Sun Kissed [ON HOLD]

2: Sun Kissed

So you guys seemed to enjoy the first chapter - here's the next installment! Hope you like it :) xo

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Wednesday 26th June

Day Two

7:03pm

I barely made it out of the shower last night before I crashed, in my underwear, face-first onto the bed. I vaguely recall Jillian calling for me and shoving the door open against the pile of shoes, before realizing I was sleeping. I stirred again sometime in the early morning, to find a blanket tossed over me. I guessed Jillian had put it there.

            I didn’t wake up until around three this afternoon, and it had taken me an hour of tossing back and forth sluggishly, fighting off the jet lag, before I managed to stumble out of bed.

            Now, it’s dinner time again, and this time, I’m actually awake.

            I wear a floral playsuit, in shades of beige and pastel yellow and cobalt blue, and toss my damp hair up into a bun. It’s so hot and humid that I barely even had to bother towel drying my hair before the sun started to do that job for me.

            I make my way to Jillian’s dining room. Her villa is all on one floor, but it’s big: with a master bedroom, two guest rooms, two lounges, a dining room, a kitchen, and an office area, I’m struck by how lonely a place this size must be for so long.

            I’m so wrapped up in my thoughts that I don’t notice the laughter floating through the doorway until I’ve got one foot inside the dining room.

            Jillian is sat at the rectangular oak table with her fingers laced around a wine glass. Three plates of paella are set out. My eyes move to the man sat opposite Jillian. The smiles seem to freeze on their faces for a moment, and the echo of their laughter hangs in the air.

            Mystery Man is tall and broad – he seems to dwarf the tall-backed oak chair he’s sitting in. His hair is coal black, and shiny, curling at the ends. His skin is dark, as are his eyes, and his teeth appear startlingly white.

            “Avery,” Jillian says, “there you are. Sit down.”

            I sit at the empty place that’s obviously mine, and she pours me some sparkling water from a pitcher on the table.

            “I think maybe you can lay off the wine tonight, hmm?”

            I let it slide.

            She still hasn’t introduced Mystery Man, so I bite my tongue on that one, too, and wait for her to make the introductions, so that I don’t seem rude by asking who he is. Maybe I’m supposed to know?

            But I’m like, ninety-eight percent sure that Jillian doesn’t have a boyfriend. I’d have said a hundred percent if this guy weren’t sat here right now – and if the two of them weren’t sharing a look like they’re in on some kind of secret I’m not.

            I swear, eons pass, and nobody talks.

            So I clear my throat and say to Jillian, “You didn’t mention we were having company.”

            She grins. “Avery, I’d like you to meet Sol. He owns the café.” What café?

            “Jill tells me you’re here for the summer,” Sol pitches in then, and takes a sip from his wine glass. I pick up my own glass of water to take a sip. He smiles warmly at me. “And that you’re interested in a job.”