Chapter 4

Jeff woke to someone shaking his shoulder. He blinked hard a few times and looked back to see Amy standing there.

“If you want to see Christina before she leaves, you’d better get going,” she whispered.

The room was still dark because of the blackout curtains, but there was light filtering around the edges.

Amy? Jeff frowned. Then who is—

Shelly was still sleeping next to him. She smiled in her sleep and snuggled deeper in his arms. Shit, shit, shit!

The memory from the night before was hazy, but not hazy enough to have been a dream. Trying not to wake her, Jeff slipped his arms out of her grip. She gave a sleepy protest but settled back to sleep as he got out of bed.

“Thanks,” he muttered to Amy as he tugged on a pair of shorts and stepped into his sandals. When he pulled on a camp shirt, he took a quick sniff test of his fingers. The musky scent was unmistakable. Dammit!

Amy went into the bathroom and closed the door. Jeff was relieved that she appeared to miss his reaction to finding Shelly in his bed. He still needed to talk to her about what happened the day before, but there would be time for that later.

Jeff grabbed his wristband on his way through the room. He took one last look at Shelly sleeping peacefully and swallowed hard. He would be so screwed if she said anything to anyone about what happened. The situation with Amy was bad enough, but at least he had been awake.

He slipped through the door and jogged to the stairs to save time. What the hell could he even say to Shelly? Sorry, I thought you were your sister? If Amy was bothered by him hooking up with Christina, finding out he’d jilled off Shelly would make her head explode.

Jeff dashed into the dining room and let out a sigh when he saw Christina’s family just sitting down to eat. She saw him immediately and beamed. He waved before going to grab something to eat. A quick run through the breakfast line got him a breakfast sandwich and coffee before heading over to join them.

“Hey,” he said as he slipped in the open seat next to Christina.

She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and rubbed his leg. “Thanks for coming down to see us off.”

“Is Amy coming?” the douchebag asked.

“I don’t know,” Jeff said. “She was heading into the bathroom when I left.”

Jeff tried to keep his mind on Christina, but what had happened with Shelly ate at him. Christina either didn’t notice or blamed his moodiness on her impending departure.

Carlos gave Jeff a good-natured grilling about his future as if he was really dating Christina. Jeff talked about his love of computers and his desire to major in computer science in the fall. Then Carlos brought up sports. They bantered back and forth about the relative merits of the Miami Dolphins and the Houston Texans. Jeff also mentioned that he played soccer and ran cross-country. Christina smiled like she was proud of him and his answers.

By the end of the meal, the douchebag was looking depressed. Amy never showed. Jeff walked them out and even helped load their luggage in their van. The whole time Christina stayed close, holding his hand when she could. Her pain was plain on her face and Jeff felt a tightness in his chest that seemed out of line with their brief time together.

“I know, uh,” Christina started as they drew closer. “I know we can’t really date or anything, but I’d like it if we could keep in touch online.”

She passed Jeff a slip of paper with her contact information. He smiled at her and nodded. “I’d like that, too.”

The rest of the family was already in the van. Christina pulled his face down and kissed him deeply. When she pulled away, she had tears in her eyes.

“I’ll never forget you,” she said as she stepped away.

Jeff could barely speak around the lump in his throat. “I already miss you.”

He stood there watching them drive away until the van disappeared from view. When he turned around, Amy was watching him through a window from inside the lobby, her expression blank. When he got back inside, she slipped her hand in his. They walked back toward the dining room together.

“I’m sorry I got weird yesterday,” Amy said at last.

Jeff squeezed her hand. “I didn’t mean for things to get weird between us.”

“I know,” she said. “I thought I was okay with ... everything. But then Mario was a jerk and you were so happy. It’s stupid, but I was jealous. I wanted a vacation fling like you had with Christina.”

“So let’s find a nice guy for you.”

“What if I wanted ... you?” she asked without meeting his eyes. “Just while we’re here, I mean.”

Jeff wasn’t too surprised by her question and hoped to diffuse the tension with a joke. “I doubt our moms would approve.”

“Yeah,” she sighed. “You’re probably right.”

“Just listen to me next time if I spot a douchebag. Please?”

She chuckled and dropped his hand as they entered the dining room. Their families were already at a table eating. The only seat available was next to Shelly and she was patting it with an excited smile at Jeff.

“Go on,” Amy said while suppressing a smile. “She hasn’t shut up all morning about getting to sleep in your bed.”

Jeff’s heart rate doubled as he sat next to Shelly. He tried to act normal so no one would suspect what had happened. Amy pulled a chair up to the corner of the table.

“Did you say goodbye to Christina?” Shelly asked. Everyone looked up to hear his answer.

“Yes,” he said. “I had breakfast with them this morning and just saw them off.”

“Now you can find someone else to have a vacation fling with,” Shelly said. The tone of her suggestion implied to Jeff that she already had someone in mind.

Mom laughed and shook her head. “Don’t encourage him!”

The adults began discussing their plans for the day. After a few minutes, they reached a consensus. There was a shopping attraction nearby with high-end stores, live music, and fantastic restaurants. The families would go spend the day there before coming back early to rest up for the theme parks. Jeff welcomed the distraction, even if he was probably going to be stuck with his cousins.

After dressing for a long day out, the family took a bus from the resort to the shopping center. Shelly amused everyone by shadowing Jeff and holding his hand everywhere they went. Jeff was more anxious than amused until Amy grabbed his other hand to make it look like they were both being silly. Lori complained that she didn’t have a hand to hold, so Dad took her hand, to Jeff’s relief.

The huge shopping center was built around the edges of a lake with footbridges and wide walkways to funnel tourists around. After a quick huddle, the group agreed to split up for the morning and meet for lunch later. Jeff then found himself being dragged into one fashion shop after another by his cousins. He occupied himself with their cute antics and spying on beautiful women from behind his sunglasses.

Everywhere he looked there were beautiful women in mouthwatering varieties. Some were dark and sultry, others were pale and full of life. Their accents and languages spanned the globe.

One lovely copper-haired girl about his age particularly caught his eye. She had a lilting brogue that sounded like a movie accent. Her green eyes shone bright and were often crinkled in amusement as she chatted with an older copy of herself. Jeff assumed it was her mother.

The pair seemed to be going to the same shops his cousins were dragging him into because he’d spotted them three different times. He left his cousins to browse and drifted close enough to hear her lovely voice again.

“Och, we never get this kind of thing.” She was holding a stylish green and gold top out to her mother. “Look at that color.”

“Oh, that’s nice,” her mother said as she took it to hold against her daughter. “It goes with yer eyes.”

Jeff couldn’t resist intruding. “She’s right. It does.”

The mother raised her eyebrows at him for the comment, but the girl blushed and looked away. “Uhm ... t’anks.”

He stepped away so they wouldn’t think he was being a creep, but her eyes followed him with interest. He rejoined his cousins as they were heading out the door, chattering about the things they saw and liked. Shelly and Lori grabbed his hands this time and forced him toward another shop at a jog.

In the next store, he found a chair and pulled out his phone. His mother warned him against posting anything about their trip. She was afraid someone would see they were on vacation and rob their house. Jeff was happy to be offline for a while, so he just read a little. He liked erotic stories and had a favorite story site online that had tons of books for free.

“We meet again.”

The softly accented voice drew his eyes up from his phone and he smiled. “Hi, I’m Jeff.”

“Shawna,” the Celtic beauty said. “Didn’t I see you at the movie last night?”

“Maybe,” he said. “Was I in a pool?”

“Yeah,” she chuckled. “Wit’ yer arms around some tart. And now yer chattin’ me up, bold as brass.”

Jeff felt his face heat. “I just agreed that the shirt matched your eyes. You’re the one chattin’ me up now.”

“And what about the tart?” Shawna asked as her blush deepened. This time she kept eye contact with a bit of humor showing in her expression.

“Her name’s Christina. I met her yesterday. She went home this morning.”

“Yesterdee? Do all Yanks move as fast as that?” Shawna asked with a laugh.

“No idea,” Jeff chuckled.

“Shawna, are ya done?” her mother asked as she approached. Then she saw Jeff in the chair. “Oh, the cheeky devil. Is he buggin’ ya again?”

“Naw, I was just messin’ about,” Shawna said as she followed her mother out of the store. She looked back just as she left to check he was still watching her and gave a satisfied smile that he was.

“Who was that?” Amy asked with a frown, drawing Jeff’s gaze away from Shawna.

“Shawna. We were just chatting.”

“Uh huh,” Amy said with a raised eyebrow. She glanced around and then bent to give Jeff a quick kiss on the lips. “Let’s go find Shelly and Lori.”

Jeff allowed himself to be pulled out of the chair and dutifully followed along. He didn’t know if the kiss meant Amy was staking a claim or simply reminding him she was there. Either way, it reminded him that she looked adorable with her braided hair, flowery romper, and leather sandals.

Shelly grabbed his other hand as they got to the door. Her straight hair was pulled back under a white headband, but she wore a similar romper and sandals. Although her curves weren’t as pronounced as Amy’s, she was just as cute. The memory of the previous night forced Jeff to see her differently than he had before. When she caught him staring at her, her smile widened enough to let her braces sparkle. What a doll.

After going to a few more stores, they met the rest of the family at the theme restaurant with giant dinosaurs inside and out. Jeff and his cousins wandered about the place while they waited for a table. Eyes wide, they all gasped and point out cool things hanging from the ceilings or walls. Lori was especially excited when the lights dimmed and loud effects simulated a volcano erupting.

During the meal, Jeff recounted the horror of being dragged into fashion boutiques while his cousins shopped. He was only joking, but Aunt Jackie assured him that after lunch he would be free to explore on his own. Both Amy and Shelly shot him identical frustrated expressions. It struck Jeff funny, especially since neither one knew what he’d done with the other.

Mom and Aunt Jackie herded the girls out after lunch, leaving Dad and Uncle Bob to explore the pubs and bars. Jeff headed off alone with his sunglasses on to spy out the most attractive women he could find. There were plenty of options to choose from in the crowds. He ended up standing around listening to a band play cover tunes in an outdoor pavilion when he spotted Shawna and her mom again.

Shawna had a milky complexion with a scattering of freckles across her nose. Her wild mop of copper hair was held out of her face with a green scrunchy. She was wearing green shorts and a tank top that gave tantalizing glimpses of her lacy white bra. Her athletic build featured muscular legs and a swimmer’s shoulders. She glanced around at one point and caught him staring at her.

She lowered her chin and sucked in her cheeks as she returned his appraising stare. Then she elbowed her mother and nodded at Jeff. Her mom laughed when she recognized the cheeky devil from earlier in the day. Jeff gave them a shrug and wandered their way.

“If you’re gonna follow us about, you might as well stay with us,” Shawna said. “And where’s that flock of young ladies you were with before?”

“Back with their mom, my Aunt Jackie,” Jeff replied. “I swear I’m not stalking you. I was leaning on that railing over there listening to the band. You both came up after I was already here. So technically...”

“And that’s just what you’d expect a cheeky devil like him to say,” her mother said to Shawna with a smirk. “He’s trouble, I say. Best leave him be.”

“Fine,” Jeff said and raised his hands in mock surrender. “I’ll just be on my way then, but you’d better stop following me around or I’ll complain.”

“Hold on.” Shawna reached out and grabbed his arm. Jeff noticed a number of colorful bracelets around her wrist and pale green polish on her nails. “Let’s not be so hasty.”

Jeff stepped closer, crowding her a little as he took her hand. He held her gaze, ignoring her mother’s amused smirk at the two of them. “Are you sure? I don’t think your sister likes me.”