Chapter 8 Bump, Set, Spike
Dakota
Welcome to the Fletcher/Matthews Wedding Extravaganza. We hope you enjoy your time in Puerto Vallarta.
Here is the schedule of events:
I stare in awe at the itinerary Carlos hands me as I walk through the main house to join everyone by the pool. It’s light
and airy with floor-to-ceiling windows displaying the stunning foliage and ocean views all around the property. It’s clearly
recently been renovated because it’s much more modern than the palapa. The palapa is a bit more of that rustic Mexican style.
Still luxurious and beautiful, but with a homey feel to it.
Either way, these aren’t bad digs for the next few days. I’m glad I let Cozy and Trista talk me into joining them, even if
that means I have to deal with an annoying mountain man.
The annoying man in question had to come back to the room earlier to change into his swim trunks. I tried to look busy when he walked out of the bathroom shirtless with all his muscles and ink on full display, but I have to admit to sneaking a peak when he was digging in his bag for some sunscreen.
I’ve seen Calder shirtless before. Max and Cozy have a pool, and I’ve been to enough gatherings at their house throughout
the years that it’s not like I didn’t know he was jacked.
But seeing him at that sex club last week changed things between us. It’s like a veil has been dropped, and we’re not just
looking at each other like mortal enemies. Now I know the sort of sex Calder is into, and if it’s anything like what I saw
in that club, holy fucking shit.
I mean, the woman-on-woman stuff didn’t do it for me, but seeing multiple men pleasuring one woman had me trembling. Is that
what Calder could be into? Would he share his woman? Would I like wearing that smelly mask if it was Calder holding the leash?
The stirring between my legs is unmistakable, and I have to brace myself on a nearby wall to maintain my balance. What am
I doing? The last thing I need rolling through my brain are visuals for what Calder would have looked like on his knees—oh
my God, I’m disgusting!
Stop thinking about Calder and sex, Dakota! He’s gross, and you’re gross for letting your mind wander like this! It’s only going to make the vibe between us even more irritating.
I walk through the wide-open doorway out to the infinity pool that overlooks the ocean. The air blows my caftan around my
legs, cooling me down as I spot Cozy and Trista on the far side of the pool. They’re seated on loungers with Addison, who
I met on the plane. She’s stunning in that sporty, athletic tomboy girl-next-door sort of way with her black hair tied up
into a casual ponytail. Vibes with her seem good, but if she’s canoodling with Luke, I hope she knows what she’s in for. The
Fletcher brothers’ reputation with women is pretty infamous around Boulder. Most of us were shocked when Wyatt actually settled
down.
That was until I got to know his bride-to-be.
Trista is a force of nature. I’ve enjoyed getting closer to her the past several months. We’ve been working on a logo design
for her animal rescue nonprofit that she’s fundraising for, with plans to open and manage her own facility. I have a handful
of designers I work closely with at my T-shirt store, and I’m happy to help for such a good cause.
It’s incredible how she seems to fit into the Fletcher family like she was always meant to be there. And Wyatt has definitely
changed for the better since meeting her. He went from this grunting, surly mountain man, to a soft, tender daddy and soon-to-be
husband. Their love story is one for the books.
I head over to the open lounge chair by Trista, and she smiles up at me, adjusting a linen blanket over her chest that’s covering
Stevie while she feeds her.
“You are impressive,” I state honestly as I pull off my dress and drape it over the back of my chair. “Bringing a three-month-old
on vacation is brave.”
“Have you met this family?” Trista laughs and glances out to the pool where the guys are in the process of playing volleyball
with Everly and Ethan. “I have a whole swarm of people who would do anything for me and this baby at the snap of my fingers.
And there was no way was I missing out on the opportunity to do a destination wedding... for free!”
“Is any of your family coming for the wedding? Or are you celebrating with them in another way?” Addison asks from her seat
parallel to us.
Trista shakes her head. “Nah, no one else is coming. I’m not close with my family.”
“No word from your sister?” I ask with a frown, glancing over at Cozy, who told me she was going to try to reach out to her.
“I thought you said she was going to try to make it.”
“It’s a long flight from Hawaii to here. I didn’t expect her to come.” Trista shrugs and lifts the blanket to peek at Stevie, a small smile teasing her lips. “I have all the family I need right here.”
“Yes, you do,” Cozy says and reaches over to rub Trista’s leg.
I smile as I spot the redness around both of their eyes. Trista has a complicated family and doesn’t talk about them much,
but I’ve seen a lot of growth in her since she became a mother and embraced the Fletcher family. It’s beautiful how she found
her own happiness and is content to leave her past behind. I hope I can do the same.
“Is she done yet?” Johanna’s voice snaps me out of my musings as she appears with outreached hands.
“Yes, and she’s totally passed out.” Trista reaches under the blanket to clip the strap of her maternity bathing suit back
on. “Milk coma.”
“I’ll take her inside,” Johanna says, leaning over Trista to scoop a scrunched up and sleeping Stevie into her arms.
“And make sure she—”
“Burps,” Johanna finishes Trista’s sentence. “I got you, sweetie.”
Trista smiles warmly. “Thanks, Jo.”
She winks back at her future daughter-in-law and takes Stevie back into the house.
“See what I mean?” Trista says with a sappy smile as she stretches out. “I didn’t even have to snap my fingers.”
My brows lift in appreciation. “Maybe I could come around to the idea of kids if I knew my mom would be as good a grandma
as that.”
“No one is as good a grandma as that,” Cozy says with a laugh. “My parents are great, but Johanna Fletcher is saintlike.”
A round of margaritas is delivered by Carlos, and we sip and enjoy some much-needed girl talk and vitamin D. Colorado winters
tend to turn me into a vampire, so this sun is life-changing.
“Why do you keep messing with your swimsuit top?” Cozy asks as I adjust the breast cup of my black bikini for the hundredth
time.
I huff in frustration. “This suit used to fit me, but my boobs are bigger now, and I haven’t worn this one in years.”
“You’re not pregnant, are you?” Trista asks with a pointed look.
“No, I just had my period two weeks ago,” I reply confidently. Not to mention it’s been almost a year since I’ve had sex.
“I’ve just gained weight. Some of my old clothes don’t fit like they used to.”
“I think you look amazing,” Addison says sweetly.
“Thanks,” I reply with a laugh. “And you can look as amazing as me for the low, low price of a divorce that costs you six
figures and twenty extra pounds!”
Silence descends as all three ladies stare awkwardly back at me.
“Oh God,” I groan and push my sunglasses up on top of my head. “I sound like a bitter divorcée, don’t I?” I gasp and clutch
my chest. “I’ve turned into my mother. Someone kill me!”
“You are not your mother,” Cozy corrects me.
“Here, have the rest of my margarita,” Trista says sympathetically as she passes her drink over. “You’ve earned it.”
I drink it all too willingly and give myself a mental pep talk. I will not be this scorned woman who only talks about her
divorce like my mother was most of my life. I will get back to my former happy-go-lucky, confident self. I’ll turn my lemons
into margaritas, dammit!
I stare down at my breasts spilling out of my bikini. “But hey... a little divorcée weight gain gave me bigger tits, so
at least I saved money on a boob job.”
“Cheers to that!” Cozy clinks her glass with mine.
“Are you four going to get in the water anytime today?” Max asks from inside the pool, eyeing his wife like a piece of meat.
“We want to play a real game of volleyball and could use the numbers.”
Cozy looks to me with a challenging smile.
“We’re in,” I state confidently. I’m on vacation, and it’s time I start acting like it.
Calder
As I watch the four ladies make their way into the water, I feel my body tense when Dakota struts across the pool deck in
a black string bikini that she has no business looking that good in. Her nipples are pebbling through the thin fabric, and
I have half a mind to cover poor Ethan’s innocent eyes.
Honestly, I’d like to cover every man’s eyes in the pool. And Carlos too! No one should be looking at her when she looks like
that. I glance around to see if they’re all staring at what I’m staring at, but shockingly, they’re not. They’re gawking at
their own ladies, and here I am ogling Dakota like the pervert I clearly am.
Am I a sadist? Is it sadism to be attracted to someone who makes you miserable? Either way, this is a family vacation, and
that is not a family-appropriate bathing suit.
“What’s wrong, Uncle Calder?” Ethan says, splashing water at me.
I wipe the water off my face and tear my eyes away from the bane of my existence as she steps into the pool. “Nothing’s wrong,
buttface. Why do you ask?”
“You look grumpy.”
“I don’t look grumpy.”
Ethan jumps up and pokes me on the forehead, nearly gouging my eye out. “Right there. You look mad. Like Angry Bird.”
“All right... stuff it, or I won’t give you those Pokémon cards that are in my suitcase after this match.”
He thrusts his little fists up in the air and cheers as I swim over to Everly, who seems to be dividing up the teams. “Calder,
you’re on my team.”
“Who’s on your team?”
“Me, Wyatt, Cozy, and Dakota,” she answers, pointing for me to move to the other side of the net. “Luke, Addison, Trista,
Max, and Ethan will take that side.”