what’s your favorite part of your job?” I ask, sounding more like I just ran a 5K than had a light make-out session.
Noah’s mouth pauses, then he looks up at me from my collarbone and smirks. “It’s really creative. Every day is different,” he says, then continues kissing his way down my body.
“Yeah, the music business sounds like it would be,” I rasp as his hand comes between my thighs, his palm rubbing against my clit through the shorts I’m wearing.
I let out a moan as a crew member appears literally out of nowhere. I yelp in surprise when they approach and attempt to cover myself, even though I’m not naked. I feel like it, though.
“Sorry to interrupt. We have to get Noah to his next date.”
Noah’s shoulders fall, and he looks to me with an apologetic frown before leaning forward and pressing his lips to mine. “To be continued.”
I muster up a smile, and honestly, props to me, I think I pull it off well.